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Springbok media conference ahead of Australia test - 7 August 2024

Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Elrigh Louw will make their first Test starts for South Africa against the Wallabies in Brisbane on Saturday as the Springboks largely reverted to the squad that shared a two-Test series with Ireland last month for the kick-off of the Castle Lager Rugby Championship at the Suncorp Stadium.

The match-23 feature only three changes from the group that faced the Irish with the only new players being Louw (No 8), two-time Rugby World Cup-winning scrumhalf Cobus Reinach, and replacement utility forward Ben-Jason Dixon.

The 22-year-old Feinberg-Mngomezulu is elevated to start at flyhalf after four appearances off the bench this season (coming on at either flyhalf or fullback) while Louw starts at No 8 after four replacement appearances since his debut at the start of the 2022 season.

Only six players are retained in the squad from the 64-21 win over Portugal at the end of July in Louw, Reinach, Dixon, Feinberg-Mngomezulu, RG Snyman (lock) and Kurt-Lee Arendse (wing).

The new halfback combination sees Reinach continue in the No 9 jumper in place of the Faf de Klerk, who is nursing a niggle, while experienced flyhalf Handre Pollard provides cover off the replacements’ bench, along with Grant Williams, who serves as back-up at scrumhalf and wing, in a six-two split in favour of the forwards.

Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus, who said that Snyman had picked up a niggle at training on Tuesday and will be monitored for the rest of the week, again named a powerful bomb squad with a front row of Malcolm Marx (hooker), Gerhard Steenekamp and Vincent Koch (both props), alongside Dixon, Marco van Staden and Kwagga Smith.

Erasmus was delighted to hand first starts to Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Louw and said: “Sacha has made a notable impact off the bench in all four Tests he has played so far, and he’s slotted into the system with ease, so we are excited to see what dynamic he adds to the team as a starter.

“His goal-kicking has also been impressive, and we know that against teams like Australia, New Zealand, and Argentina the margins are very small, so every point will count.

“We’re also keen to see what Elrigh brings to the game, given his consistently strong performances for the Vodacom Bulls in the last few seasons and off the bench against Portugal. With Pieter-Steph (du Toit) and Siya (Kolisi) alongside him, he’ll have good guidance to play to his strengths and do what he does best.”

Erasmus said the changes were part of a broader Springbok selection plan: “One of the big talking points for us as a team from the beginning of the season was that we need to get the balance right between selecting teams featuring youth and experience as we build toward towards the 2027 Rugby World Cup.

“We’re pleased with the way we’ve been able to integrate some of the young players into the squad this season and give them game time against top opposition.

“We rested several players against Portugal to ensure that we had a fresh squad for the Castle Lager Rugby Championship, while a few young players really grabbed the opportunity to show what they can do in the first four Tests of the season.

“We’re excited to see what they have to offer against a team such as Australia which plays a vastly different style of rugby to that which we faced against Wales, Ireland and Portugal.

“Sacha and Ben-Jason showed proper class when they earned their chance to play this season and we are looking forward to seeing them in action against the Wallabies.”

Erasmus said he expected a thorough Test against the home team who go into the match off three successive victories this season in a city where the Springboks last registered a win in 2013.

“We only face the Southern Hemisphere teams in the Castle Lager Rugby Championship now, so we know they’ll pose a completely different challenge to the sides we’ve faced to date,” said Erasmus.

“They are also playing on their home turf where they have a good track record against us in the last few years, so we know it’s going to be a massive challenge.

“The fact that they are facing the world champions at home and knowing full well that they are hosting the 2027 World Cup will also inspire them, while we also have no doubt that they are desperate to climb the world rankings.

“They are a well-coached team with good playmakers, so they’ll definitely be charged up for Saturday’s match-up.”

Erasmus emphasised the importance of a good start to the competition: “We have a challenging campaign with two away games against Australia and then two Tests against New Zealand at home before making a short trip to Santiago where we will face Argentina, and then we wrap up the tournament against Los Pumas in Nelspruit, so it will be vital for us to start well and build good momentum.”

Of the Springboks’ win record in Brisbane, Erasmus said: “This is a new year and new campaign, and a lot has changed for both teams in the last few years, so while we are mindful of that statistic, it won’t affect how we approach this match or next week’s encounter in Perth.

