Rugby Championship news: Rassie Erasmus goes for all-out attack as Springboks welcome Wallabies
Springboks head coach Rassie Erasmus has named his side to face the Wallabies at Ellis Park in Johannesburg a day earlier than usual in a move that suggests he sees little threat from the visitors.
The side features the Springboks’ most dynamic, pacey, and attack-minded arsenal, built to blitz the Wallabies and secure an emphatic round-one victory in the Rugby Championship.
Here, Sports News Blitz’s Aidan Leo previews the first Rugby Championship encounter between the Springboks and the Wallabies.
Early team naming
Erasmus previously broke the mould of international coaches naming their sides on Thursdays, instead making a point of announcing his teams on Tuesdays.
For this Rugby Championship opener, however, he has gone even earlier, naming his side on Monday.
It’s a clear indication of his confidence in the Springboks to get the job done in style this weekend, regardless of what Joe Schmidt and the Wallabies have in store.
His side features strength, power, and set-piece dominance in his tight five, as well as a fluid back row, with breakdown efficiency and the width to stretch the Australians if need be.
The backline consists of an all-out attacking arsenal – firepower designed to punish the Wallabies off front-foot ball.
Injuries to star names
Star players Damian de Allende and Cheslin Kolbe have not been considered for the first Test of the Rugby Championship due to injury.
De Allende suffered a back strain in training, while Kolbe is still recovering from a knee knock.
Initial fears were serious regarding the latter, but scans have cleared him, and the speedster is likely to be fully fit ahead of the second Test in Cape Town.
On the other hand, De Allende is set to resume training next week, meaning he may miss out again in the Mother City unless his recovery and performance are deemed satisfactory by conditioning coach Andy Edwards.
The dominant ball-carrying and consistently performing André Esterhuizen replaces De Allende at 12, while the livewire and explosive Edwill van der Merwe comes in for Kolbe.
Speaking on injuries and replacements, Erasmus told SA Rugby: “Damian picked up a back niggle in the last two weeks and will train again this week, but André has been strong for us in the last few seasons, so it was an easy decision to name him alongside Jesse in the midfield.
“Cheslin has also recovered from a niggle and trained with us last week, but we decided to exercise caution and give him extra time at training before selecting him.
“Edwill has been in good form this season, and it will be good to see what he brings in this match.”
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High-flyer joins scrum-cap alliance
Van der Merwe offers versatility in his ability to play on both wings, as well as similarity in style should he replace Kolbe or Kurt-Lee Arendse due to injury or unavailability at any point.
For Van der Merwe, that opportunity has presented itself this weekend.
Commenting on the challenge that lies ahead for the Springboks’ new dynamic high-flyer, Erasmus said: “All of the starters except for Edwill have faced them before, and we are confident that he is ready for this challenge.”
With this being Van der Merwe’s first opportunity to test his mettle against top, Test-level opposition, he’ll be relishing the opportunity to thoroughly impress in Kolbe’s absence.
The experience of Arendse on the other wing will provide a sense of calm and assurance in the back three, despite Van der Merwe’s inexperience.
His game-breaking ability should remain an ever-present, though, with the ‘Weekend Special’ Aphelele Fassi aiming to slice through the Wallabies’ scramble defence on the counter-attack from backfield.
Kolisi dons the number eight
Despite initially dismissing the prospect of captain Siya Kolisi featuring for the Boks at eighth man, Erasmus has changed his mind, deciding his role in the team remains the same.
Only this time, it will be at the back of the scrum.
As quoted on Supersport, Erasmus explained: “The more we practiced, the more we realised that the only position that the guy really plays at eight is at scrums, and that is 13 or 14 times during the game.
“But general play is the thing that happens the most and having a guy like Pieter-Steph [du Toit], Marco [van Staden] and Siya on the field at the same time, we really think that Australia is a big threat at the breakdown.
“We know they bite hard at the breakdown and all three of those guys are really good at cleaning out at the breakdown, and we feel we need that.
