By Gavin Rich.
There didn’t look much that was new to the Springbok game at Loftus so the bravery shown by coach Jacques Nienaber in his selection for the second test against Wales should be taken as a hugely encouraging sign by South African supporters.
With the exception of Eben Etzebeth, who is on course to play his landmark 100th game in Cape Town the following week, there are no survivors in the starting team for the match in Bloemfontein on Saturday from the side that narrowly squeaked to victory a few days ago. That means 14 changes, including new caps called up, in the starting team, with four more debutants on the bench.
Nienaber was set to explain his selections at a press conference in Bloemfontein at lunch time on Tuesday, but the wholesale selection changes should not be seen as a reaction to last week’s poor performance at Loftus, particularly in the first half. It was known before the Pretoria game that Nienaber would change up for the second test, but no-one would have bet on him doing it to the extent that he has.
There are debuts in the starting team for Bulls fullback/wing Kurt-Lee Arendse, who will make his first start in the green and gold in the No 14 jersey, as well as the DHL Stormers’ United Rugby Championship of the season Evan Roos at No 8. There is a new captain in the form of flyhalf Handre Pollard, who returns to the side in the No 10 jersey after sitting out the previous week.
While the selections would not have been directed by last week’s performance, this team does turn out to be the one that many would consider a selection of the form players in South Africa this past season.
For instance, one of the four debutants on the bench is the Stormers’ ace openside flank Deon Fourie, who can also play No 8 and, at a push, even hooker, while Warrick Gelant is the starting fullback. Damian Willemse, who was in fine form in that position and then later at flyhalf in Pretoria, is part of the match day squad as a reserve and it will be interesting to see if Nienaber brings him on in the pivot position again during the game.
One of other debutants, who are all on the bench, is the Cell C Sharks’ highly promising young loosehead Ntuthuko Mchunu, who just three years ago was playing loose-forward for Maritzburg College. That is a similar route to the one taken by the man many compare Mchunu too, the legendary Tendai ‘Beast’ Mtawarira.
The other bench first timers are Bulls lock Ruan Nortje and Sharks scrumhalf Grant Williams, who toured with the Boks last year but did not get a game.
The 2019 World Rugby Player of the Year, Pieter-Steph du Toit, returns to the No 7 jersey for the first time since he was injured in the second test against the British and Irish Lions last year. And the brilliant England based former Sharks centre Andre Esterhuizen gets his first playing opportunity for the Boks since Rassie Erasmus’ first season as Bok coach back in 2018.
Although Lukhanyo Am is the star of the Bok backline when they elect to use it as an attacking weapon, it is also good to see Jesse Kriel get a game in his more regular position of outside centre. His last game for the Boks was against England at Twickenham last year as a wing.
Talking of wing, that is where Aphelele Fassi finds himself, though given the form that Gelant showed as a fullback for the Stormers in the URC and Willemse and then Willie le Roux last week, no-one should have any quibbles with him getting another game for the Boks away from his regular position in the last line of defence. As it turns out, the Boks have three players in the back three who boast regular fullback experience which will help with both the aerial battle and the counterattack in Bloemfontein.
Players on the bench who were also involved last week are hooker Malcolm Marx and prop Vincent Koch, while of course Willemse also played in Pretoria. On the subject of front row players, it is interesting to note that Thomas du Toit, latterly used mostly as a tighthead, will get to play this game in the No 1 jersey.
With mostly home-based players making up the team, it does appear that Nienaber might be using this game to prepare players for the final test of the year against England at Twickhenham, which will be played outside of the international window.
With Etzebeth now contracted to the Sharks and starting hooker Joseph Dweba to the Stormers, there are nine home based players, and that doesn’t include Gelant, who has now played his last game for the Stormers and is now contracted in France. There are of course other players who played last week, such as Steven Kitshoff, Frans Malherbe, Makazole Mapimpi and Am who can slot in for that November clash.
The make-up of the team is exciting not just because of the freshness but also for the potential for it to produce the kind of attacking game we saw from the likes of the Stormers and the Bulls in the URC. It is hard to imagine Gelant for instance to put away his penchant for counterattack and trying things, while Coetzee and Roos also bring strong attacking skills into the team, not to mention Arendse, Fassi, Williams and Fourie.
Just a few days after he was criticised for being too conservative at Loftus, Nienaber looks like he’s gone in the complete opposite direction and the selection is certainly brave and innovative. There’s also more than enough talent in the team to clinch the series in this game.
Springbok team: Warrick Gelant, Kurt-Lee Arendse, Jesse Kriel, Andre Esterhuizen, Aphelele Fassi, Handre Pollard (captain), Jaden Hendrikse, Evan Roos, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Marcel Coetzee, Marvin Orie, Eben Etzebeth, Trevor Nyakane, Joseph Dweba, Thomas du Toit. Replacements: Malcolm Marx, Ntuthuko Mchunu, Vincent Koch, Ruan Nortje, Rynhardt Elstadt, Deon Fourie, Grant Williams, Damian Willemse.