The Springboks have confirmed that centre Damian de Allende has left the squad after Saturday’s one-point loss to Ireland.
Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus has called up five players to the squad for their Test against Portugal in Bloemfontein on Saturday, with the 41-man squad featuring seven uncapped players.
Two players, Franco Mostert (lock) and Edwill van der Merwe (winger), have been ruled out due injuries, with the extent of their respective injuries set to be confirmed on Monday, while Damian de Allende (centre) was permitted to exit the camp due to personal reasons.
Capped Springboks Elrigh Louw (loose forward) and Ntuthuko Mchunu (prop) and the uncapped Quan Horn (fullback), Andre-Hugo Venter (hooker) and Ruan Venter (loose forward) – who attended the Bok alignment camps in May – joined the current group of players, including eight of the nine players who were released to their provincial unions last week to participate in the Currie Cup.
The eight returning players are Trevor Nyakane, Makazole Mapimpi, Andre Esterhuizen, Lukhanyo Am, Aphelele Fassi, Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Phepsi Buthelezi and Morne van den Berg.
Erasmus stated on Saturday night that several players would be released on Wednesday once the team had concluded their main on-field preparations for the historic Test against Portugal, which will play out at Toyota Stadium on Saturday.
The Springboks arrived in the Free State capital on Sunday afternoon and will begin their on-field preparations for the clash on Monday as they look to bounce back from their heart-breaking defeat 25-24 defeat against Ireland in Durban on Saturday.
Erasmus will announce his matchday team to face Portugal on Tuesday.
SPRINGBOKS SQUAD FOR THE MATCH AGAINST PORTUGAL:
Props: Ntuthuko Mchunu, Ox Nche, Gerhard Steenekamp, Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Frans Malherbe, Vincent Koch, Trevor Nyakane, Thomas du Toit.
Hookers: Bongi Mbonambi, Malcolm Marx, Johan Grobbelaar, Andre-Hugo Venter.
Locks: Eben Etzebeth, Salmaan Moerat, RG Snyman.
Loose forwards: Siya Kolisi, Elrigh Louw, Marco van Staden, Phepsi Buthelezi, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Ben-Jason Dixon, Evan Roos, Ruan Venter, Kwagga Smith, Jasper Wiese.
Scrumhalves: Faf de Klerk, Grant Williams, Cobus Reinach, Morne van den Berg.
Flyhalves: Handre Pollard, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Manie Libbok.
Centres: Lukhanyo Am, Andre Esterhuizen, Jesse Kriel.
Outside backs: Kurt-Lee Arendse, Cheslin Kolbe, Willie le Roux, Makazole Mapimpi, Aphelele Fassi, Quan Horn.
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Nick Mallett gives reasons for Springboks’ defeat to Ireland
Former Springbok coach Nick Mallett said a change of tactics late in the match led to South Africa’s defeat against Ireland in Durban.
Former Springbok coach Nick Mallett said a change of tactics late in the match led to South Africa’s one-point defeat in a rugby thriller against Ireland at Hollywoodbets Kings Park on Saturday.
In a battle between the two top-ranked teams in world rugby, Ireland won the second Test 25-24 when replacement flyhalf Ciaran Frawley kicked a last-minute drop goal.
Speaking on SuperSport, Mallett gave credit to Ireland and their coach Andy Farrell for the way they came back after being beaten 27-20 in the first Test in Pretoria.
“It was a brilliant Test match. It was very, very astute coaching,” he said of the way Farrell prepared the visiting team at the end of a campaign that effectively stretched for a full year.
“They didn’t need to do any fitness training, they needed to relax. It was a lot of mental preparation.”
SPRINGBOKS WENT ON THE DEFENSIVE – NICK MALLETT
Mallett said the match was a reversal of the first Test.
“We (South Africa) came out and shot the lights out in that first 40 minutes and put them under pressure (in Pretoria) and they did exactly the same to us this time.”
But he was impressed by the way the Springboks came back after trailing 16-6 at half-time.
“It wasn’t by kicking the ball back, it was by running the ball back,” he said, with replacement fullback Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu beating defenders and getting the Springboks on the front foot, forcing Ireland into errors and conceding penalties.
Springbok flyhalf Handre Pollard scored all South Africa’s points by kicking eight penalty goals, six of them in the second half.
But having turned a 10-point deficit into a five-point lead with 15 minutes to go, the Springboks went on the defensive, according to Mallett.
“We tried to protect the lead,” he said.
“Everything we did to get ahead we stopped doing. We started kicking downfield hoping to get territory but they decided to hold onto the ball.
“It’s just such a pity we didn’t carry on playing the way we had before that.”
Mallett also pointed out that the Springboks had won three successive knockout matches by one point on their way to winning the World Cup last year.
“Just as those teams went away thinking of all the ‘what-ifs’, so the Springboks can think of those small margins,” said Nick Mallett.
‘WHY NO THIRD TEST?’
Former Ireland flank, South African-born CJ Stander, said Ireland had controlled the narrative in “a great Test match”.
Stander said it was unfortunate that the two sides will not meet again in the immediate future, with the Springboks not playing against Ireland on their end-of-year tour to the northern hemisphere.
With the series between the two top teams in the world tied up at 1-1, many were asking why there was no decider.
“We always knew this series would come down to special moments,” said former Springbok captain Jean de Villiers.
“Two dropped goals right at the end to clinch it for Ireland… why do we not have a third Test match?”
Instead of preparing for a decider, the Springboks will field a much-changed team against low-ranked Portugal in their next fixture in Bloemfontein on Saturday.
