Rassie Erasmus has shared an important message with supporters after a tumultuous start to the Rugby Championship.
The Springboks kicked off the Rugby Championship with a shock defeat to Australia before battling to a somewhat redemptive victory in Cape Town, but the good news for Rassie Erasmus and his charges is the fact that the tournament remains wide open.
A surprise defeat suffered by the All Blacks in Argentina means that just a couple of log points separates first from fourth in the Rugby Championship standings, and there is still everything to play for as the Springboks now head on a two-match tour to New Zealand.
On the eve of that tour, Erasmus thanked ‘yster’ Springbok fans from the “bottom of our hearts” for always having “our backs covered”.
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All Blacks’ 50 Test unbeaten streak at Eden Park to come under threat as Springboks’ big names return
The All Blacks’ Eden Park fortress will come under threat early next month after Rassie Erasmus named close to a full-strength squad for the second part of The Rugby Championship.
After winning 50 straight Tests at Eden Park, the September 6 encounter looms as the All Blacks’ biggest test yet to continue their 33-year winning run at the venue.
Not only will Scott Robertson’s side have to overcome some patchy form that saw Los Pumas expose during their maiden win over the All Blacks in Argentina last weekend, but they’ll have to confront a Springboks side who have won four straight Tests over their great rivals and welcomed back a host of big names.
Indeed, Rassie Erasmus will board the flight from South Africa to New Zealand bolstered by the returns of star loose-forwards Siya Kolisi and Pieter-Steph du Toit.
The double World Cup winners and inspirational leaders missed the recent win over the Wallabies at Cape Town, but Erasmus named the star duo in his 36-man squad to tour New Zealand.
Also joining them on the flight is veteran fullback Willie le Roux, who was a late withdrawal from the side that overcame the Wallabies 30-22 in Cape Town.
In total, 36 of the 38 players who were in the second Test squad against the Wallabies will also travel to New Zealand. Prop Asenathi Ntlabakanye, who lined up against the Wallabies at Ellis Park, is one of the two missing after being banned for taking a banned substance.
”This group of players have been working hard together since our first training camp in June, and most of them have been playing together for years, while the newer players in the squad showed in the July Tests and in the last two matches against Australia that they are ready for this challenge,” said Erasmus.
“Siya, Pieter-Steph, Willie 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 and will be ready to face the All Blacks.”
Despite winning their last four Tests against the All Blacks, the Springboks are slight $2.40 outsiders with the bookies.
The All Blacks’ last win against the Springboks came in New Zealand during the 2023 Rugby Championship.
Neither side however has hit their straps early in the international season, with all four Rugby Championship sides in the hunt to challenge for silverware after dropping one of their opening two matches in the tournament.
“The Rugby Championship is still wide open with all four teams having won a match in the first two rounds, so this tour is going to be vital for us, and we’ll certainly take confidence from the win against Australia last week when we board the plane,” Erasmus said.
“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 one another on the day.
“In the last 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 learned 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, and I don’t think we
need more motivation than that.”
Erasmus chose not to speak about the Eden Park record the Springboks have been targeting, but did remind the All Blacks of their recent dominance.
“We are under no illusions that both games are going to be massive, and every match against the All Blacks is epic given the rivalry between the teams,” he added.
“We 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.
“So, we need to ensure that we build on what we’ve been working on this year in the Rugby Championship and take another step-up before facing them in two weeks.
“We are travelling to New Zealand tomorrow, which will give us sufficient time to acclimatise to the time zone, so we believe we will be settled and ready for the task ahead by the time we take the field.”
While the Springboks are missing only a couple of regulars, including Frans Malherbe and Kurt-Lee Arendse, Robertson has a big headache at halfback after losing Cortez Ratima early in the 29-23 loss to Los Pumas in Buenos Aires.
The injury to Ratima comes after the All Blacks earlier lost fellow halfbacks Cam Roigard and Noah Hotham in recent months.
Uncapped Crusaders halfback, who enjoyed a breakout Super Rugby season in 2025, is poised to debut against the Springboks despite calls from Justin Marshall to get on the phone to bring back Japan-based halfbacks TJ Perenara and Aaron Smith.
Forwards: Lood de Jager (Wild Knights), Pieter-Steph du Toit (Toyota Verblitz), Thomas du Toit (Bath), Jean-Luc du Preez (Bordeaux Begles), Eben Etzebeth (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Vincent Koch (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Siya Kolisi (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Wilco Louw (Vodacom Bulls), Malcolm Marx (Kubota Spears), Bongi Mbonambi (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Franco Mostert (Honda Heat), Ox Nche (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Ruan Nortje (Vodacom Bulls), Kwagga Smith (Shizuoka Blue Revs), RG Snyman (Leinster), Marnus van der Merwe (Scarlets), Marco van Staden (Vodacom Bulls), Boan Venter (Edinburgh), Jan-Hendrik Wessels (Vodacom Bulls), Jasper Wiese (Urayasu D-Rocks).
Backs: Damian de Allende (Wild Knights), Andre Esterhuizen (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Aphelele Fassi (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (DHL Stormers), Ethan Hooker (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Jesse Kriel (Canon Eagles), Cheslin Kolbe (Tokyo Sungoliath), Willie le Roux (Vodacom Bulls), Manie Libbok (Kintetsu Liners), Makazole Mapimpi (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Canan Moodie (Vodacom Bulls), Handre Pollard (Vodacom Bulls), Cobus Reinach (DHL Stormers), Morne van den Berg (Lions), Grant Williams (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Damian Willemse (DHL Stormers).
