Springboks omit six of Saturday's starters from squad for Argentina

Springboks boss Rassie Erasmus has omitted six of last Saturday’s starting players in the win over the All Blacks from his 28-man squad for the September 21 Rugby Championship match in Argentina.

South Africa have taken a stranglehold on the tournament with four successive wins in 2024 and with a campaign-ending rematch with the Pumas scheduled for September 28 at home in Nelspruit, Erasmus has left backs Willie Le Roux, Damian de Allende and Cheslin Kolbe, along with forwards Bongi Mbonambi, Frans Malherbe and Pieter-Steph du Toit behind to prepare for that round six match.

Also absent for the round five trip to South America is Sacha Feinberg-Mbonmezulu, who was a second-half replacement in last weekend’s 18-12 win over New Zealand in Cape Town. A statement read: “Rassie Erasmus has recalled hooker Johan Grobbelaar to his 28-man squad for their short tour to Argentina where they will face Los Pumas at Estadio Unico Madre Ciudades in Santiago on September 21 in their penultimate Castle Lager Rugby Championship clash.

“Erasmus opted to rest seven players who have had a heavy workload in the last few months with an eye on the final round of the competition in Nelspruit against Argentina on September 28. Grobbelaar is back in the squad after participating in the Australian leg of the tournament, where the Boks collected a full house of points, and will cover hooker along with Malcolm Marx and Jan-Hendrik Wessels, who can also play prop.

“The seven players who will not travel to Argentina are Bongi Mbonambi (hooker), Frans Malherbe (prop), Pieter-Steph du Toit (loose forward), Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (fly-half), Damian de Allende (centre), Cheslin Kolbe (wing), and Willie le Roux (full-back).

“All of them will be placed on a specialised training programme to keep them sharp with an eye on rejoining the group in Mpumalanga upon their return from Argentina. The squad will assemble in Stellenbosch on Wednesday afternoon to begin their preparations for the tour and will depart for Argentina on Saturday.

“Erasmus named only two specialist hookers in the squad in Grobbelaar and Marx, while Am and Kriel are the only two specialist centres, but he said while Wessels and Marco van Staden could provide cover at hooker, Canan Moodie, who has played in the midfield for the Boks, could provide cover at centre, wing, and full-back.”

Erasmus said: “We have been open about our policy to try to give as many players in our wider squad as possible a chance to play against the top teams in the world. We believe playing against Argentina in Santiago, where we are expecting a massive encounter in front of a hostile crowd, will serve as a great test for this group of players.

“The players we decided to rest have really done their bit this season and their bodies deserve a break, so we thought the best for them would be to enjoy a break and spend time with their families before joining us in Nelspruit. All of the players in the 28-man squad have been in the set-up this year and have proved their worth, so we are delighted to give them an opportunity to face Argentina on their home ground.

“Argentina proved last week what a force they can be at home by defeating the Wallabies by 67-27 in Santa Fe, so we know how tough the match will be against them, and this is exactly what we want our players to experience as we continue to build the group for the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia. This is a short tour, and we are confident that we have sufficient cover in all the positions within this group.

“Some players, such as Johan Grobbelaar, Manie Libbok, Jaden Hendrikse, and Canan Moodie – to name a few – will benefit immensely from more game time at this level, while other players such as Aphelele Fassi and Ben-Jason Dixon for example grabbed their chances with both hands this season and we are excited to see them back in action.”

Springboks (squad vs Argentina, away)

PROPS: Thomas du Toit (Bath), Vincent Koch (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Ox Nche (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Gerhard Steenekamp (Vodacom Bulls);

HOOKERS: Johan Grobbelaar (Vodacom Bulls), Malcolm Marx (Kubota Spears);

LOCKS: Eben Etzebeth (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Nicolaas Janse van Rensburg (Montpellier), Salmaan Moerat (DHL Stormers), Ruan Nortje (Vodacom Bulls);

LOOSE FORWARDS: Ben-Jason Dixon (DHL Stormers), Siya Kolisi (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Elrigh Louw (Vodacom Bulls), Kwagga Smith (Shizuoka Blue Revs), Marco van Staden (Vodacom Bulls), Jasper Wiese (Urayasu D-Rocks);

UTILITY FORWARD: Jan-Hendrik Wessels (Vodacom Bulls).

SCRUM-HALVES: Jaden Hendrikse (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Cobus Reinach (Montpellier), Grant Williams (Hollywoodbets Sharks);

FLY-HALVES: Manie Libbok (DHL Stormers), Handre Pollard (Leicester Tigers);

CENTRES: Lukhanyo Am (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Jesse Kriel (Canon Eagles);

OUTSIDE BACKS: Kurt-Lee Arendse (Vodacom Bulls), Aphelele Fassi (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Makazole Mapimpi (Hollywoodbets Sharks);

UTILITY BACK: Canan Moodie (Vodacom Bulls).