Springboks call up No 8 Evan Roos for expanded squad
South Africa have called up No 8 Evan Roos into their bloated squad for the fixture against the Barbarians later this month and the July internationals against Italy and Georgia.
Roos was a surprise omission from the original squad named this week and brings the number of players to 55.
His inclusion comes after back row Cameron Hanekom limped out of the Bulls' United Rugby Championship semifinal win over the Sharks at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday, though there has been no suggestion the latter has been released from the squad.
The team will begin preparations in Johannesburg on Sunday, though without players from the Bulls and Leinster, who feature in the URC final this coming Saturday, and Bath and Leicester Tigers, who meet in the Premiership Rugby final in England on the same day.
The world champions kick off their season against the Barbarians in Cape Town on June 28, before taking on Italy in back-to-back tests in Pretoria and Gqeberha on July 5 and 12, and Georgia in Mbombela on July 19.
Reuters
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Herald
an hour ago
- The Herald
Lord's history and swing conditions favour Proteas — Kallis
Though the exciting Tristan Stubbs has only a little experience of playing in England — 13 T20 matches — Kallis said he hoped the 24-year-old was in the starting XI at Lord's. 'I would like to see Stubbs come through; he has really got game. He's good enough to stick around but he can also play aggressively. 'I would certainly have him in my batting line-up, but then it becomes a tough call who to leave out. 'I would hate not to have a spinner; you have to have that option because you don't know what conditions you're going to get later in the game. 'SA's batting line-up is young, but they are pretty fearless. They just need to go out and play, while sticking to their game plans. 'They need to keep playing the way they did going into the final because that's what has been successful. They just need to execute as a batting line-up,' Kallis said. Lord's is owned by the Marylebone Cricket Club and is a place of great tradition, having hosted matches since 1787. Not all of its traditions are good, though the MCC only admitted women as members as recently as 1998. But the ground exudes an undeniable magic and Proteas batting coach Ashwell Prince, who scored a gutsy century there against England in 2008, said not much has changed at the London venue. 'I've been following the county matches at Lord's and the ground looks good, immaculate and polished. 'Not much has changed and I anticipate a fantastic surface for both batting and bowling,' Prince said. 'We'll have to get there and look at the surface, and it's most important to consider the overhead conditions and the forecast. 'We try not to pay too much attention to external things, but you have to consider that at Lord's. 'My approach as batting coach is to support the batsmen in terms of their mental state, preparation and plans. 'They need to get to a place where they are calm and focused, you need to find the right balance between being calm and having the right amount of aggression. Like Hashim Amla epitomised, and Temba Bavuma has a lot of that too.' In terms of whether SA would play an extra specialist batsman at Lord's, Prince pointed out that they had very good all-round options to balance their side. 'It's nice to have five bowlers as a general rule and we have different options for that with Marco Jansen, Wiaan Mulder and Senuran Muthusamy. 'We have a strong, really talented squad and we believe we can beat anyone. We're very excited to go over to Lord's,' Prince said. — SportsBoom
The Herald
an hour ago
- The Herald
Norton to lead strong Junior Bok side in Italy
Western Province lock Riley Norton has been named captain of a powerful Junior Springbok side to play at the World Rugby U20 Championship in Italy from June 29 to July 19. The team show several changes to the squad which ended third in the U20 Rugby Championship in Gqeberha in May. Phiwayinkosi Kubheka (prop) and Ian van der Merwe (flyhalf) have not played for the SA U20s before, and Jaco Grobbelaar (lock), Stephanus Linde (No 8) and Jaco Williams (outside back) are back in the squad after missing the Gqeberha tournament. Kubheka played for the SA U18s in 2024 and Van der Merwe in 2023, while Linde toured with the Junior Boks in Georgia earlier in 2025 before he picked up an injury, which ruled him out of the Rugby Championship. Grobbelaar is one of the five players returning for a second World Rugby Championship stint, alongside utility forward Batho Hlekani, prop Herman Lubbe, loose forward Wandile Mlaba and scrumhalf Haashim Pead. Six players who are still U19 have been included in the squad, which bodes well for 2026. They are Kubheka, fellow prop Oliver Reid, Siphosethu Mnebelele (hooker), Norton (lock), Vusi Moyo (flyhalf) and Cheswill Jooste (outside back). Junior Bok coach Kevin Foote's selection had been a difficult task, and he and the coaching staff were pleased with the final squad. 'The boys have all been superb in their attitude and application and most of the group have been together since November last year, when the SA U19 Academy Programme kicked off in Stellenbosch,' he said. 'I want to thank every player who has been part of the various training groups for their amazing effort. 'The schools and provincial unions also deserve a huge amount of credit for how they have prepared our players. 