The Springboks stuck to their original plan ahead of their Castle Lager Rugby Championship match against New Zealand in Auckland on Saturday, naming a side that is heavy on experience and reliant on the players left last week to acclimatise.
In every essence this would normally be considered the Springboks’ strongest team available, as only the front row, fullback Willie le Roux and midfielder Lukhanyo Am from the Loftus Versfeld win over the Wallabies made the cut in the starting line-up.
Eben Etzebeth will captain the side in Auckland, as expected, as the Boks look to take another step forward in their quest to gain momentum ahead of the Rugby World Cup later this year.
But the pressure that has been created by the 43-12 victory last Saturday has laid down a gauntlet for the rest of the players to be at their best with the others breathing down their necks.
Coach Jacques Nienaber resisted the temptation to bring more players from Loftus into the side despite their strong performances.
While Le Roux forms the traditional back three with Cheslin Kolbe and Makazole Mapimpi, the performance of Kurt-Lee Arendse would have left no doubt that they need to perform this weekend or one of the wing spots may be under threat.
Damian de Allende reforms his partnership with Am, a position that has also come under scrutiny after a strong performance by Andre Esterhuizen at Loftus while Damian Willemse starts at 10 as expected alongside Faf de Klerk.
Up front the starting front row was expected as was the lock combination of Etzebeth and Lood de Jager, while Jasper Wiese, Franco Mostert and Kwagga Smith make a formidable loose trio to take on the All Blacks.
Some of the Bok thinking from the Loftus game can clearly be seen in the back-up players - with Manie Libbok and Grant Williams both on the bench following excellent performances at Loftus, as well as Duane Vermeulen, RG Snyman and Pieter-Steph du Toit forming the basis of a bomb squad that includes Malcolm Marx.
Marx was expected to start in Auckland and it can only be that Bongi Mbonambi’s performance must have influenced selection, especially with the way the front row demolished the Wallaby scrum.
The six-two split gives the Boks some awesome firepower late in the game and Williams’ speed and Libbok’s probing runs could make a big difference if the game is still close by then.
