Rassie Names 4 Major Boks Stars Nearing Return—And His Plan For Wales Clash

Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus confirmed a major squad shake-up for next week’s Test against Wales, hinting at the return of stalwarts Siya Kolisi, Lood de Jager, and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu alongside rising stars to build squad depth after testing a youthful side against Scotland.

The world champions fielded a youthful and relatively inexperienced side against Scotland, with Erasmus admitting afterwards that the gulf in Test experience between the two teams was significant. Despite the challenge, he believes the exercise was another important step in building the Springboks’ remarkable depth.

Looking ahead, Erasmus expects the Wales Test to feature a blend of returning veterans and emerging stars rather than a wholesale return to his first-choice team.

“It’s a bit of a combination,” Erasmus said. He will announce his squad on Monday.

Reflecting on the wealth of experience still unavailable for selection, he listed several established Springboks who are on the road back to full fitness.

“When you walk out there, and you see Malcolm there, Eben, Siya, Lood, Sacha, Manie, Damian de Allende, Cheslin, Kurt-Lee, Canan there and a lot of guys who are still outside but coming back, we were taking a chance on Saturday.

“It wasn’t because the guys who played weren’t good enough, but because they haven’t played together,” explained Erasmus.

Erasmus confirmed that a number of those players could return as early as next weekend, significantly increasing the experience within the matchday squad.

“There will probably be some guys who return to fitness,” he said.

The Bok coach also provided an update on Ethan Hooker after the centre left the field for a head injury assessment.

“I don’t understand the Ethan Hooker concussion. We didn’t really see an incident, and his mouthguard pinged. Hopefully he’ll be cleared.”

Erasmus said Hooker could still feature against Wales if he passes the necessary concussion protocols, while Cheslin Kolbe may be given a rest after a heavy workload.

“Hopefully we can get Ethan through another couple of minutes and maybe give Cheslin a rest. We’ll see.”

Canan Moodie is also expected to be available after missing the Scotland Test, with Erasmus suggesting the versatile back could slot straight back into the midfield.

“Canan might be back to full fitness and maybe Canan switches to 13.”

Further reinforcements are also nearing a return, with Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Morne van den Berg, Siya Kolisi and Lood de Jager all progressing well in their recoveries.

“I’ll probably get Sacha back into the group next week because he might be ready for Argentina, or if not Argentina, for New Zealand,” admitted the two-time Rugby World Cup-winning coach.

“Morne van den Berg is really close to full fitness. Then a guy like Siya might be ready, and Lood is hopefully ready.”

Erasmus stressed that while experienced players will gradually return, the Springboks remain committed to expanding the depth that has become one of their greatest strengths.

“It will be a combination of some guys coming back from injury and making sure we have more caps in our positions when we run onto the field because today we were totally outdone by caps and by experience.”

The Springbok coach also explained the late withdrawal of Canan Moodie, revealing the decision was based on a combination of illness and precaution rather than a serious injury.

“Canan was not feeling that well during the week. On Friday he trained pretty well, but he also had a bit of a stiff hamstring. It wasn’t dangerous, and it wasn’t like he was going to pull it if we played him, but he was a little bit off because of illness, with a bit of a fever.”

With Ethan Hooker fully fit before kick-off, Erasmus felt it was the ideal opportunity to expose the young centre to extended Test rugby.

“Ethan was fully fit, and we thought if he gets 80 minutes under his belt here, maybe another 80 next week, then Argentina. By the time we play New Zealand, he’s got three or four games under his belt.”

By contrast, Moodie has already accumulated a heavy workload this season, making the cautious approach an easy decision.

“Canan has played the whole season, so that’s what happened there,” he added.