Vermeulen returns for Wallaby Test

Duane Vermeulen will make his first appearance for the Springboks since the 2019 Rugby World Cup final when South Africa resume their Castle Lager Rugby Championship campaign on Sunday against Australia at the CBUS Super Stadium in Gold Coast.

The experienced No 8 – who joined the Springbok squad at the start of the Castle Lager Lions Series in August but has yet to play a match – has recovered fully from the ankle surgery he had earlier this year and headlines the return of a handful of injured players for the important encounter.

Scrumhalves Faf de Klerk (leg strain) and Herschel Jantjies (hip pointer), and flank Marco van Staden (ankle) are also back from injury as Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber made 13 changes to his matchday squad for the match – seven in the starting lineup and six on the replacements bench.

Five of the changes to the starting team that defeated Argentina 29-10 in the second round of the Castle Lager Rugby Championship in Nelson Mandela Bay were amongst the forwards. Vermeulen takes over from Jasper Wiese at the back of the scrum, and Eben Etzebeth comes in for Marvin Orie at lock, while a new front row of Steven Kitshoff, Frans Malherbe (both props) and Bongi Mbonambi (hooker) will be in action.

The two changes in the backline are on the right wing, where Sbu Nkosi replaces Cheslin Kolbe who took a knock to the leg at training, and scrumhalf, where De Klerk returns for the first time since the second Test against the British & Irish Lions in place of Cobus Reinach.

Malcolm Marx (hooker), Ox Nché, Vincent Koch (both props), Van Staden, Wiese and Jantjies, meanwhile, will join Damian Willemse (utility back) and Kwagga Smith (loose forward) on a powerful replacements bench, which features a six-two split of forwards.

Nienaber was pleased to have a handful of players back from injury as the Springboks embark on a challenging four week stretch to defend their Castle Lager Rugby Championship title, with back-to-back Tests against Australia before successive encounters against New Zealand.

“We have been following the progress of the injured players on a daily basis, so we knew that we would be in a position to select most of them for this match,” said Nienaber.

“Duane has played an active role off the field in our team meetings and with the analysis of the opposition, and he has also provided guidance at training. He returned to full training when we arrived in Australia, so he has been in the thick of things for a while now.

“Duane, Faf and Herschel are Rugby World Cup winners, and so is Eben, who is back after we rotated him to manage his workload, while Marco has made a strong impact on the field this season as well, so we are pleased to have them back in the fold.

“Australia pose a strong threat with their running rugby and they like to keep the ball in play. They will also be playing in front of a charged-up home crowd, so it will be good to have these experienced players back as they know what it takes to perform in big matches.

“Unfortunately, we lost Cheslin to injury, but we are fortunate to have Sbu who steps in. He’s been working hard at training and he is eager to get back on the field.”

With the Springboks’ last Test being close to three weeks ago, Nienaber said it was important for the team to hit the ground running against Australia to maintain the momentum they’ve built up this season.

“We had sufficient time since our last Test to give the players a break after the physically taxing start to the season, and to work in a hard conditioning week before we tackle the remaining four Castle Lager Rugby Championship matches,” said Nienaber.

“We will be tested thoroughly in the next four weeks, so we have to be up for the challenge mentally and physically. There are also trophies such as the Nelson Mandela Challenge Plate and the Freedom Cup up for grabs, so we will prepare well and give our best on the field.”

Luke Pearce (England) has been appointed the match referee, with Australia’s Damon Murphy and Jordan Way serving as assistant referees, and England’s Matthew Carley will be the TMO.

Springbok team to face Australia in Gold Coast:

15 – Willie le Roux (Toyota Verblitz) – 66 caps, 60 pts (12t)

14 – Sbu Nkosi (Cell C Sharks) – 12 caps, 40 pts (8t)

13 – Lukhanyo Am (Cell C Sharks) – 19 caps, 20 pts (4t)

12 – Damian de Allende (Munster) – 51 caps, 30 pts (6t)

11 – Makazole Mapimpi (Cell C Sharks) – 18 caps, 80 pts (16t)

10 – Handré Pollard (vice-captain, Montpellier) – 53 caps, 521 pts (6t, 82c, 105p, 4d)

9 – Faf de Klerk (Sale Sharks) – 32 caps, 25 pts (5t)

8 – Duane Vermeulen (Vodacom Bulls) – 53 caps, 15 pts (3t)

7 – Franco Mostert (Honda Heat) – 44 caps, 5pts (1t)

6 – Siya Kolisi (captain, Cell C Sharks) – 56 caps, 30 pts (6t)

5 – Lood de Jager (Sale Sharks) – 50 caps, 25 pts (5t)

4 – Eben Etzebeth (Toulon) – 90 caps, 15 pts (3t)

3 – Frans Malherbe (DHL Stormers) – 43 caps, 5pts (1t)

2 – Bongi Mbonambi (DHL Stormers) – 41 caps, 40 pts (8t)

1 – Steven Kitshoff (DHL Stormers) – 52 caps, 5pts (1t)

Replacements:

16 – Malcolm Marx (Kubota Spears) – 39 caps, 35 pts (7t)

17 – Ox Nché (Cell C Sharks) – 4 caps, 0 pts

18 – Vincent Koch (Saracens) – 24 caps, 0 pts

19 – Marco van Staden (Leicester Tigers) – 6 caps, 0 pts

20 – Kwagga Smith (Yamaha Júbilo) – 12 caps, 5 pts (1t)

21 – Jasper Wiese (Leicester Tigers) – 5 caps, 0 pts

22 – Herschel Jantjies (DHL Stormers) – 14 caps, 25 pts (5t)

23 – Damian Willemse (DHL Stormers) – 12 caps, 5pts (1t)

Springbok record against Australia:

Played 88; Won 48, Lost 37, Drawn 3; Points for 1733, Points against 1550; Tries scored 202, Tries conceded 159; Highest score 61 pts, Biggest win 45 pts; Win %: 54%.

Milestones:

• Makazole Mapimpi has scored 16 tries in 18 Tests, which equates to a try-scoring record of 88.9%. The player with the best try-scoring ratio with more than 20 Test caps, is former Springbok centre Danie Gerber, who ended his career with 19 tries in 24 Tests (79.2%).
• Duane Vermeulen will start his 53^rd Test in the Springbok No 8 jersey, stretching his number of starts to six more than the second-placed Pierre Spies (47).

Miscellaneous:

• The total Test caps for the Springbok starting line-up is 680.
• There are 251 caps in the backline with 429 caps amongst the forwards. On the bench there are a further 116 caps.
• The average caps per player in the backline are 36 the forwards 53 while the players on the bench average 14.