The next fortnight is set to be a crucial one for the Springboks in their lead up to the Greatest Rivalry tour, with a tough fixture in Buenos Aires away and the squad to take on the All Blacks in the first test on 22 August starting to take shape.
While the Boks were all given off this week to spend some time with their families, they will return on Sunday to meet up with the side again ahead of a crucial phase of their preparations.
As coach Rassie Erasmus said after the 43-0 win over Wales this past weekend, the squad will follow a split-approach with 15 players staying on in South Africa while a group of players heads to Buenos Aires to face Argentina in a one-off test.
Those 15 players are likely to be the core of the squad to take on the All Blacks and it wouldn’t be wrong to read into Erasmus’ approach that all 15 will be involved in one way or another in that first game.
FOUR TOUGH TESTS
But with the series being four tests in consecutive weekends - and the final one in Baltimore, USA - the Boks will need to rotate through the weeks as they have been doing in the Nations Championship, and unlike test series in the past, their greater squad will give them the advantage of being able to do so.
The fact that the Boks used 51 players last season and a similar number the season before, has seen them significantly increase their depth despite a heavy injury list at the moment. It wasn’t a surprise that when Erasmus was asked who his best fifteen was after the Wales game, he sidestepped it and said the management wants the competition within the squad to be as close as possible.
Erasmus did say there were a few players that were lock-ins. World Player of the year Malcolm Marx for instance. The midfield of Jesse Kriel and Damian de Allende - the latter who is likely to play his 100th test in Johannesburg for the Boks. Flanker Pieter-Steph du Toit, winger Cheslin Kolbe and fullback Damian Willemse. Those names are likely to be among the 15 that stay in South Africa to prepare for the All Blacks.
CHANCE FOR WALKING WOUNDED TO PROVE THEMSELVES
Given the depth the Boks currently have, that means there are a lot of players that are available and will want the opportunity to go to Buenos Aires and try and stake a claim for a part in the Bok team for the series.
The game will be mainly to ensure that some of the returning Boks get some match time against a tier one nation, but knowing Erasmus, it will also be a game he desperately wants to win.
The larger picture should be more in play here, so we are likely to see some form of return for the likes of captain Siya Kolisi, locks Eben Etzebeth, Lood de Jager and Franco Mostert, utility back Ethan Hooker, midfielder Andre Esterhuizen and of course, flyhalf and kingpin Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu.
Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s case is an interesting one, as he is likely to be a very key player for the Boks against the All Blacks, and there should be a debate whether he makes his return for the one-off game in Argentina with the Boks, or whether he should be released for the DHL Stormers in their tour opener, which happens the night before the Argentina test?
Erasmus, though, will have that one planned long before the side boards the flight and it has probably already been communicated to Feinberg-Mngomezulu by now.
CLARITY OVER ESTERHUIZEN, ETZEBETH EXPECTED
Etzebeth’s concussion issues, which has forced him to be a sideline player in this year’s international season until now, hopefully have passed the medical muster to ensure that he is able to return to the Boks, given the influential player that he is.
Esterhuizen initially was treated for concussion after the game against Scotland but bleeding from his ear later gave fears of a broken cheekbone. Luckily this didn’t turn out to be the case and given his importance as a hybrid player for the Boks, he may miss the Argentina trip to focus on returning against the All Blacks.
Ox Nche, who was injured against the Barbarians, will also likely feature in Buenos Aires.
There may also be some more news on the likes of Morne van den Berg, although the Lions have hinted that he and Quan Horn are likely to be released to them to face the All Blacks between the first and second test matches in Johannesburg.
Van den Berg has a bicep injury sustained in the United Rugby Championship but will be very valuable as a back-up to the Bok cause.
Several of the fringe players are likely to be released to their franchises in any case, with the core staying with the Boks.
And with the depth they have, there should be more than enough to choose from whichever way Erasmus wants to play.