'We selected a good group of players who are determined to do the country proud with their performances on the field and their conduct off-field. 'It was an enormously difficult task to cut the squad to 30 players and we all feel for those guys who did not make the final selection.' Junior Springbok squad: Props: Jean Erasmus (Bulls), Phiwayinkosi 'Rambo' Kubheka (Sharks), Herman Lubbe (WP), Simphiwe Ngobese (Sharks), Oliver Reid (WP). Hookers: Siphosethu Mnebelele (Bulls), Jaundré Schoeman (Bulls). Locks: Jaco Grobbelaar (Bulls), Riley Norton (WP), JJ Theron (Bulls), Morné Venter (Lions). Loose forwards: Thando Biyela (Lions), Bathobele Hlekani (Sharks), Wandile Mlaba (WP), Xola Nyali (WP), Matt Romao (Sharks), Stephanus Linde (Cheetahs). Scrumhalves: Ceano Everson (Sharks), Haashim Pead (Lions), Erich Visser (Cheetahs). Flyhalves: Vusi Moyo (Sharks), Ian van der Merwe (Bulls). Centres: Albie Bester (Sharks), Gino Cupido (WP), Demitre Erasmus (Bulls), Dominic Malgas (WP). Outside backs: Cheswill Jooste (Bulls), Gilermo Mentoe (Lions), Siya Ndlozi (WP), Jaco Williams (Sharks). SA's Pool A fixtures: Sunday, June 29: vs Australia U20 — Stadio San Michele (Calvisano). Friday, July 4: vs England U20 — Stadio Mario Battaglini (Rovigo). Wednesday, July 9: vs Scotland U20 — June Stadio San Michele (Calvisano). The Herald
IOL News
2 hours ago
- IOL News
Wilco Louw one of three reasons Bulls can upset Leinster in URC final
Wilco Louw has been in outstanding form for the Bulls, and has been rewarded with a Springbok call-up. Photo: BackpagePix Image: BackpagePix The Bulls are outright underdogs for Saturday's United Rugby Championship final against Leinster in Dublin (6pm SA time start) – but that doesn't mean that Jake White's team have no chance. In fact, here are three factors that are actually in the Bulls' favour to cause an almighty upset at Croke Park... 1 Andrea Piardi as the referee At first, you might think that Italian official Andrea Piardi's appointment as the final referee on Tuesday – his third title decider in a row – might work against the Bulls. The 32-year-old was the man in charge in last season's 21-16 victory for Glasgow Warriors at Loftus Versfeld – and Munster's win over the Stormers in Cape Town in 2023 – and White was unhappy with some of his decisions. 'It's twice in a row now where the referees (Piardi) let the away side win,' White said afterwards. 'In fact, it's three times – last year, Munster won in Cape Town, Glasgow won in Munster, we won in Leinster, and this referee let the away team win. So maybe, next year I'll ask when we play away, that I want him to try and ref us!' So, while match officials try to be objective, there is no doubt that the home crowd does have an influence in a match as big as a final. Normally the hosts would be on the right side of a few tight calls, but it seems it's the opposite with Piardi. White's words about last year's final defeat will surely be in the Italian's head, and he will be keen to ensure that it's a fair contest and that Leinster aren't getting any undue rewards. 2 Props with a point to prove Bulls props Jan-Hendrik Wessels and Wilco Louw have been sensational this season. Louw has been so good that most SA fans – perhaps even a few Stormers ones – voiced their displeasure with Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu being chosen as the SA URC Player of the Season last week instead of the Bulls No 3. The giant tighthead has been a destructive presence in the scrums, and gets around the field as well with his carries and tackles to emerge as the clear front-runner to start for the Springboks in 2025. Wessels hasn't been far behind, with his powerful surges around the fringes and outstanding work-rate on defence complementing his scrummaging work and versatility to fill in at hooker. In contrast, Leinster are missing injured Irish tighthead stalwart Tadhg Furlong, while loosehead prop Andrew Porter infamously said two years ago that 'It's about getting that fifth star (Champions Cup titles) on the jersey. You don't see many URC or PRO14s or whatever you have on the jersey'. With Leinster having tripped up at the Champions Cup semi-final hurdle once more this season, how motivated will Porter be for the URC final? 3 Hunger for glory The Bulls' loss to Glasgow in front of a packed 50,000-plus crowd at Loftus Versfeld really hurt them. They had roared into a 13-0 first-half lead, only to watch their advantage being whittled away by Franco Smith's band of Warriors. Bok World Cup-winning mentor Jake White even questioned himself and his approach in the aftermath, noting that 'I myself lost a Super Rugby final against the Chiefs (with the Brumbies), lost a Rainbow Cup in Benetton, lost two URC finals...' Despite not having a dynamic Bok wing Kurt-Lee Arendse available this time – as well as losing injured star No 8 Cameron Hanekom in the semi-final – the Bulls are undoubtedly a more well-rounded side this season. They have produced some outstanding performances away from home, most notably beating Munster and Glasgow in Europe. So, a packed Croke Park won't be a daunting environment for this group of Bulls. They will also enjoy being the underdogs in Dublin, despite winning the 2022 and 2024 semi-finals against Leinster. If they can avoid the unnecessary yellow cards from the semi-final and put their best foot forward, they have every chance of emerging victorious on Saturday – at long last putting to bed the defeats in the 2022 and 2024 finals.
