The selection of 8 uncapped players and the return of a further 6 are the features of the Springbok squad named on Saturday for the 5 matches leading up to the Rugby World Cup later this season.
In addition to the 36 squad members, the national selectors have identified 13 players who are currently injured or will be in rehabilitation, but will form part of an extended squad for the matches against the World XV, Castle Lager Rugby Championship and the Test against Argentina in Buenos Aires.
The uncapped players in the squad are Scarra Ntubeni, Steven Kitshoff, Vincent Koch, Rudy Paige, Faf de Klerk, Jesse Kriel, Franco Mostert and Lionel Mapoe.
Back in the Springbok fold after not featuring in any Springbok Tests last year, are Elton Jantjies, Frans Steyn, Jaque Fourie, Heinrich Brüssow, Pieter-Steph du Toit and Heinke van der Merwe.
The currently injured players included in the squad are Springbok captain Jean de Villiers, Lionel Mapoe, Heinrich Brüssow, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Frans Steyn, Coenie Oosthuizen, Lood de Jager, Duane Vermeulen, Cobus Reinach, Pat Lambie, Jaque Fourie, Jan Serfontein and Fourie du Preez. The latter suffered a knee injury while training with his Japanese club earlier this week.
“It’s a long list of injured players but all of them are in the selection frame and we’d like to work with them to assist with their rehabilitation,” said Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer.
“Some of them are close to full fitness and they will start training as soon as possible. We’ll assess and manage all the injured players individually with their return to play in mind and will do what is the best for the player and the team, even if it means that some of them play for their clubs or provinces if deemed necessary by our medical team and in consultation with their unions.
“Coenie Oosthuizen has been selected, but he has a neck injury which will rule him out of joining the squad immediately. We will wait for medical clarity to ensure we do what is best for Coenie before a decision is made on the way forward.
“Even though Jaque Fourie announced that he had retired from Test rugby late last year, we have had positive talks with him and his club, Kobe in Japan, and an agreement was reached that he will be available for 1 last season of Test rugby. As soon as he’s back to full fitness, we’ll consider him for selection.
“Jean de Villiers’ rehabilitation is going very well but his return to play will be strictly monitored before an announcement in this regard is made.”
Scarra Ntubeni (hooker), Rudy Paige (scrumhalf) and Lionel Mapoe (outside back) have been part of Springbok tour squads before, but this will be the 1st involvement at international level for Faf de Klerk (scrumhalf), Franco Mostert (lock), Steven Kitshoff and Vincent Koch (both props).
Meyer added that Vodacom Super Rugby form weighed heavily and as always there were a number of players who were desperately close to selection, but just missed out in the end.
“This is testament to the great depth we’ve managed to build in most positions over the last few years. It’s good to know we have players outside this squad who will be able to slot in should it be necessary,” said the Springbok coach.
“Scarra has been with us before and he has done a great job specifically in the scrums with Vincent, Steven and Frans Malherbe for the DHL Stormers this year.
“Lionel, Franco, Faf and Elton have been part of the ever-improving Emirates Lions, while Rudy and Jesse grabbed their opportunities for the Vodacom Bulls this season.
Meyer added that he was pleased to have Heinke van der Merwe, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Heinrich Brüssow, Frans Steyn and Jaque Fourie back with the Springboks.
“They are players with international experience and we know what they can do. It will be great to welcome them back into the Springbok fold and I know they will add value,” said the Springbok coach.
“It was great to see players such as Morné, Heinke, Bryan, Schalk Brits and Francois play in and win finals with their clubs in Europe.”
“We also talked to Andries Bekker as we wanted to consider him for selection, but upon a request from his club in Japan he was ultimately not picked for the squad at this stage. Hopefully he will be available at a later stage during the season.
“Flip van der Merwe was on our radar but ultimately he has decided to rule himself out of Springbok contention.”
Meyer said that he didn’t want to go into the 2015 Test season without exploring all options available to the Springboks.
“We will be guided by our medical team and specialists to ensure no stone is left unturned as we manage the injured players’ return to play. The players who have been included in the squad because of injuries to others must use this opportunity to break down the door to ensure they remain part of the squad as we look forward to the World Cup.
“As certain players regain fitness, others will be sent back to their provinces, but that doesn’t mean they are out of our thinking completely as the door to World Cup selection will never be fully closed. We talked to every player we thought could add value and considered every option available to us.
