Springboks player ratings vs Barbarians | 2026

Springboks player ratings: The Boks kicked off their 2026 season with a tune-up against the Barbarians, but what looked like a routine win turned into quite the tussle for Rassie Erasmus’ side at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.

South Africa had more than enough firepower to keep the BaaBaas at arm’s length, but two yellow cards and some brainrot defence made it less polished than maybe it could have been, despite the 80-31 scoreline.

15. Aphelele Fassi – 5.5
A mixed bag and probably a little too erratic to score any higher. Had his moments in attack, including a break in the build-up to Jasper Wiese’s try and a key role in Jesse Kriel’s late score, but the yellow card after half-time summed up the rough edges.

14. Cheslin Kolbe – 8
Did a little bit of everything in that first 40, including an entanglement with a cameraman for good measure. Super accurate off the tee early, finished with a ripper of a try from stand-in scrum-half, but there were a few too many insipid moments in defence to go any higher.

13. Jesse Kriel – 7
A solid individual display, rounded off with a try on 73 minutes after a series of Springbok passes. Also showed his guile over the ball with a first-half turnover and was generally one of the cleaner operators when the game became a bit wild.

12. Andre Esterhuizen – 7
Got through a decent amount of hard carrying and was a handful for the BaaBaas; he always is. Contained relatively well by the excellent Alex Nankivell but still had a key hand in Edwill van der Merwe’s fourth try.

11. Edwill van der Merwe – 9
Terrorised the Barbarians in the first half and kept going after the break. Scored the Boks’ first try of the season, completed his hat-trick by 58 minutes. Electric.

10. Quan Horn – 7
An awkward enough debut early on and did not initially look a clear option to cover 10 for the Boks. The second-half was very different. He burst through in the build-up to Riley Norton’s try and looked more composed after the interval as he started to cut up the Baabaas up with ball in hand.

9. Grant Williams – 6
Let himself down badly with the yellow card, with the Barbarians taking full advantage to score three quick tries while he was in the bin. Still deserves credit for three try assists, which counter-balanced a costly first-half lapse.

1. Ox Nche – 7
Knocked a ball on in the loose but scrummaged well against Darcy Rae. Not the headline act in a loose old game, but did enough of the dirty stuff before making way early in the second half.

2. Andre-Hugo Venter – 6
Part of a Bok pack that had too much close-range punch for the Barbarians. Did not have one of the more eye-catching individual outings but his set-piece work was steady enough before JJ Kotze replaced him.

3. Carlu Sadie – 6.5
Held up his end of the scrum and got through the basics without much fuss. Replaced by Zachary Porthen on 46 minutes as South Africa started emptying the bench.

4. Riley Norton – 8
Former schoolboy cricket standout proved a decent lineout option and claimed his debut try well from the base of a ruck. Outshone Franco Mostert on debut, which is no mean feat.

5. Franco Mostert – 6.5
A relatively workmanlike first half without having a profound impact on proceedings. Solid enough, but Norton was the lock who caught the eye before Mostert made way.

6. Siya Kolisi – 8.5
The Boks’ best forward carrier in the first half and had a brilliant assist for Edwill van der Merwe’s opener. Repeated the trick after the break as Van der Merwe completed his hat-trick. Looked sharp and powerful.

7. Pieter-Steph du Toit – 6.5
Crashed over from close range on 11 minutes but uncharacteristically fell off a few too many tackles in the first half, three in total. Still brought his usual physical presence before being replaced after the break.

8. Jasper Wiese – 8.5
At his very best. The Barbarians struggled to contain him as he repeatedly trucked it up in the first half, scattering defenders as he went. Beat six defenders before the break alone and scored a proper No.8’s try. Quiet in the second.

Replacements – 7
JJ Kotze scored from the maul almost immediately after coming on, more or less ending the contest. Vusi Simphiwe Moyo was very bright and made a good case for increased involvement, setting up Faf de Klerk for a nice minute in the sun. Evan Roos did not quite have the impact he may have liked without doing much wrong, while the rest helped South Africa keep the scoreboard moving. Zachary Porthen bagged a late try.