Le Roux gets Bok 100 against Italy as Erasmus names three uncapped players
Up front, Jasper Wiese and Van Staden form a loose trio combination with Pieter-Steph du Toit, while Ruan Nortje and Moerat will command the engine room and Thomas du Toit will pack down with Louw and Marx in the front row.
Erasmus named five forwards and three backs on the bench, with Wessels joining fellow front-rowers Nché and Ntlabakanye, along with the versatile Cobus Wiese and Evan Roos. Cobus Reinach, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Hooker will provide backline cover.
Du Toit, Nortje, Williams, Mapimpi and Roos make returns from injuries that ruled them out of action at some stage since last season.
Commenting on Le Roux earning his 100th Test cap, Erasmus said: 'Willie has been a stalwart for us in the last few years after making his debut against Italy in Durban in 2013 and he's a fantastic playmaker, so we are thrilled to see him achieve this incredible feat.
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TimesLIVE
11 hours ago
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Rassie explains Bok selection decisions that have raised eyebrows
Skipper Kolisi is playing at number eight instead of six, but there's a method to what may seem like madness Never afraid to make big calls that raise eyebrows, Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus has explained why he moved captain Siya Kolisi to number eight for the opening Test of the Rugby Championship match against Australia at Ellis Park on Saturday. With Kolisi — whose usual position is at six — at number eight, Pieter-Steph du Toit and Marco van Staden are the two flankers, and Erasmus has gone with the combination of Lood de Jager and Eben Etzebeth at lock. This will be the first time in Test rugby Kolisi plays at number eight and Erasmus is confident he will be full value as they look to start the campaign on a winning note. 'We actually changed our minds there. The more we practised and prepared for this Test match, [the more] we realised the only time a guy really plays at eight is [in] the scrums, and scrums probably happens 13 or 14 times in a game. 'But general play is probably the thing that happens the most, and having guys like Pieter-Steph du Toit, Marco van Staden and Siya on the field at the same time is good, because Australia are a big threat at the breakdown. Boks coach Rassie Erasmus explains Siya Kolisi positional switch. WATCH full press conference ➡️➡️➡️ — Mahlatse Mphahlele (@BraMahlatse) August 11, 2025 'They bite hard at the breakdown and those three guys can clean out and we are going to need that. Siya is going to pack scrums and sometimes he might play flank and Marco at eight. '[Forwards] coach Daan [Human] is happy with the way he [has] us scrumming, but apart from that they will [be] crucial in general play. I said it a couple of weeks ago that Siya is a six and not an eight, but we came to the conclusion that it won't happen so much in the game where we need him there.' Erasmus also backed Manie Libbok ahead of Handrè Pollard and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, and explained why he didn't pick a specialist flyhalf on the bench. 'Sasha and Handrè will probably play in Cape Town [next weekend] to spread the load. Not having a flyhalf on the bench, you know that Damian [Willemse] can play that position for us. 'The only time we really we swap flyhalves is if he is having an off day or missing kicks, but Manie has been slotting them really well. I think the new rhino ball must be making the difference because he is doing well. 'We felt we had to have cover at position 13 and with Damian de Allende having a niggle and only expected to be ready next week, we went with Canan [Moodie] on the bench. 'It was between Sasha and Handrè or Canan and because we don't have an out-and-out cover at 13, we do have a Damian [Willemse] as cover for [number] 10.' Erasmus also explained why he announced the squad on Monday. 'It is because we have been preparing for three weeks for Australia and that doesn't normally happen. What usually happens is after the incoming series, the next Test match is a little bit closer. 'Why we are announcing the squad on Monday is to get the speculation out of the way, and also for players to know who is playing so that we can focus on training well,' he said, adding there may be changes. 'If you look at the balance of their squad, they brought a lot of forwards on tour and we might change on Friday and bring RG [Snyman] back in the mix if they go with a six/two split on the bench. If they stay with five/three, which is pretty much their team, that will be it.'