“The next 5 matches, before we finalise the squad for the Rugby World Cup, will be very important as we want to ensure the right 31 players are on the plane to England on 11 September.
“We have done a lot of planning and research and are well-prepared for the season. We’ll use the matches against the World XV, Australia, New Zealand and Argentina to fine tune where necessary, but the next 2 months also provide the players with an opportunity to put themselves in contention to make the World Cup squad.”
The Springbok squad is (in alphabetical order):
- Willem Alberts (Cell C Sharks), Loose forward, 32 Test caps
- Schalk Brits (Saracens, England), Hooker, 7 caps
- Schalk Burger (DHL Stormers / Suntory, Japan), Loose forward, 75 caps
- Marcell Coetzee (Cell C Sharks), Loose forward, 26 caps
- Damian de Allende (DHL Stormers), Centre, 3 caps
- Faf de Klerk (Emirates Lions / Steval Pumas), Scrumhalf, 0 caps
- Bismarck du Plessis (Cell C Sharks), Hooker, 70 caps
- Jannie du Plessis (Cell C Sharks), Prop, 62 caps
- Eben Etzebeth (DHL Stormers), Lock, 33 caps
- Elton Jantjies (Emirates Lions), Flyhalf, 2 caps
- Bryan Habana (Toulon, France), Wing, 106 caps
- Cornal Hendricks (Toyota Cheetahs), Wing, 11 caps
- Zane Kirchner (Leinster, Ireland), Wing / Fullback, 29 caps
- Steven Kitshoff (DHL Stormers), Prop, 0 caps
- Vincent Koch (DHL Stormers / Steval Pumas), Prop, 0 caps
- Siya Kolisi (DHL Stormers), Loose forward, 10 caps
- Jesse Kriel (Vodacom Bulls), Fullback, 0 caps
- Willie le Roux (Toyota Cheetahs), Fullback / Wing, 25 caps
- Francois Louw (Bath, England), Loose forward, 34 caps
- Frans Malherbe (DHL Stormers), Prop, 4 caps
- Victor Matfield (Vodacom Bulls), Lock, 121 caps
- Teboho “Oupa” Mohoje (Toyota Cheetahs), Loose forward, 7 caps
- Franco Mostert (Emirates Lions), Lock, 0 caps
- Tendai Mtawarira (Cell C Sharks), Prop, 64 caps
- Lwazi Mvovo (Cell C Sharks), Wing, 10 caps
- Scarra Ntubeni (DHL Stormers), Hooker, 0 caps
- Trevor Nyakane (Vodacom Bulls), Prop, 13 caps
- Rudy Paige (Vodacom Bulls), Scrumhalf, 0 caps
- Ruan Pienaar (Ulster, N Ireland), Scrumhalf, 80 caps
- JP Pietersen (Cell C Sharks), Centre / Wing, 59 caps
- Handré Pollard (Vodacom Bulls), Flyhalf, 9 caps
- Morné Steyn (Stade Francais, France), Flyhalf, 59 caps
- Adriaan Strauss (Vodacom Bulls), Hooker, 44 caps
- Heinke van der Merwe (Stade Francais, France), Prop, 4 caps
- Marcel van der Merwe (Vodacom Bulls), Prop, 4 caps
- Warren Whiteley (Emirates Lions), Loose forward, 2 caps
Injured / Conditioning squad:
- Heinrich Brüssow (Toyota Cheetahs / Docomo, Japan), Loose forward, 20 caps
- Lood de Jager (Toyota Cheetahs), Lock, 9 caps
- Jean de Villiers (DHL Stormers), Centre, 106 caps
- Fourie du Preez (Suntory, Japan), Scrumhalf, 70 caps
- Pieter-Steph du Toit (Cell C Sharks), Lock, 2 caps
- Jaque Fourie (Kobe, Japan), Centre, 72 caps
- Patrick Lambie (Cell C Sharks), Flyhalf / Fullback, 40 caps
- Lionel Mapoe (Emirates Lions), Centre, 0 caps
- Coenie Oosthuizen (Toyota Cheetahs), Prop, 21 caps
- Cobus Reinach (Cell C Sharks), Scrumhalf, 6 caps
- Jan Serfontein (Vodacom Bulls), Centre, 20 caps
- Frans Steyn (Cell C Sharks), Centre, 53 caps
- Duane Vermeulen (DHL Stormers), No 8, 29 caps
@ Angostura:
As I understand, if we win our pool and the AB’s win their pool, then we will meet in the semi final?
