After an injury to Aphelele Fassi, the Springboks have drafted Damian Willemse back into the fullback berth for this Saturday’s Test against Argentina, while Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu could be moved to 15 at some point in the second half.
It’s all part of a changing of the guard after Willie le Roux was omitted from the latest squad of 33 players for the Springboks’ next two Tests against Argentina – the second of which will take place at the Allianz Stadium, Twickenham, on Saturday 4 October.
Although Le Roux did rejoin the Springboks this past Sunday, it was just on a short-term basis to assist the team in their training and preparations for the upcoming clash against Argentina in Durban.
However, the latest Springbok centurion has now returned to the Bulls, and he has been named in the Pretoria side’s matchday 23 for opening United Rugby Championship match against the Ospreys at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.
Willie le Roux coming to the end of his Springbok journey
The double World Cup winner has just turned 36-years-old, and the national coaches will be fully aware that there is little to no chance that Le Roux will head to the next World Cup.
Although the leadership and experience of Le Roux does hold great value, and was a key reason he recently spend time training with the team, it would be counter-productive to deprive other fullbacks of game-time and exposure to high-pressure matchday situations.
End of the road?
Le Roux is not expected to travel with the team for the Rugby Championship finale against Argentina in London, although it remains to be seen whether he could be roped in for the end-of-year Tests considering that Fassi will miss that tour due to injury.
Should the veteran fullback still be omitted from the Springboks’ end-of-year touring squad, though, it may well mean that he has reached the end of the road with the national side.
