Springboks Name Team to Face France in Paris With 2 Changes for Nations Championship
- Rassie Erasmus has made two important changes to his Springbok matchday squad as the Boks prepare for a massive Nations Championship showdown in Paris
- The Springboks are sticking with a familiar combination, but one forward has earned a promotion ahead of Friday's blockbuster against France
- Several experienced Boks are preparing for another fierce encounter against France, with memories of their previous battles adding extra intrigue to the Test
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Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus has made two changes to his matchday squad for Friday's Nations Championship showdown against France in Paris, with Wilco Louw earning a starting position and Cobus Reinach returning to the replacements bench.
Louw replaces Thomas du Toit at tighthead prop, joining Ox Nché and Malcolm Marx in a formidable starting front row. Du Toit moves to the bench, where he will provide additional forward firepower.
Reinach takes Grant Williams' place among the replacements, with the experienced scrumhalf offering another option against the French. The announcement was made on Monday, 9 November 2026, following the Springboks' victory over Italy in Turin.
Rassie Erasmus explains Springbok selection
Erasmus has retained the remainder of the starting XV, including the second-row partnership of Lood de Jager and Ruan Nortjé. Siya Kolisi will captain the side, with Pieter-Steph du Toit and Jasper Wiese completing the loose trio.
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Explaining his selection approach, Erasmus told SA Rugby:
"We said from the outset that we would not rotate too much on this tour, so it was always our intention to select a settled squad for this game to build momentum in the competition."
He also explained that the changes were carefully considered.
"Our front rows are well settled and have all been playing together for a few seasons, so we made a rotational switch with Wilco and Thomas."
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Springboks have history on their side in Paris
Sixteen players in the matchday squad featured in last year's 32-17 victory over France in Paris. Ten were also involved in the memorable 29-28 Rugby World Cup quarter-final victory in 2023.
The Boks have won their last five matches against France in Paris, dating back to 2013.
Friday's encounter kicks off at 22:10 South African time on 13 November and will be broadcast live on SuperSport.
Erasmus will be looking for another disciplined performance as the Springboks continue their Nations Championship campaign.
SPRINGBOKS – 15 Damian Willemse, 14 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Ethan Hooker, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 9 Morné van den Berg, 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Siya Kolisi (c), 5 Ruan Nortjé, 4 Lood de Jager, 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Ox Nché.
Bench: 16 Jan-Hendrik Wessels, 17 Gerhard Steenekamp, 18 Thomas du Toit, 19 Franco Mostert, 20 Cameron Hanekom, 21 Paul de Villiers, 22 Cobus Reinach, 23 Manie Libbok.
Rassie Erasmus warns Springboks ahead of France Test
Briefly News previously reported that Rassie Erasmus had warned the Springboks to improve despite their emphatic 66-7 victory over Italy on Saturday, 7 November 2026.
The Bok coach admitted that the second half was below expectations, saying: "We have to play much better than this if we want to be competitive against France and Ireland."
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Source: Briefly News