To avoid this, we could take the other route and by finishing second in our pool perhaps only meet them in the final.
In 2011 we got knocked out by the Aussies, which would not have happened if they hadn’t lost to Ireland in their pool game and thereby throwing all the permutations out of the window.
I know a team won’t go out and throw a game, but IMO, in this WC it might be better for us to travel the so called low road scenario by ending second in our pool, as the alternative is being knocked out in the semis against NZ
@ nortie:
The low road will mean we exit even earlier (in the QFs) & consequently never get to meet NZ (but by SA, & not NZ, exiting early).
Can’t see how that benefits SA.
@ Angostura:
😆
I would have thought we would have more faith in Meyer and the team.
Surely it’s unthinkable that the Boks would lose to England, Australia, Ireland or Wales? 😉
NZ we know is a different kettle of fish and playing them away from Ellis Park and without our directors behind the TV screens will be more difficult.
If you already have your reservations that we might lose to Eng or Aus in the QF then I’m guessing that you also think we don’t really stand much of a chance of winning the WC?
@ nortie:
Well, had you read my post 23 you’d know exactly what I think, & there would be no need to surmise …
@ Angostura:
I know you rate the Arigies, but surely it’s a stretch to think that they would/could beat the All Blacks.
34 @ Angostura:
You do realize that this realistic train of thought from you will cause you to be labelled as “glass half empty” by some of the bloggers here?
Realistic doesn’t sit well with those whose glasses are so half full that they can’t seem to see through it
35 @ nortie:
A stretch?
Actually, I used the description, “preposterous” …
but given match conditions, say, similar to that which pertained during SA vs. France, Kings Park, RWC 1995, & their powerful pack of forwards will give ARG an even chance of victory.
Geez 49 man squad… Meyer is really putting it all on the line 😆
Guess it is tough work, leave one or two players out now and parts of the country will turn on him, so he had to leave out Hougie first for JPP, Movovu and Cornal… hmmm
The biggest problem with such a huge squad, is that it would be uncharacteristic for Meyer to not play the World XV with the team he would play in the first game of the RWC… So the huge squad is just to please as much people as possible in the country… I wish Springbok rugby was not like that, provincialism is also holding us back…. complete and utter waste for such a large squad.
@ MacroPolo:
Yep, maybe he left out Spies, Arno and Hougie in case he was accused of Bulls’ bias.
It’s also pointless putting the Province/Franchise name after the player’s name….eg Bissie and Jannie are no longer Sharks, but from France, same with Alberts.
Are some players from Japanese clubs or from SA franchises?
Coenie is now a Shark, not a Cheetah etc
@ nortie:
and remember after 2013 when the first springbok team was selected after Super Rugby, then it was the new club names next to the players to overemphasize that he selected overseas players, although most of the played the whole season in South Africa… People lapped that up as well for the “sudden” controversy.
@ nortie:
Meyer had no choice but to leave the Bulls players out first, do you honestly think that would stop people from claiming his Bulls bias? narafak.
@ MacroPolo:
Honestly, it doesn’t really matter in the bigger scheme of things, 49 players, 39 or 59 or however many bases he wants covered, the players he has to choose from are not individually or collectively good enough to win the RC, let alone the WC
42 @ MacroPolo:
He he, so I’m guessing that by omitting the Bulls, he is showing his hand that he won’t be back coaching at Loftus next year?
Won’t be easy for him to pitch up there surrounded by players he shunned and then expecting them to be loyal to him 😆
aan almal wat sooooooooooo flokken negatief is,hel gee die ouens n kans
@ Puma: Howzit Pumes. Its been a very long time. Was wondering where and what you were getting up to.
The weather actually cleared up a tad, contrary to my expectations. Still have a fire going though because it remains freeging cold. I’m a warm climate boy. Trust me, I would much prefer to be on a KZN beach right now or better still, in the bush somewhere hot. Namibia for example.
Like many on here, I’d back the Boks until my last breath. But, realistically (and I hate that cop-out, truth be told), we have to concede that the AB’s are a step ahead of us. We’ll have to box very clever to overcome the obvious disadvantages. For the rest, we can go 15 rounds with the best of them, and, with a bit of luck, beat anyone. That includes the Poms, Oz, coalminers and the impressive Micks. But we don’t play this game to lose. Even against the AB’s. That hurts too. More actually.
