Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus has made 10 changes to the Springboks side for Saturday’s second Rugby Championship Test against the Wallabies in Perth.
Scrumhalf Morne van den Berg and and lock Ruan Nortje will earn their first Test starts for a Springbok side that will be captained by lock Salmaan Moerat in the absence of Siya Kolisi.
Flank Marco van Staden is promoted from the bench to take Kolisi’s No 6 jersey, while the only players who retained their starting places are Cheslin Kolbe (wing), Jesse Kriel (centre), Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (flyhalf), Elrigh Louw (No 8) and Pieter-Steph du Toit, who moves from lock back to his flank.
Erasmus’ bold team selection is to “continue finding the balance between building momentum and expanding squad depth” ahead of the the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia.
“We made it clear from the outset this season that one of our main goals is to build squad depth with an eye on the next Rugby World Cup here in Australia, and we feel there is no better way to test some of the younger players and assess where we are as a group against a top-Tier nation, especially away from home, in this match,” said Erasmus.
“We have a group of about 45 players that are part of our wider squad this season and we’ve seen what most of these players can do. We have full faith in the younger generation of players coming through, and we feel this is the right time to Test them against an Australian outfit that will be desperate to bounce back strongly from last weekend.”
Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Thomas du Toit (both props) and Johan Grobbelaar (hooker) are back in the starting team as the front row after lining up against Portugal in the historic Test in Bloemfontein last month.
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How good is that step by Jesse Kriel though? 🤯
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Five other players who were members of that emphatic 64-21 victory also join them in Van den Berg, Aphelele Fassi (fullback), Lukhanyo Am (inside centre), Makazole Mapimpi (wing) and Manie Libbok (flyhalf), with the latter starting on the replacements bench showing a traditional split of five forwards and three backs.
“All of the younger players made a strong impression against Portugal and in the other Tests in which they received an opportunity to showcase their skills, and we believe that their hunger to play, combined with their individual skills will be a fantastic driving force for them to build on the result in Brisbane,” said Erasmus.
Ben-Jason Dixon, who started at flanker last week, is nursing a niggle, which has placed him on the rehabilitation list along with RG Snyman, who has been ruled out of contention for selection as he continues to manage the foot niggle that saw Erasmus being forced to make late changes his match-23 last week.
Nortje has recovered from the knee issue that ruled him out of the Brisbane match and returns to the Bok matchday team for the first time since making his Test debut off the bench against Wales in Bloemfontein in 2022.
Springbok team to face Australia in Perth:
15 Aphelele Fassi, 14 Cheslin Kolbe, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Lukhanyo Am, 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 9 Morne van den Berg, 8 Elrigh Louw, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Marco van Staden, 5 Ruan Nortje, 4 Salmaan Moerat (captain), 3 Thomas du Toit, 2 Johan Grobbelaar, 1 Jan-Hendrik Wessels.
Replacements: 16 Malcolm Marx, 17 Ox Nche, 18 Vincent Koch, 19 Eben Etzebeth, 20 Kwagga Smith, 21 Grant Williams, 22 Manie Libbok, 23 Handré Pollard.
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