It shouldn’t surprise anyone that Salmaan Moerat will be the man leading the Springboks into battle in the second test against Italy in Gqeberha on Saturday.
This always looked like a game where Rassie Erasmus would opt for what increasingly is appearing to be his alternative captain if Siya Kolisi is one of the older players who doesn’t make it to Rugby World Cup 2027 in Australia.
Even before there were potential fault-lines exposed by the Azzurri in Pretoria last weekend, when Erasmus went for experience and what looked like a full strength team for the Loftus game, the smart money would have been on this week seeing a change up.
After all, Erasmus has spoken about his intention to manage the players this year, while at the same time increasing his depth pool, by giving each of them around eight games during the international season rather than playing them in every test.
On Tuesday, after naming a team that featured 11 changes from the one that won 42-24, in reference to the decision to hold Siya Kolisi and his troublesome Achilles back for another week, he said “With 14 games scheduled, 10 appearances would be doing well.”
SIYA’S VALUE INCREASED AFTER LOFTUS
Had Kolisi been cleared to play this week of course he would have been back in his No 6 jersey. If ever there was a game the double World Cup winning captain was missed in it was the Loftus battle, where Italy arguably got away with murder by swarming all over the ball at the breakdowns, perhaps at times illegally.
Marco van Staden, who continues as the openside flank this week, actually played really well at Loftus and together with the No 8 Jasper Wiese his retention in a back row that is now completed by Pieter-Steph du Toit is well merited.
But even though Kolisi wears the No 6 when he plays he is not a so-called fetcher. His big attributes are his counter-rucking and cleaning out, which facilitates the quick ball the Boks were short of five days ago.
However, although Erasmus would like to have given Kolisi a chance to play and lead in the city he grew up and was educated in, eventually he thought it wise to take the conservative option and leave Kolisi’s seasonal debut to next week in Mbombela.
Perhaps the care he is taking over Kolisi and his return to the field is even an indication of the flank’s (he can also play No 8) increased value. Erasmus says the Achilles injury is not serious. Should Kolisi still be struggling with his fitness for that game, perhaps that is when a touch of worry should be introduced, but not now.
RESPECTFUL SALMAAN PUTS TEAM FIRST
Right now, with the captain for the last two games Jesse Kriel needing a rest, it was entirely predictable that Stormers captain and lock Moerat would be given the leadership reins, a role he has invariably filled when he has worn the Bok No 4.
Aside from being rated by Erasmus for his leadership skills, he satisfies the need to put right the problem in Pretoria that has been the bubbling under narrative through this week. Meaning he needs to help ensure that the Boks adapt to the refereeing interpretations in the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium game, and at the same time ensure that there is clear communication with the referee.
“Since referee protocols have been put in place we have looked to be up with whatever rule changes there may have been and get a clear understanding of what the referee wants and Salmaan does that really well,” said Erasmus.
“Salmaan is very respectful. He is not just a good leader of the team both on and off the field, he is also very respectful in his communication with the referees and there is respect between him and the referee.
"Sometimes you need real and open conversations between your captain and the referee on what must be changed in a team’s approach during a game, and Salmaan is really good at that.
“He is also very good at serving the team and the team needs, regardless of whether he is starting the game or whether he is on the bench, or even not in the 23. He is a really good captain.
"Of course he is the Stormers captain too, so he brings that experience to the job. Overall he is just a very good captain. He has been unfortunate with injuries but hopefully that will change.”
ITALY GAMBLED AT THE BREAKDOWN IN PRETORIA
That the refereeing narrative would be big this week became obvious when the man in charge of ensuring the Boks stay on the right side of the law and the match officials, Jaco Peyper, was put up to do media duty on Monday.
Peyper wasn’t completely clear about what the problem area was from the Bok perspective with the way Holly Davidson and her team officiated last week’s game, but Erasmus spelt it out quite directly, although he didn’t say anything that necessarily implied he thought the decisions made in Pretoria were wrong.
“Any team that puts four or five guys into the breakdown will make it difficult for you, and if you are expected to lose of course there is much less risk for you and you can be prepared to take the gamble,” said the Bok coach.
“It is not that we expected Italy to lose. We respect them as a team. A lot has been said about the fact they rested players last week, but what is clear to us is that the players they brought in are guys they see as their future.
"It is also hard to prepare for a team you don’t know that well. If you are playing against a team with say Richie McCaw or Tom Curry, you know they are a threat at the breakdown and you watch out for them.
“When we were 28-3 up we relaxed. That is not forgivable and not good as a team, but the team we were playing against wasn’t so well known to us.
"Had we scored the try that was disallowed not long after halftime (and gone 35-3 up) we would probably have pumped them and then everyone would be talking about how good we were. But that didn’t happen. So this week we are looking for the energy levels of guys coming onto the field who are a bit younger.”
Erasmus wasn’t shy to show his unhappiness with the Bok performance immediately after the Loftus game, but has clearly had a rethink after going through the review process.
“Last week we scored 42 points. There were two tries for them that were disallowed and one for us. Who scored the most points? Our attack wasn’t bad, I think we just relaxed. We don’t expect that…
"But we have a few new guys this week Italy will know less about who they will need to try and handle. I wouldn’t say we’ve selected a more expansive team because last week we had guys like Cheslin (Kolbe) and Kurt-Lee (Arendse) playing for us and we know how good they are.”