When Rassie Erasmus named his 33-man squad for the Springboks’ final two Rugby Championship matches against Argentina in Durban and London, there were no major surprises at first glance.
Erasmus on Wednesday named most of the players who were members of the squad that retained the Freedom Cup in New Zealand last weekend, but there was one major absentee: Willie le Roux.
Although several players were left out due to injuries, Le Roux was not listed among this group, and it appears that the 36-year-old Bulls fullback may be being put out to pasture.
His omission was also quite surprising considering that Aphelele Fassi has suffered a serious injury, but the Springbok coaches clearly feel that Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Damian Willemse can cover fullback sufficiently.
One big player returns for Springboks
As Le Roux leaves the camp, it also almost went unnoticed that veteran hooker Bongi Mbonambi has made his return.
The abrasive hooker missed the tour to New Zealand due to an illness in the family, but he has now been able to be drafted back into the squad to add more resources alongside Malcom Marx and Jan-Hendrik Wessels.
“The Pumas are a tough and physical outfit, and they’ll come to South Africa full of confidence after beating Australia 28-26 last weekend and knowing that they beat us in Santiago Del Estero last year, as well as the All Blacks earlier in the competition,” said Erasmus.
“They have quality forwards and backs, and they play with guts and passion, so we know it will take two great performances to beat them and hopefully reclaim the Rugby Championship title.
“The next two games are going to be vital for all four teams because there is so little between them in terms of the way they play, and given how close the standings are. Any team can still win the competition, so there is no margin for error, and every point will count. These are going to be massive battles.”
Latest Bok squad:
Forwards – Pieter-Steph du Toit, Thomas du Toit, Eben Etzebeth, Vincent Koch, Siya Kolisi, Wilco Louw, Malcolm Marx, Bongi Mbonambi, Franco Mostert, Ox Nche, Ruan Nortje, Kwagga Smith, RG Snyman, Marnus van der Merwe, Marco van Staden, Boan Venter, Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Jasper Wiese.
Backs – Damian de Allende, Faf de Klerk, Andre Esterhuizen, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Ethan Hooker, Cheslin Kolbe, Jesse Kriel, Manie Libbok, Makazole Mapimpi, Canan Moodie, Handré Pollard, Cobus Reinach, Morne van den Berg, Damian Willemse, Grant Williams.
