Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus may well toy with the idea of bringing in Bok captain Siya Kolisi in at No 8 - even if it is for just part of the game for Saturday’s test match against Georgia in Nelspruit.
While Evan Roos remains the odds-on favourite to face the Georgian side after his powerful second half performance, it seems that the option to bring Kolisi in at eight may not be off the table - at least according to assistant coach Deon Davids.
Jasper Wiese waits for word on his disciplinary hearing after receiving a straight red for a head butt during the 45-0 whitewash of Italy in Gqeberha on Saturday and the general consensus is that he may face a ban of a number of matches because he has previous transgressions that may count against him.
So the Boks will be looking for a new No 8 this weekend and while Roos and probably Kwagga Smith are both candidates, as is Jean-Luc du Preez, it wouldn’t be untowards to think Erasmus may think out of the box again and look at Kolisi in the role.
The Bok captain has missed the first two official tests of the season with a stiff achilles heel, and is due for a return to action this weekend. He has also played a number of times at eight for the Hollywoodbets Sharks this season, but Erasmus ruled the change out for the Boks in his first press conference before the season began.
The Bok coach said Kolisi was unlikely to play eight for the Boks because of the depth the side had and he would only focus on his regular six position.
Since then however Juarno Augustus has joined the injured ranks alongside Elrigh Louw and Cameron Hanekom, while Du Preez went back to England to join his wife for the birth of their child.
The Boks do have a number of players who are physical enough and big ball carriers that can fill in the role in an emergency. Just this weekend Marco van Staden and midfielder Andre Esterhuizen both packed down there in the scrum after Wiese was ordered off the field.
Davids didn’t commit to Kolisi being part of the team but mentioned him specifically when asked about the replacement at eight this weekend.
“We have versatile players in our squad, like Siya, who has played No 6 primarily for us but also No 8 for the Sharks,” Davids said.
“We also have guys like Evan Roos and Marco van Staden who have played in that position. There are different players that we can look at that we feel will have the ability to fill that position.
“It will depend on the mix-up of the loose trio and the mix-up of the pack, and that will determine where our selection will go.”
Davids also said that the team will support Wiese whatever the outcome of the disciplinary hearing may be.
“For us, it is unfortunate that Jasper got on the wrong side of the law. We are a physical team. We try to do things with as much intent as possible. That is part of our DNA,” Davids said.
“We support Jasper in whatever decision it will be. And we trust the disciplinary hearing committee, the judgment on the issue. We work very hard as a team on staying on the right side of the law.
“That is why we have Jaco Peyper here to make sure we coach and train within the law. There is a good awareness from the players on understanding the risk from a technical point of view to execute what they need to do. World Rugby has laid out the procedure that they will follow and we trust the decision and the approaches.”
The Springbok side to face Georgia will be selected on Tuesday.