“Just as winning the Rugby World Cup is history now, so is that statistic, so as a team we want to go out there and give our best, and if we stick to our structures and capitalise on our chances, hopefully we’ll work ourselves into a good position to get the desired result.”

Erasmus added: “The rest granted to some players after the Ireland Test certainly paid off and one can see it in their enthusiasm and excitement to return to the field. That combined with the excitement from the younger players in the group for this challenge has contributed to a good atmosphere in the camp.”

The match kicks off at 14h45 (06h45 SA Time) and will be broadcast live on SuperSport.A number of law variations have also been adopted for the competition, as announced by SANZAAR earlier on Tuesday.

Springbok team to face Australia in Brisbane:

15 – Willie le Roux (Vodacom Bulls) – 95 caps, 75 pts (15t)

14 – Cheslin Kolbe (Suntory Sungoliath) – 33 caps, 96 points (15t, 3c, 5p)

13 – Jesse Kriel (Canon Eagles) – 71 caps, 80 points (16t)

12 – Damian de Allende (Wild Knights) – 81 caps, 55 points (11t)

11 – Kurt-Lee Arendse (Vodacom Bulls) - 18 caps, 75 points (15t)

10 – Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (DHL Stormers) -4 caps, 17 points (7c, 1p)

9 – Cobus Reinach (Montpellier) – 33 caps, 65 pts (13t)

8 – Elrigh Louw (Vodacom Bulls) – 4 caps, 0 points

7 – Pieter-Steph du Toit (Toyota Verblitz) – 79 caps, 40 points (8t)

6 – Siya Kolisi (captain, Racing 92) – 85 caps, 50 points (10t)

5 – RG Snyman (Leinster) – 37 caps, 10 points (2t)

4 – Eben Etzebeth (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 122 caps, 30 points (6t)

3 – Frans Malherbe (DHL Stormers) – 72 caps, 5 points (1t)

2 – Bongi Mbonambi (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 71 caps, 70 points (14t)

1 – Ox Nche (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 31 caps, 0 pts

Replacements:

16 – Malcolm Marx (Kubota Spears) – 67 caps, 85 points (17t)

17 – Gerhard Steenekamp (Vodacom Bulls) – 3 caps, 0 points

18 – Vincent Koch (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 52 caps, 0 points

19 – Ben-Jason Dixon (DHL Stormers) – 2 caps, 5 points (1t)

20 – Marco van Staden (Vodacom Bulls) – 20 caps, 0 pts

21 – Kwagga Smith (Shizuoka Blue Revs) – 43 caps, 35 pts (7t)

22 – Grant Williams (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 11 caps, 10 points (2t)

23 – Handré Pollard (Leicester Tigers) – 71 caps, 732 points (7t, 98c, 162p, 5dg)

Stats and facts:

Springbok record against Australia:

Played 93; Won 50; Lost 40; Drawn 3; Points for: 1 860, Points against: 1 653; Tries scored 218, Tries conceded 170; Highest score 61-22 (Pretoria, 1997); Biggest win 45 points (53-8, Johannesburg 2008). Win % 53.8%.

Miscellaneous:

• This will be Eben Etzebeth’s 123^rd Test, leaving him four appearances away from equalling Victor Matfield’s Springbok Test record (127).
• Frans Malherbe will extend his number of starts at tighthead prop to 60 Tests, trailing only Tendai Mtawarira (102) and Os du Randt (75).
• The centre pairing of Jesse Kriel and Damian de Allende will extend their record of playing the most Test matches together in the midfield to 31 (the previous record was held by Jean de Villiers and Jaque Fourie with 29 Tests).
• Cheslin Kolbe needs four points to reach 100 points in Tests for South Africa.
• Should Kwagga Smith take the field, he will need only six more Test caps to join the club of Springboks with 50 Test caps.
• Willie le Roux will take another step closer to joining select club of Springbok centurions as he earns his 96^th cap on Saturday.
• The total Test caps for the Springbok starting line-up is 836.
• There are335 caps in the backline, with 501 caps among the forwards. On the bench there are a further269 caps.
• The average caps per player in the backline is47, the forwards 62, while the players on the bench average 33.