VIDEO: 'We believe diversity is good for us'
Winning remains South Africa’s primary goal, but transformation is also high on the Springbok agenda.
Bok coach Jacques Nienaber – addressing the media ahead of the British and Irish Lions tour in July and August – said, from a strategic point of view, the first goal is to win.
The next goal is to transform the team and thirdly to improve the squad depth.
Nienaber and South Africa’s Director of Rugby Rassie Erasmus will unveil a 45-man squad next Saturday, June 5.
The squad will be utilised to select the Bok team for the two warm-up internationals against Georgia, three-Test series against the B&I Lions, as well as the SA ‘A ‘ team to face the tourists.
“When we select, we will look for a balance between those three goals,” the Bok coach said.
“We will select a squad that is good enough to beat Georgia, as well as the British and Irish Lions.
“Then we will look to tick the transformation box and not just ticking the box, but transforming the team, because we believe diversity is good for us.
“We saw that in the [2019] World Cup and how we really feed off that.”
Erasmus said that for the British and Irish Lions they will select their best possible team, because it is an opportunity that only comes around every 12 years.
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“The tour almost didn’t happen,” the SA Rugby boss revealed.
“It could not be postponed till next year, because it would have messed with the global calendar and other countries could not adjust.
“We would rather have the British and Irish Lions with no crowds.
“We were even willing to play anywhere in the world, because some players would never have had this opportunity.
“With those three strategic goals [winning, transforming and adding depth] it will allow us to be consistently for a high world ranking.
“[However,] the British and Irish Lions is like a World Cup Final, you only get that chance once.
“For that [B&I Lions] series, winning will be the main goal in team selection.”
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