The Springboks are set to ramp up their preparation after Rassie Erasmus expressed a need for greater team alignment in team at the current camp.
The Springboks will kick off their second in-person alignment camp in Cape Town on Wednesday – a month before their opening Test of the season against Wales in London on 22 June – with Rassie Erasmus assembling a group of 38 players for the two-day camp.
Due to the majority of the players participating being in the northern hemisphere at the time, the original idea of an in-person camp early in May was replaced with a series of online alignment sessions with chosen local and international players, which took place during the first alignment camp, which was held in March.
Sharks players have been excused from this week’s practice. The Sharks play Gloucester in the EPCR Challenge Cup final on Friday at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London.
The camp comes after a two-day coaches’ strategy meeting last weekend, during which the program’s foundation was laid.
WHAT RASSIE ERASMUS WANTS OUT OF THIS CURRENT CAMP
“We are moving into a new cycle as a group as our first Test is only a few weeks away, so it is vital that we start diving deeper into our on-field planning,” said Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus.
“In the first two camps we presented our wider plans to the players and introduced the new ideas presented by all the coaches and especially the new additions to the coaching team in Tony Brown, Jerry Flannery and Jaco Peyer, so we are in a good position to start zooming into different areas of the game in more detail,” Erasmus explained.
“It will be great to have everyone together and ensure that the coaches and players are 100% aligned in terms of what we want to achieve and how we plan to approach the season,” Erasmus continued, referring to the impending first Test.
“The Test against Wales is outside of the international window, so we have a difficult year ahead of us. We also play two Tests against Ireland, the second-ranked team in the world, and our first Test against Portugal in the upcoming Series,” Erasmus said.
“After that, we’ll play the Rugby Championship, which begins with two away Test matches against Australia, two Test matches against New Zealand in South Africa, and two home and away tests against Argentina.
“Our outgoing Tour will also serve as a thorough test with matches against Scotland, England and Wales lined up, so the sooner we are aligned as a group, the better,” Erasmus concluded.
CONFIRMED SPRINGBOKS FIXTURES FOR 2024:
Saturday, 22 June: SA vs Wales (Twickenham, London)
Saturday, 6 July: SA vs Ireland (Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria)
Saturday, 13 July: SA vs Ireland (Hollywoodbets Kings Park, Durban)
Saturday, 20 July: Springboks vs Portugal (Toyota Stadium, Bloemfontein)
Saturday, 10 August: Australia vs SA (Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane)
Saturday, 17 August: Australia vs SA (Optus Stadium, Perth)
Saturday, 31 August: Springboks vs New Zealand (Emirates Airline Park, Johannesburg)
Saturday, 7 September: SA v New Zealand (DHL Stadium, Cape Town)
Saturday, 21 September: Argentina v SA (Estadio Unico Madre Ciudades, Santiago)
Saturday, 28 September: SA v Argentina (Mbombela Stadium, Nelspruit)
Saturday, 16 November: England v Springboks (Twickenham, London)
Saturday, 23 November: Wales vs SA (Principality Stadium, Cardiff)