JP has been very disappointing. He does not deserve his spot. We have some great players and we can be massively proud of some of our boys and the way they play the game. Lets hope Meyer can knit together the right blend, please all the politicians and bring back Bill. Tall order one needs to accept.
Winter has its downside. But I’m sitting in our kitchen, sipping on a damn good cab and babysitting my beef curry in the potjie, while talking to you guys. Well, I call it a potjie because its a cast iron pot on my gas stove. Too cold to light a fire outside. Nothing like the aroma of a proper curry. I’ve never counted but I’d guess that this must be close to my thousandth curry because I’ve made one close to every weekend for the last 30 years. Same pot too. Hadn’t thought of that before now. As I said; its a typical winter’s day.
@ smallies: Oh, we will boet. Trust me, all on here will be hoping and praying the Boks will slay all before them. Just like in previous WC’s. Hell man, n luipaard verander sy spots nie te vinning nie. Selfs nerens.
Which brings me to the micro-subject of politics. Lets face it, if one were to pick a Springbok side today, on merit, there wouldn’t be too many players of colour in that squad. Everyone is by now well acquainted with the political landscape in this country and why we cannot have a better racially balanced side I cannot fathom. There’s serious talent across the races and we all see that every time we watch a game of rugga at whatever level below Bok level. Why the hell that talent cannot be nurtured to the top level so that we can actually say; that player is the best in his position and unquestionably deserves his spot ahead of all-comers. I think I speak for all on this site and beyond, all we want is the best Bok side on the paddock so that we can beat everyone or at the very least, offer our best shot. How is Meyer going to pad his team with black players for this WC without compromising quality? Please someone give me some guidance because I can’t see it. Maybe this excellent cabernet is blinding me to the truth and/or marching me into the political equivalent of the lion’s den. Luckily for me this site’s full of Bull/s.
and, while we’re on that subject……..
lets look at a Meyer selected Springbok side based on the players selected:
1 Beast
2 B Dup
3 J Dup
4 Matfield
5 Etsabeth
6 Skalla
7 F Louw
8 D Vermeulen
9 Pienaar
10 Pollard
11 Habs
12 De Allende
13 Mapoe
14 Hendricks
15 Willie
16 Scarra
17 Malherbe
18 Kitshoff
19 Marcel
20 F Mostert
21 Alberts
22 Faf
23 Zane
Now do you guys see what I mean???
@ Tassies:
poc in die squad not on merrit,jpp cornal that is about it,kolisi did not play a lot but we know what we have in him.
@ smallies: Who’s ‘poc’?
51 @ smallies:
Even if we know what we have in Kolisi, it’s ludicrous to even consider that he or Oupa are better than the non POC loose forwards.
HM has no choice but to look for wings to boost the number, and it’s not necessarily his fault, he can only play the hand that was dealt to him by the SR coaches.
He could have selected Mapoe to the group and there wouldn’t have been too much grumbling seeing as the Lions are the favour of the month.
@ Tassies:
spelers van kleur soos die mense se
@ nortie:
Sorry, Mapoe is there already, missed his name as I didn’t look at the injured players
nortie wrote:
Hy wont write us off, sure there will be a lot of hard work that has to be done… but starting off by leaving Jannie and Beast will be a big step forward.
@ nortie:
mapoe was onteenseglik een van die beste senters in sa die jaar,ek sou baie ernsig na mnisi ook gekyk het….
Even though Jaco Kriel can count himself very unlucky, imagine how a guy like Ardi Savea must be feeling. He had a blinder again yesterday, so it’s not just in the Bok group that there are some unlucky players.
I guess the biggest difference between our group and that of the AB’s is simply that by them players like Naholo who won’t find themselves in the match 23 are a class above our players who will find themselves in the match day team
57 @ smallies:
Yep, punt is, hy gaan tyd mors om na voorspelers te soek om in die groep te sit, hulle is dun gesaai en nie onder die bestes in hulle posisie nie.
Agter spelers is n ander saak, ons spanne se agterspelers is meestal maar ornamente en net daar om te tackle
@ nortie:
Well if our squad was down to 41 players there would be 8 more disappointed players…
Just imagine, Hanson has to whittle his squad down to 31 players, there will be even more disappointed players.
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