Confident Boks relish the prospect of old foes, says coach

The Springboks are relishing the prospect of facing old foes New Zealand and Australia in the Rugby Championship after they were cleared to travel overseas, coach Jacques Nienaber said.

Nienaber said experiencing “normal” life in Australia after living under several forms of adjusted Covid-19 restrictions in SA would ensure the Boks were mentally fresh for their remaining Rugby Championship matches.

After spending two weeks in Gqeberha for back-to-back matches against Argentina, the Boks depart for Australia on Thursday where they face two weeks in quarantine.

The squad had Monday and Tuesday off to rest in Gqeberha to recover from their physically and mentally taxing schedule in the past two months, during which they played Georgia, the British & Irish Lions and Argentina.

The remaining four rounds of the Rugby Championship will be held in Gold Coast, Brisbane and Townsville.

The Springboks will kick off the away leg of their campaign against Australia on September 12 at the Cbus Super Stadium in Gold Coast. This will be followed by another matchup between the teams at the Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane on September 18.

These fixtures will be followed by back-to-back matches against New Zealand on September 25 at the Queensland Country Bank Stadium in Townsville and on October 2 at the Cbus Super Stadium in Gold Coast.

The matches were initially scheduled to be hosted in Sydney, Brisbane, Dunedin and Auckland, respectively.

Each round will feature a double-header of matches between the four participating teams at the same venue, and fans will be allowed to attend.

“We are pleased the Rugby Championship match schedule has been finalised and we are looking forward to continuing our campaign in Australia,” Nienaber said.

“We can now continue our planning to ensure that the players are ready for the next four matches from a physical and mental point of view.

“We are excited about facing our old foes Australia and New Zealand again after kicking off the tournament well against Argentina.”

The Springboks and Pumas will travel to Australia together on Thursday afternoon, and both teams will be placed in quarantine for two weeks before taking the field, after which they will then operate normally in Australia with no restrictions placed on their movements.

“The two-week quarantine period means we will be on tour for just under six weeks, but we are looking forward to experiencing normal life after a year-and-a-half of living under several forms of adjusted Covid-19 restrictions in SA,”  Nienaber said.

“This will certainly assist in ensuring that the players are fresh mentally when they take the field.”

Scrumhalf Grant Williams has joined the Bok squad in Gqeberha as scrumhalf cover for the next stage of the Rugby Championship following the withdrawal of Jaden Hendrikse due to a leg fracture.

Williams, who has been in good form for the Sharks, joins Faf de Klerk, Herschel Jantjies and Cobus Reinach as the scrumhalves in the squad.

De Klerk and Jantjies were both on the injury list in the past two weeks, but are on track with their recovery from a leg strain and hip pointer niggle, respectively, and will be available for selection for the Tests against Australia and New Zealand.