eNCA
13 hours ago
- eNCA
Springboks move captain Kolisi to No 8 for Australia opener
JOHANNESBURG - South Africa captain Siya Kolisi will start at No 8 for the first time in a Test when they begin their Rugby Championship defence in Johannesburg on Saturday against Australia. The 34-year-old double Rugby World Cup winner, who makes his 94th Test appearance, is usually to be found on the flank but has operated in the position for his franchise, the Durban-based Sharks. He will do it for the first time for the Boks largely because the other leading contenders are all unavailable. Regular No 8 Jasper Wiese is serving a four-match ban after head-butting a rival in a warm-up victory over Italy last month. Other options Elrigh Louw and Cameron Hanekom suffered serious pre-Springbok season injuries and are unlikely to be available this year. Moving Kolisi means flanker Marco van Staden comes into the starting line-up with reigning World Rugby Player of the Year Pieter-Steph du Toit completing the back row. Manie Libbok gets the nod at fly-half ahead of Handre Pollard and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu with head coach Rassie Erasmus well aware of the record of the Japan-based playmaker. The Springboks have lost only one of 13 Tests when Libbok started -- the pool defeat by Ireland at the 2023 World Cup in France. But when the 28-year-old came off the bench in seven internationals, record four-time World Cup winners South Africa lost four. Creative Libbok is capable of opening the tightest defences, but doubts remain over his goal kicking, a skill perfected by Pollard. Grant Williams has moved to the front of the queue for the hotly contested scrum-half position and starts with veteran Cobus Reinach providing cover on the bench. Erasmus has opted not to risk star winger Cheslin Kolbe or veteran centre Damian de Allende as both are recovering from niggles. Edwill van der Merwe, who has scored five tries in three Tests, replaces Kolbe on the right wing while Andre Esterhuizen fills in for De Allende at inside centre. "Cheslin has recovered from a niggle and trained with us last week, but we decided to exercise caution and give him extra time at training before selecting him," said Erasmus. "Damian picked up a back niggle and will train this week, but Andre has been strong for us in the last few seasons, so it was an easy decision to name him alongside Jesse (Kriel)." Australia flew to Johannesburg after a 2-1 series loss to the British and Irish Lions. The Wallabies want to snap a four-match losing streak against South Africa and will name their team on Thursday. Team (15-1) Aphelele Fassi; Edwill van der Merwe, Jesse Kriel, Andre Esterhuizen, Kurt-Lee Arendse; Manie Libbok, Grant Williams; Siya Kolisi (capt), Pieter-Steph du Toit, Marco van Staden; Lood de Jager, Eben Etzebeth; Wilco Louw, Malcolm Marx, Ox Nche
Daily Maverick
13 hours ago
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Kolisi to pack down at No 8 as Boks send early message to Wallabies for Championship opener
Siya Kolisi will captain the Springboks from No 8 against Australia at Ellis Park on Saturday. Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus laid down an early gauntlet to Australia for the Rugby Championship opener at Ellis Park by naming his team on a Monday. That's a full five days before the match, which is unusually early, even by the Boks' standards. In recent years the Boks have taken to naming their team on a Tuesday, which broke from the tradition of teams naming as late as possible (48 hours before the match) to avoid being overanalysed. But there is so much player and team data out there these days that any self-respecting coaching staff will have all the detail they need on every player they will face. Erasmus, as he has always done, is essentially saying to the Wallabies: 'This is our team, you know what's coming, now try and stop us.' And it will take some stopping, especially at a stadium that has not been kind to the Wallabies in the professional era in which they have lost six times. While Erasmus' approach of revealing his team so early could be viewed as gamesmanship, the reality is that Boks have known for weeks what the team will look like. They break the season down into three large blocs — incoming tours in June/July, Rugby Championship in August and September and the end of year tour in November — and within that there are micro-blocs. The two Tests against the Wallabies, the two against the All Blacks in New Zealand and then two against the Pumas. The players know where they stand in terms of selection, assuming everyone is fit. Cheslin Kolbe (knee) and Damian de Allende (back) are both carrying 'niggles' and were not considered, but other than that Erasmus selected from a full-strength squad. Kolbe could have played, but Erasmus decided against risking him, while the timeline in De Allende's case is less clear at this stage. Breakdown focus Captain Siya Kolisi has been named at No 8 for the first time, in his 94th Test, with Marco van Staden operating from openside flank. There is a clear plan to shore up the breakdown as it was an area Australia did well in against the British & Irish Lions. With hooker Malcolm Marx another breakdown menace and Kwagga Smith to come from the bench, the Boks have that area well covered for the full 80 minutes. Erasmus admitted there had been a change of thinking about Kolisi's versatility. 