Springboks name 36 man squad for November Tests
The uncapped trio of Sergeal Petersen (wing), Ruhan Nel (centre) and JD Schickerling (lock) were on Saturday named in the Springbok squad of 36 for the 2018 Castle Lager Outgoing Tour to the United Kingdom and France.
Apart from the inclusion of the three uncapped players from DHL Western Province, there were recalls for Gio Aplon (outside back) and Louis Schreuder (scrumhalf), who captained the Cell C Sharks in Saturday’s Currie Cup final.
Schreuder and the uncapped DHL Western Province trio were among 10 players who rushed from the Currie Cup final to catch a flight to the UK to join the Springboks on tour.
Also on the flight after the final were Wilco Louw, Bongi Mbonambi, Sikhumbuzo Notshe and Damian Willemse (all DHL Western Province) and the Cell C Sharks’ Sbu Nkosi and Thomas du Toit. The final of the Currie Cup, sponsored by Nashua and DirectAxis Financial Services, was won by the Cell C Sharks by 17-12.
Trevor Nyakane (prop) and Lood de Jager (lock) are back in the Springbok fold after missing the entire international season to date due to injury, while Duane Vermeulen (loose forward) also returns after missing the Castle Lager Rugby Championship campaign.
All three experienced forwards, with a combined 115 caps between them, were part of a preliminary squad of 20 players who attended a week-long training camp in Stellenbosch, where they worked hard to prepare for the annual end of year tour.
Petersen played in a tour match for the Springboks against the Barbarians at Wembley in London in 2016, but is uncapped at Test level. Nel was part of the squad during the latter stages of the Castle Lager Rugby Championship.
The 23-year-old Schickerling, a former SA Under-20 representative, will get his first taste of senior international rugby, although he and Petersen played for the SA ‘A’ side against the touring England Saxons in June 2016.
Aplon is plying his trade in Japan nowadays and has 17 Test caps to his name, the last of which came in 2012. He is an exciting attacker with a good left boot and can play either fullback or wing.
Schreuder has one Test cap and cracked the nod for inclusion in the tour squad following some good performances for the Cell C Sharks in the domestic Currie Cup.
Rassie Erasmus, the SA Rugby Director of Rugby, has named 20 forwards and 16 backs for the month-long tour to England, France, Scotland and Wales.
“This tour to the northern hemisphere will be another tough test of our team’s character and we are looking forward to the exciting challenges against England, France, Scotland and Wales,” said Erasmus.
“It is always good to welcome new players to the Springbok environment and I’m excited to work with Sergeal and JD – I am sure they will bring a lot of energy into the group.
“Gio has a lot of experience of playing in the challenging European conditions from his club rugby stint in France, while Louis has been impressive in the Currie Cup and also brings a lot of experience.
“And we all know the value experienced players such as Lood, Trevor, and Duane will bring to the squad.”
Lionel Mapoe, who was part of the training squad in Stellenbosch, was ruled out of the tour due to injury and joins Tendai Mtawarira, Ross Cronje, Lukhanyo Am and Makazole Mapimpi, all of whom were part of the Castle Lager Rugby Championship squad, on the sidelines.
The Springboks face England at Twickenham on 3 November, followed by a meeting with the French in Paris one week later on 10 November. Their third Test on Tour is against Scotland at BT Murrayfield in Edinburgh on 17 November, and they wrap up their month-long tour with a visit to the Principality Stadium, where they are due to face Wales on 24 November.
The Springbok squad for the 2018 Castle Lager Outgoing Tour (in order of name, surname, position, province, Test caps, Test points):
Forwards:
Schalk Brits (Hooker, Unattached, 11, 5 – 1t)
Lood de Jager (Lock, Vodacom Blue Bulls, 36, 20 – 4t)
Pieter-Steph du Toit (Loose forward / Lock, DHL Western Province, 42, 20 – 4t)
Thomas du Toit (Prop, Cell C Sharks, 5, 0)
Eben Etzebeth (Lock, DHL Western Province, 73, 15 – 3t)
Steven Kitshoff (Prop, DHL Western Province, 33, 5 – 1t)
Vincent Koch (Prop, Saracens, England, 10, 0)
Siya Kolisi (captain – Loose forward, DHL Western Province, 37, 25 – 5t)
Francois Louw (Loose forward, Bath, England, 62, 45, – 9t)
Wilco Louw (Prop, DHL Western Province, 11, 0)
Frans Malherbe (Prop, DHL Western Province, 25, 0)
Malcolm Marx (Hooker, Xerox Golden Lions, 20, 20 – 4t)
Bongi Mbonambi (Hooker, DHL Western Province, 22, 10 – 2t)
Franco Mostert (Lock, Xerox Golden Lions, 26, 5 – 1t)
Sikhumbuzo Notshe (Loose forward, DHL Western Province, 6, 0)
Trevor Nyakane (Prop, Vodacom Blue Bulls, 37, 5 – 1t)
JD Schickerling (Lock, DHL Western Province, uncapped)
RG Snyman (Lock, Honda Heat, Japan, 8, 0)
Duane Vermeulen (Loose forward, Kubota Spears, Japan, 42, 15 – 3t)
Warren Whiteley (Loose forward, Xerox Golden Lions, 21, 15 – 3t)
Backs:
Gio Aplon (Wing / Fullback, Toyota Verblitz, Japan, 17, 25 – 5t)
Damian de Allende (Centre, DHL Western Province, 33, 20 – 4t)
Aphiwe Dyantyi (Wing, Xerox Golden Lions, 9, 30 – 6t)
André Esterhuizen (Centre, Munakata Sanix Blues, Japan, 5, 0)
Elton Jantjies (Flyhalf, Xerox Golden Lions, 29, 223 – 2t, 42c, 43p)
Cheslin Kolbe (Wing / Fullback, Toulouse, France, 4, 10 – 2t)
Jesse Kriel (Centre, Vodacom Blue Bulls, 36, 50 – 10t)
Wille le Roux (Fullback, Wasps, England, 50, 60 – 12t)
Ruhan Nel (Centre, DHL Western province, upcapped)
Sbu Nkosi (Wing, Cell C Sharks, 3, 10 – 2t)
Embrose Papier (Scrumhalf, Vodacom Blue Bulls, 4, 0)
Sergeal Petersen (Wing, DHL Western Province, uncapped)
Handré Pollard (Flyhalf, Vodacom Blue Bulls, 35, 293 – 3t, 55c, 53p, 3d)
Louis Schreuder (Scrumhalf, Cell C Sharks, 1, 0)
Ivan van Zyl (Scrumhalf, Vodacom Blue Bulls, 3, 0)
Damian Willemse (Flyhalf / Fullback, DHL Western Province, 3, 0)
Comments on RugbyPass
A wallaby front-row of Bell, Blake and Tupou…now that would be hefty
1 Go to comments“But with an exceptional pass accuracy rating “ Which apart from Roigard is not a feature of any of the other 9s in NZ. Kind of basic for a Black 9 dont.you. think? Yet we keep seeing FC and TJ being rated ahead of him? Weird if it’s seen as vital to get our backline beating in your face defences.
1 Go to commentsThanks BeeMc! Looks like many teams need extra time to settle from the quadrennial northern migration. I think generally the quality of the Rugby has held up. Fiji has been fantastic and fun to watch
13 Go to commentsLets compare apples with apples. Lyon sent weak team the week before, but nobody raised an eyebrow. Give the South African teams a few years to build their depth, then you will be moaning that the teams are too strong.
41 Go to commentsDid footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
11 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
10 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
11 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
24 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
4 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
10 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
35 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
35 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
17 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
4 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to comments