Elton Jantjies’ selection in the starting team for the Springboks’ opening Test against Wales on Saturday is as risky as it is brave.
Having Jantjies start and leaving long-time incumbent Handré Pollard out of the match-day 23 is a statement of intent as the Boks spread game time in a key area they will be keen to develop in the countdown to next year’s Rugby World Cup.
It is also a calculated risk.
Jantjies is not universally acclaimed among Springbok fans, and if the team struggles to assert itself from the outset in their first outing of the season, much of the discontent from the stands may well be directed at the flyhalf.
Loftus Versfeld, which is now sold out, can be a daunting place for the opposition, but the Springboks are not impervious to home-grown wrath.
One suspects it won’t take much for the Loftus crowd to turn on Jantjies, who occupies the starting position at the expense of one of their former darlings. Moreover, the player’s recent brush with the law would have done little to capture hearts and minds.
The Bok brains trust, however, has good reason to go with Jantjies in this Test. With 44 Test caps under his belt he is experienced enough to deal with whatever comes his way on Saturday.
More importantly perhaps, 21 of those Tests have come while Springbok rugby has been under the stewardship of Rassie Erasmus and Jacques Nienaber. They have invested in him as the backup flyhalf behind Pollard, and there will have to be occasions when the player delivers performances commensurate with the faith the coaches have put in him.
Pollard, whose commitments for the season with his French club Montpellier ended last Friday when they won the Top 14 title, has not been part of the Bok build-up for the international season. At least not physically.
Though Pollard arrived in time to be considered for selection Nienaber and Co felt Jantjies had been integral to the build-up, which warrants him a start. Pollard would hardly have arrived here fatigued, as he played as a 68th-minute substitute in the final.
In this instance, the Bok management’s choice of flyhalf has more to do with Jantjies than it does with Pollard.
“We select people we have coached in the week,” was Nienaber’s reminder. “There are certain boxes we want to tick. We have been open and honest with the players.”
By not having Pollard in the match 23 the Springboks, however, will face some interesting reshuffling should Jantjies not go the distance on Saturday.
Damian Willemse, the starting fullback, can move to flyhalf with Willie le Roux taking up position in the last line of defence. Le Roux could also stand at first receiver, a position in which he has trained in the past fortnight. Nienaber intimated that Le Roux is perhaps undervalued outside the team set-up.
“Willie brings so much in the week. It might be a useful exercise to look at the number of tries the Boks have scored since 2018 where he made the final pass.
“To do that you need to see space and create. Willie has been outstanding for us in certain areas. In fact, he makes other players look average in those areas.”
The coach refused to lay out the Bok plan should Jantjies be withdrawn from battle. He did, however, explain how difficult it was to arrive at his match-day 23. He stressed that a blend of several factors determined their selection.
Faf de Klerk is the starting scrumhalf and not Herschel Jantjies because he would be less disruptive to the Bok operational plan. Nienaber wants to broaden game time among his players, but they need to be on the front foot in the series to do so.
“It would be our Platinum Plan if we were able to give all 42 players game time in this series,” said the coach.
Springbok squad to play Wales: Damian Willemse; Cheslin Kolbe, Lukhanyo Am, Damian de Allende, Makazole Mapimpi; Elton Jantjies, Faf de Klerk; Jasper Wiese, Franco Mostert, Siya Kolisi (capt); Lood de Jager, Eben Etzebeth; Frans Malherbe, Bongi Mbonambi, Ox Nché. Substitutes: Malcolm Marx, Steven Kitshoff, Vincent Koch, Salmaan Moerat, Elrigh Louw, Kwagga Smith; Herschel Jantjies, Willie le Roux.
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