Here’s a comprehensive list of the newbies who impressed Rassie Erasmus enough to score invites to the Springboks’ first camp of the year.

There were 16 uncapped players included in Rassie Erasmus’ 56-man squad to attend the Springboks first camp of the season.

The Springboks will get the wheels in motion for the 2025 season when Erasmus and his management team host the first in-person coaches’ strategic session of the year followed by a three-day alignment camp with a group of 56 domestic players in Cape Town next month.

Erasmus and his support staff will also host virtual alignment camps with the overseas-based players, a group of talented youngsters, and injured players plying their trade domestically, who were not invited to this camp, following the conclusion of this session.

The alignment camp, which is set to conclude on Wednesday 12 March, will comprise two gymnasium sessions and a series of boardroom meetings to get the players up to speed on the requirements and expected standards for season.

The group includes 18 members of the 2023 Rugby World Cup-winning squad – 10 of which were also crowned champions at the 2019 RWC, and five of whom participated in the 2015 international extravaganza – with additional 22 capped national players named in the group.

However, it’s the number of uncapped Springboks – 16 – garnered widespread interest.

The 16 Springbok hopefuls, nine forwards and seven backs, have all impressed Erasmus and co, so much so that they made the cut in the first 56-man group to assemble in Cape Town next month.

Forwards:

SPRINGBOK FIXTURES IN 2025 (ALL VENUES IN SA WILL BE CONFIRMED):

Incoming Series
5 July: Springboks vs Italy
12 July: South Africa vs Italy
19 July: Springboks vs Georgia

Rugby Championship
16 August: South Africa vs Australia
23 August: Springboks vs Australia
6 September: New Zealand vs Springboks – Eden Park, Auckland
13 September: New Zealand vs South Africa – Sky Stadium, Wellington
27 September: Springboks vs Argentina
4 October: Argentina vs South Africa – Allianz Stadium, Twickenham, London