Rassie Erasmus Names Springboks Squad for Rugby Championship as Analyst Calls It 'Smart Balance'

• Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus has named a 37-man squad for the upcoming Rugby Championship clash against Australia, featuring five debutants and 24 World Cup winners
• Key players have been left out, while Jasper Wiese is suspended following a red-card incident
• Rugby analyst Thabiso Mokoena told Briefly News in an exclusive interview that the squad contains a smart balance of experience and fresh talent

Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus has officially named a 37-man squad to face Australia in the upcoming Rugby Championship matches.

The squad features five debutants and includes 24 Rugby World Cup winners, a blend of fresh energy and experienced champions.

Notably, some familiar faces have been left out: winger Makazole Mapimpi, scrum-half Faf de Klerk, lock Salmaan Moerat, back-rower Evan Roos, tighthead prop Neethling Fouché, and flanker Vincent Tshituka.

Jasper Wiese is also unavailable as he begins serving a three-match suspension following his red-card head-butt incident in the recent match against Italy, as ruled by the World Rugby Disciplinary Committee.

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Commenting on the squad, Erasmus acknowledged the challenge of narrowing down the group:

“It’s always challenging to reduce the squad, especially given how the expanded group of players put up their hands during the Castle Lager Incoming Series. But we always said we would select a smaller, more manageable squad during the Castle Lager Rugby Championship,” Erasmus said.

Briefly News had an exclusive interview with rugby analyst Thabiso Mokoena, who weighed in on Erasmus’s selections.

“The squad is balanced, but the omissions of Faf and Mapimpi will definitely raise eyebrows. However, Rassie seems focused on managing player workload and blooding new talent ahead of the long season. It’s a smart approach, we need to think long-term," Mokoena said.

Mokoena also praised the inclusion of five new faces, saying:

“These debutants will bring hunger and fresh competition to the squad, which is vital in maintaining performance standards in a team like the Springboks.”

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The Rugby Championship kicks off soon, with South Africa set to face Australia at Ellis Park in Johannesburg, and fans are eager to see how this new-look Boks squad performs.

Erasmus will announce his squad for the two-match tour to New Zealand in September, before making the journey down under, where they will face their arch-rivals at Eden Park in Auckland on 6 September, and the Sky Stadium in Wellington on 13 September, respectively.

The team will end their campaign with Test matches against Argentina, to be played in Durban on Saturday, 27 September, and in London on 4 October.

Siya Kolisi speaks on retirement and Rugby 2027

Springboks captain Siya Kolisi has spoken about the possibility of being part of the team that will aim to win the Rugby World Cup for the third successive time in a row in Australia in 2027.

Kolisi, who returned to the squad for the first time this past weekend in Mbombela against Georgia, had been sidelined from action due to a neck injury.

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Kolisi, 34, will be relishing the thought of making history by doing what no other captain has done before, having already become the first black captain to lift the prestigious Webb Ellis Trophy in 2019.

SA Rugby mourns former Springboks captain

Briefly News previously reported that a former Springboks captain passed away on Monday morning after a long illness. The player who was born in Zimbabwe was instrumental even after retirement as both a coach and an administrator.

He has been described by South African Rugby as a leader in the game of rugby and has left an incredible legacy behind.

Proofreading by Kelly Lippke, copy editor at Briefly.co.za.

Source: Briefly News