'A couple of weeks ago, I said Siya is a No 6, not a No 8, but we have changed our minds. Australia have a lot of threats at the breakdown so we wanted to get Marco and Siya in the team,' Erasmus said. And while Erasmus has named a traditional 5-3 split between forwards and backs among the reserves, the selection of hybrid player André Esterhuizen gives the Boks the option of an extra flank. Esterhuizen will start at inside centre against the Wallabies. He was used in a hybrid role when he moved to flank against the Barbarians in June, an experiment that went well and which Erasmus said would continue to be used throughout the season. The pack has a commanding look about it with Eben Etzebeth and Lood de Jager united in the second row. Pieter-Steph du Toit completes the loose trio, and in tandem with the two locks gives the Boks plenty of lineout options. Wilco Louw is preferred at tighthead this week with the brilliant Ox Nché at loosehead. The Wallabies might prefer to steer clear of scrums. 'We've been experimenting with player combinations during the incoming series and at our conditioning camp in the last two weeks, and we believe this team will allow us to play the type of rugby we want to play against Australia,' said Erasmus. 'The Wallabies will be determined to change their win record against us in the last three seasons and we are confident that the players we selected will be up for the challenge. 'All of the starters except for Edwill have faced them before, and we are confident that he is ready for this challenge.' Attacking silk Manie Libbok starts at flyhalf with a backline primed to attack. Try-glutton fullback Aphelele Fassi and wing Kurt-Lee Arendse and Edwill van der Merwe make for a salivating attacking back three. Van der Merwe has scored five tries in three Tests, while Arendse has already amassed 20 tries in 26 Tests. Fassi is also prodigious when it comes to scoring tries, with seven in 12 Tests. Fassi though, is a wonderful creator, as well as being superb under the high ball. Grant Williams at scrumhalf is a massive attacking threat, and Libbok's ability to bring teammates into the game with his selfless and visionary approach could be significant. And by all accounts the work he has put in on a new, faster kicking regimen is paying off. Canan Moodie, Damian Willemse and Cobus Reinach offer versatility and class from the bench. It's a balanced side that will ask significant questions of the Wallabies, while also being able to answer any tough questions Australia might throw back at them. Reserves props Jan-Hendrik Wessels and Asenathi Ntlabakanye are inexperienced, presenting perhaps the only chink in the Bok make-up simply because of their lack of big match history. But they have to gain experience somewhere and there are few better places than Ellis Park. The Boks have spent two weeks preparing for this match on the back of four good wins during the incoming tours, but they remain respectful of the Wallabies in light of the recent Lions series. Australia lost the series 2-1 but were unlucky in the second Test. They could just as easily have won the series 2-1, but as it was they had to settle for a consolation 22-12 third Test victory. 'Australia showed that they are on the right trajectory in their last two matches against the British & Irish Lions, and we have no doubt they will enter this match with confidence and determination to build on those performances,' Erasmus said. 'They are a physical and well-coached team. We'll certainly not underestimate how much those performances, combined with their motivation to bounce back strongly against us after the last few results between the teams, and win their first match ever at Ellis Park, will inspire them. 'That said, we have also been working hard to keep building on our game and improve, and we believe our two-week conditioning camp has placed us in the right frame of mind for the Rugby Championship. 'So hopefully we can transfer that hard work into our game to place ourselves in a good position to defend the title.' DM South Africa: 15 Aphelele Fassi, 14 Edwill van der Merwe, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 André Esterhuizen, 11 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 10 Manie Libbok, 9 Grant Williams, 8 Siya Kolisi (captain), 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit , 6 Marco van Staden, 5 Lood de Jager, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Ox Nché. Replacements: 16 Bongi Mbonambi, 17 Jan-Hendrik Wessels, 18 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 19 Franco Mostert, 20 Kwagga Smith, 21 Cobus Reinach, 22 Canan Moodie, 23 Damian Willemse.
