Rassie Erasmus Takes Decision on Springboks Squad Ahead of Ties Against Argentina and All Blacks

• Rassie Erasmus confirmed plans to divide the Springbok squad following their perfect opening Nations Championship block
• Several injured players, including Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Siya Kolisi, are nearing returns ahead of the All Blacks series
• Eben Etzebeth continues his concussion recovery with Argentina fixtures set as his target comeback

Rassie Erasmus has confirmed that the Springboks will operate as a divided unit heading into their next fixture, with 26 players travelling to Buenos Aires for a one-off Test against Argentina while a separate group stays home to begin preparation for the All Blacks series.

The announcement follows the Springboks' victory over Wales, which rounded off a clean sweep across the opening block of Nations Championship fixtures against England, Scotland and Wales.

Erasmus outlines the split-squad plan

Speaking after the Wales match, Erasmus laid out the logistics for the coming weeks. "Our plans will be maybe somewhere the guys will have a week off, then 26 guys will go to Argentina," he said. "Fifteen or 16 guys will stay behind, one or two rehabbing, and they will start training for New Zealand. A few coaches will stay behind with them."

Read also

Kolisi, Etzebeth & De Jager return as new Springbok stars emerge

The arrangement is designed to serve two purposes: giving fringe players meaningful Test minutes in Argentina while allowing the coaching staff to carefully manage the workload of players returning from injury ahead of what Erasmus regards as Rugby's Greatest Rivalry.

Key players targeting All Blacks comeback

Among those expected to return for the New Zealand series are flyhalf Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and centre André Esterhuizen. Captain Siya Kolisi and lock Lood de Jager are also reported to be approaching full fitness.

Veteran lock Eben Etzebeth, who has been managing a concussion, is being given more time to recover and is targeting the Argentina fixtures as his return date, in line with what Erasmus had previously indicated.

Erasmus reiterated that results across the three opening Tests were secondary to the squad's long-term development ahead of the 2027 Rugby World Cup. Four more players made their Test debuts against Wales, with Cobus Wiese, Paul de Villiers and others continuing to accumulate international experience.

"I think every game got a little bit better," Erasmus said, acknowledging that the heavy rotation had inevitably affected cohesion. He pointed to improvements in the scrum, line-out and maul defence as evidence of progress. "We had a lot of fixes, and we're glad about that. I think today was another step."

Read also

4 Springboks named in Nations Championship XV after Rassie’s heavy rotations

Source: Briefly News