Erasmus names uncapped front row as Kolisi returns against Georgia

Boan Venter, Marnus van der Merwe, and Neethling Fouche will all make their Springbok debuts against Georgia in Nelspruit on Saturday as double Rugby World Cup-winning captain Siya Kolisi returns from injury to take over the captaincy for first time this season in an exciting squad named by Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus for the final Castle Lager Incoming Series match at the Mbombela Stadium.

Venter, who was called up to the squad in June as injury cover at prop, will start in completely new front row with fellow prop Fouche and hooker Van der Merwe, who both had their first taste of Springbok rugby in the team’s 54-7 victory against the Barbarians, while Kolisi features in a loose trio with Pieter-Steph du Toit and Cobus Wiese after missing the last three matches due to niggles.

The three uncapped front rankers will increase the number of newly capped players this season to seven after Vincent Tshituka (flanker), Wiese, Asenathi Ntlabakanye (prop), and Ethan Hooker (utility back) all made their Test debuts against Italy.

Erasmus’ team features only five players who started last week, and eight in total from the match-23 that defeated Italy 45-0 in Gqeberha.

The inclusion of Kolisi and Venter in the squad, meanwhile, increases the size of the group used by Erasmus so far this season to 46 players, with the matchday squad featuring 15 Rugby World Cup winners.

The five players who retained their places in the starting lineup are Edwill van der Merwe (wing), Canan Moodie (utility back), Grant Williams (scrumhalf), Du Toit, and Ruan Nortje (lock), while Conus Wiese and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (flyhalf) are promoted from the bench to starting team, with Thomas du Toit (prop) starting among the replacements.

Edwill van der Merwe, who scored two tries in his second match in the green and gold last week, has been named in a playmaking back three with Kurt-Lee Arendse and Aphelele Fassi, while Moodie joins forces with Damian de Allende in the midfield, and Williams pairs up with Feinberg-Mngomezulu at halfback.

Up-front, apart from a new-look front row and rejigged loose trio, Eben Etzebeth will link up with Ruan Nortje in the engine room.

Erasmus named a five-three split in favour of the forwards on the replacements bench, where Thomas du Toit, Vincent Koch (both props) and Bongi Mbonambi (hooker) will serve as the impact front row, along with RG Snyman (lock) and Kwagga Smith (loose forward).

Faf de Klerk (scrumhalf), Handre Pollard, and Damian Willemse (both utility backs), in turn, will provide backline cover.

Erasmus was excited to see the three uncapped players and Kolisi in action and said: “We wanted to make sure that Siya is 100% fit before selecting him, so it’s great to have him back in the squad, while Boan, Marnus, and Neethling have been training hard and deserve their chance.

“Marnus and Neethling played against the Barbarians, so they have an idea of what international rugby is about, while Boan has shown great potential at club level and with the squad in the last few weeks, and we are looking forward to seeing him play.”

Erasmus added: “Building squad depth has been one of our pillars as a squad since 2018, and they are all undoubtedly ready to make the step-up.”

Zoning into his team selection, Erasmus said: “We know how passionate and intense this Georgian side is, and they will be determined to make a strong statement, so we selected some experienced players who we would like to get more game time before the Castle Lager Rugby Championship, and a few of the younger players, who have put up their hands another run, so we are pleased with the balance we have in this group.”

The Springboks may have won the last two matches they played against Georgia – the last of which was in 2021 before the British & Irish Lions series – but Erasmus insisted they would not underestimate the visitors.

“Georgia are a tough outfit, and they pride themselves on their physicality and brute force in the collisions, so the set pieces, mauls, and breakdowns will be key areas,” said Erasmus.

“They also have quality backline players to round off their team, so we need to be sharp in all the departments of our game to ensure that we continue to lift our standards, build momentum, and get the desired result.”

The match kicks off at 17h10 and will be broadcast live on SuperSport.

Springbok team to face Georgia in Nelspruit:

15 – Aphelele Fassi (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 11 caps, 35 points (7t)

14 – Edwill van der Merwe(Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 2 caps, 15 pts (3t)

13 – Canan Moodie (Vodacom Bulls) - 13 caps, 30 pts (6t)

12 – Damian de Allende (Wild Knights) – 88 caps, 55 points (11t)

11 – Kurt-Lee Arendse (Vodacom Bulls) – 25 caps, 95 points (19t)

10 – Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu(DHL Stormers) - 9 caps, 52 points (14c, 8p)

9 – Grant Williams (Hollywoodbets Sharks) - 17 caps, 25 pts (5t)

8 – Cobus Wiese (Vodacom Bulls) – 1 cap, 0 pts

7 – Pieter-Steph du Toit(Toyota Verblitz) -87 caps, 40 pts (8t)

6 – Siya Kolisi (captain, Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 92 caps, 60 points (12t)

5 – Ruan Nortje (Vodacom Bulls) - 7 caps, 0 pts

4 – Eben Etzebeth (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 132 caps, 35 points (7t)

3 – Neethling Fouche (DHL Stormers) - uncapped

2 – Marnus van der Merwe(Scarlets) - uncapped

1 – Boan Venter (Edinburgh) - uncapped

Replacements:

16 – Bongi Mbonambi (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 78 caps, 70 points (14t)

17 – Thomas du Toit (Bath) - 24 caps, 5 pts (1t)

18 – Vincent Koch (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 62 caps, 5 points (1t)

19 – RG Snyman (Leinster) – 41 caps, 10 points (2t)

20 – Kwagga Smith (Shizuoka Blue Revs) – 52 caps, 45 points (9t)

21 – Faf de Klerk (Canon Eagles) – 59 caps, 50 points (5t, 5c, 5p)

22 – Handré Pollard (Vodacom Bulls) -81 caps, 784 points (7t, 115c, 168p, 5dg)

23 – Damian Willemse(DHL Stormers) – 40 caps, 56 points (4t, 9c, 4p, 2 dg)

Facts and Stats

Head-to-head v Georgia

Played: 2, Won: 2; Points for: 86; Points against: 26; Tries for: 12; Tries against: 1; Win%: 100%

Miscellaneous

• It will be the Georgians’ second trip to South Africa to face the Springboks – the same number of times the nations have met to date. Their first outing was in the pool stages of the 2003 Rugby World Cup in Australia where the Springboks won 46-19, and the second time in Pretoria in 2021 when the Boks registered a 40-9 victory.
• Eben Etzebeth will extend his record as the most capped Springbok of all time to 133 Test matches when he takes the field.
• This match will mark Siya Kolisi’s first match back in the green and gold in the 2025 season.
• Kurt-Lee Arendse requires only five more points to score 100 Test points for the Springboks.
• Kolisi will require only seven more Test appearances after this match to become the ninth Springbok in the history of South African rugby to earn 100 Test caps.

• The total Test caps for the Springbok starting line-up is484.
• There are165 caps in the backline, with 319 caps amongst the forwards. On the bench, there are a further437 caps.
• The average caps per player in the backline are24, the forwards 40, while the players on the bench average 55.