‘First Priority Is Pumas’: Rassie Warns Against Looking Past Argentina Despite All Blacks Hype
Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus made it clear on Tuesday that the team’s immediate priority is to prepare as thoroughly as possible for next weekend’s one-off clash against Argentina in Buenos Aires.
However, he acknowledged that the match will also play an important role in the Springboks’ planning for the forthcoming Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry (RGR) series against New Zealand in August and September.
The Bok squad assembled in Johannesburg on Sunday and completed two days of training. They will enjoy a rest day on Wednesday before wrapping up their on-field preparations on Thursday.
The players will then return home for a few days. The squad travelling to Argentina, which will be announced on Saturday, will depart for South America in two groups later that day, while the remaining players will return to their training base in Johannesburg to begin preparations for the four-Test series against the All Blacks.
“First and foremost, we want to beat Argentina – just like every other team, we want to win every Test match we play,” said Erasmus.
“Then there’s the bigger picture, the Rugby World Cup, which is close to a year away, but you also have to respect the team you play next week.”
With 10 players returning from injury, Erasmus provided an update on their availability for next week’s encounter against Los Pumas, whom the Springboks have faced annually in the Castle Lager Rugby Championship and who are also competing in the Nations Championship.
“There are only two guys who won’t be available due to longer-term injuries, and they are Ox Nche and Franco Mostert,” said Erasmus.
“Apart from them, everyone is ready to play. I wouldn’t say it is ideal that they are all returning from injury now. We would have preferred the guys not to have been injured and to have managed their game time properly from the start.
“The same applies to André (Esterhuizen), Eben (Etzebeth), Wilco (Louw) and Sacha (Feinberg-Mngomezulu), but this game is a really good opportunity.
“Argentina are a quality team, and you’ll quickly see who is ready to play against New Zealand two weeks later. That said, this match wasn’t planned for that reason – it was always about honouring our relationship with Argentina – but yes, most of those guys will be involved.”
When asked how he planned to manage his squad ahead of the RGR series once the touring group returns from Argentina, Erasmus said balancing squad depth with giving players game time would be key.
“The big thing is we don’t want to keep a guy with us and not use him during the All Blacks series. That’s why we’re giving some guys the opportunity to play for their franchises.
“Taking players on tour without being able to give them a game for their franchise against the All Blacks would not be the right thing, but we also don’t want to release players if we’re not 100% sure we’re covered in those positions for the All Black Tests.
“So, as long as we can release players without jeopardising squad depth, we’ll try to do so. We might also release more players from the group if they don’t get enough game time in the Springbok Tests.”
Despite the announcement of the All Blacks’ touring squad, Erasmus insisted the Springboks remain fully focused on Argentina and will analyse New Zealand’s squad in greater detail closer to the series.
“I saw the squad was announced and had a brief look at it, but at this stage we’re all locked in for Argentina,” said Erasmus.
“There’ll be a group that stays behind and starts focusing on them because we can only take a certain number of players to Argentina. But in all honesty, I haven’t studied their squad enough.
“That said, it sounds like everybody’s really excited about the squad and the way they’ve played in the first three Nations Championship games, and we know it’s going to be tough, but Argentina is our first goal right now.”
Erasmus is expected to finalise his official Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry squad after the Springboks return from Argentina.
