The Springboks will face New Zealand’s All Blacks in the opening Test of the inaugural Castle Double Malt Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series at Ellis Park in Johannesburg on Saturday.
According to the Springboks website, coach Rassie Erasmus said the squad selected to face the All Blacks is well balanced, combining players who remained in South Africa to prepare for the series with others who featured against Argentina.
“The All Blacks are a quality team, and we selected combinations we think would be best suited for the challenge this weekend. It certainly helped to have some players return from injury last week and get back into top-flight Test rugby, while some of the others who had a heavy workload in the Nations Championship had sufficient time to recover from the physical toll on them,” Erasmus said on the Springboks website.
He said the whole group had now been together for more than a week and was aligned on the way the team wants to play this weekend.
“We are preparing for an 80-minute grind. They have a well-rounded squad with physical forwards and an exciting backline, so we have to be sharp and accurate in our execution from the outset.
“Many of the matches between the sides have come down to the wire, so it is important that we use the chances we create and ensure that our discipline is on point. It is going to be a big battle, but the entire squad is excited about the match and looking forward to it,” Erasmus said on the Springboks website.
The match kicks off at 5:10 pm. -SAnews.gov.za
