Talismanic captain Siya Kolisi has been declared fit to lead the Springboks into battle when they face their fiercest rivals, the All Blacks, in back-to-back Tests in September.
After missing the second Test against the Wallabies in Cape Town because of a knee injury, Kolisi returns for showdowns against the All Blacks in Auckland (September 6) and Wellington (September 13).
Bok coach Rassie Erasmus will be giving a huge sigh of relief that he will be able to call on his inspirational leader to rally the troops on their toughest assignment of the season.
There were no surprises in the squad, and Erasmus opted to stick to the players who did duty in the opening two games of the Rugby Championship.
Kolisi’s calming head in the heat of battle will be key for the Boks as they bid to defend their Rugby Championship title.
A total of 36 of the 38 players in last week’s squad for the Wallabies retained their places in the group for the second leg of their campaign.
With wings Kurt-Lee Arendse and Edwill van der Merwe injured, Makazole Mapimpi, who joined the team in Cape Town last week, will make the trip.
The only forward from the squad that faced Australia to miss out on selection was utility forward Cobus Wiese, who has been placed on standby.
No 8 Jasper Wiese, however, is still serving a suspension and will only be eligible for selection for the second encounter in Wellington.
“This group of players has been working hard together since our first training camp in June, and most of them have been playing together for years,” Erasmus said.
“The newer players in the squad showed in the Incoming Series and in the last two matches against Australia that they are ready for this challenge.
“Siya Kolisi, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Willie le Roux and Jan-Hendrik Wessels have been medically cleared from their niggles, while all the players who faced Australia in Cape Town have received a clean bill of health.
“Facing the All Blacks in New Zealand is a massive challenge, but all the teams in this competition are ranked among the top sides in the world, and each one has the potential to beat the other on the day.
“In the past two months alone, Australia defeated us at Ellis Park and went down narrowly in their British & Irish Lions Series defeat, while Argentina defeated New Zealand last weekend and the British & Irish Lions.
“So we are not paying much attention to our historic records in New Zealand.
“We learnt valuable lessons from our first game against Australia, and we know exactly what we have to do to reach our standards and improve as the competition progresses.
“I don’t think we need more motivation than that.
“We are under no illusions that both games are going to be huge, and every match against the All Blacks is epic, given the rivalry between the teams.
“SA won our last four matches against them dating back to 2023, which marked only the second time in history that we defeated them four times in a row, and there is no doubt that will motivate both teams.”
Springbok squad:
Forwards: Lood de Jager, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Thomas du Toit, Jean-Luc du Preez, Eben Etzebeth, Vincent Koch, Siya Kolisi, Wilco Louw, Malcolm Marx, Bongi Mbonambi, Franco Mostert, Ox Nché, Ruan Nortjé, Kwagga Smith, RG Snyman, Marnus van der Merwe, Marco van Staden, Boan Venter, Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Jasper Wiese.
Backs: Damian de Allende, André Esterhuizen, Aphelele Fassi, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Ethan Hooker, Jesse Kriel, Cheslin Kolbe, Willie le Roux , Manie Libbok, Makazole Mapimpi, Canan Moodie, Handré Pollard, Cobus Reinach, Morné van den Berg, Grant Williams, Damian Willemse.
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