Springboks
Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus said he was happy with the base laid after the first national training camp in Pretoria, as the team builds up to the test match against Wales at Twickenham next Saturday.
“It has been an extremely productive week on the field, and we are pleased with the quality of our training sessions and the manner in which the new players have grasped our systems and slotted in at training,” said Erasmus.
“It was also fantastic to see how the more experienced players took them under their wing and assisted them during training. The DHL Stormers players arrived on Wednesday and they also immediately made their presence felt at training.
“The alignment camps hosted earlier in the season were invaluable in allowing the players to familiarise themselves with our structures and it was good to see how things came together on the field after all the off-field sessions we held at the in-person and online sessions in March and May respectively,” Erasmus said.
He added that with a good balance of youth and experience in the squad the Boks will be in a good position to select a quality squad for the Wales Test to set a strong tone for the incoming Castle Lager Series, which kicks off against Ireland in Pretoria on Saturday 6 July.
Erasmus said with Siya Kolisi unavailable for selection he will announce a captain for the match from a group of experienced players in Eben Etzebeth, Pieter-Steph du Toit, and Bongi Mbonambi as options for the captaincy next week.
“We will then select a captain for the season before the Castle Lager Incoming season,” Erasmus said.
The team to face Wales will be announced on Tuesday, with the team selected for the match set to depart for London on Wednesday night.