“So, yes, Siya is going to pack down at eight at the scrum and sometimes on defence he may pack down at six and Marco at eight. [Scrum coach] Daan [Human] is happy that he is scrumming well so it is really just at the scrums where he will be at eight.
“Apart from that – in general play, defence, and attack – he will have his regular role.
“I know I said a few weeks ago that he wouldn’t play eight, but we came to the conclusion that it won’t happen so much in the game that we need him at eight.
“We have Kwagga on the bench that covers there as well.”
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Boks’ most imposing tight five
Regardless of the width in their play and the attacking accuracy in wide areas, the Boks always aim to win their fundamental battles first – the collisions, the set-pieces, and the breakdown.
And considering this clash is the first of this year’s Rugby Championship, the approach will be no different.
In a front row that features Ox Nché, Malcolm Marx, and Wilco Louw, the Boks have presented their strongest front-line soldiers to annihilate the Wallabies’ forwards in all the core facets.
With the Boks’ most experienced lock duo of Eben Etzebeth and Lood de Jager backing them up, the Wallabies will face a tough battle at lineout time and in the collisions, where the commanding presence of Etzebeth is always lurking.
Final thoughts ahead of round one
The Wallabies have not beaten the Springboks at Ellis Park in the professional era and have only managed four wins against them in South Africa during that time.
A Springbok win would also mean five consecutive Test wins against the Wallabies.
Erasmus and his team will thus be aiming for 10 log points across both home games against Australia.
While the Boks are expected to secure an emphatic win this weekend, the match is likely to be fiercely contested at times, given the Wallabies’ recent third-Test success against the British & Irish Lions.
The Rugby Championship kicks off with South Africa hosting Australia at Ellis Park, Johannesburg, on Saturday, August 16, followed by a second clash in Cape Town on Saturday, August 23.
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Springbok 23 vs Australia at Ellis Park
15 Aphelele Fassi (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 12 caps, 35 points (7 tries)
14 Edwill van der Merwe (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 3 caps, 25 pts (5t)
13 Jesse Kriel (Canon Eagles) – 80 caps, 95 points (19t)
12 André Esterhuizen (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 20 caps, 0 pts
11 Kurt-Lee Arendse (Vodacom Bulls) – 26 caps, 100 points (20t)
10 Manie Libbok (Kintetsu Liners) – 20 caps, 108 pts (1t, 35 conversions, 11 penalties)
9 Grant Williams (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 19 caps, 25 pts (5t)
8 Siya Kolisi (captain, Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 93 caps, 60 points (12t)
7 Pieter-Steph du Toit (Toyota Verblitz) – 88 caps, 60 pts (12t)
6 Marco van Staden (Vodacom Bulls) – 27 caps, 15 pts (3t)
5 Lood de Jager (Wild Knights) – 67 caps, 25 points (5t)
4 Eben Etzebeth (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 133 caps, 35 points (7t)
3 Wilco Louw (Vodacom Bulls) – 18 caps, 0 pts
2 Malcolm Marx (Kubota Spears) – 78 caps, 115 pts (23t)
1 Ox Nché (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 41 caps, 0 pts
Replacements
16 Bongi Mbonambi (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 79 caps, 70 points (14t)
17 Jan-Hendrik Wessels (Vodacom Bulls) – 5 caps, 10 pts (2t)
18 Asenathi Ntlabakanye (Lions) – 1 cap, 0 pts
19 Franco Mostert (Honda Heat) – 79 caps, 20 points (4t)
20 Kwagga Smith (Shizuoka Blue Revs) – 53 caps, 45 points (9t)
21 Cobus Reinach (DHL Stormers) – 40 caps, 70 pts (14t)
22 Canan Moodie (Vodacom Bulls) – 14 caps, 35 pts (7t)
23 Damian Willemse (DHL Stormers) – 41 caps, 61 points (5t, 9c, 4p, 2 drop goals)
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