In the spotlight: The 10 Bok players who need to prove their fitness this week
· Citizen
Having had a week off with their families following the conclusion of the first stage of the Nations Championship, the Springbok squad for the one-off Test against Argentina and the series against the All Blacks will kick off on-field training again on Monday.
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The 43-man squad gathered in Joburg on Sunday, with coach Rassie Erasmus set to use this week assessing players who have been recalled after missing out on, or playing a limited role in, the Nations Championship Tests against England, Scotland and Wales due to injuries.
The 10 players who Erasmus and the Bok medical team will be interested to see training are Eben Etzebeth, Lood de Jager, Franco Mostert, Siya Kolisi, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Handre Pollard, Ethan Hooker, Canan Moodie, Andre Esterhuizen and Morne van den Berg.
They will all want to prove their fitness ahead of the trip to Argentina for the one-off Test in Buenos Aires next weekend (8 August).
With the four Test series against the All Blacks to follow, Erasmus will be keen to let them loose against the Pumas.
“Some players are returning from injury and need some valuable game time, so depending on how they progress from their injuries during the week’s training camp, we will decide who we will take to Argentina, while the other guys in the 43-man squad will remain behind in Johannesburg with a group of coaches and management to begin preparing for the Tests against New Zealand,” said Erasmus.
The 26-man squad that will travel to Buenos Aires is expected to be finalised at the end of this week. They will travel to Argentina in two groups on Sunday and next Monday.
Expect a number of the other first-choice players who were involved in the Tests recently in the Nations Championship to stay home and continue training here. These players could include Damian Willemse, Cheslin Kolbe, Jesse Kriel, Damian de Allende, Jasper Wiese, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Ruan Nortje, Malcolm Marx, Wilco Louw and Thomas du Toit.
Meanwhile, the All Blacks squad for the tour of South Africa was named early on Monday in Auckland, by new coach Dave Rennie.
A group of 44 players will tour South Africa from next week. The visitors will play four Tests against the world champions and four matches against the SA United Rugby Championship sides.