Settled Junior Bok side named for World Rugby U20 Championship opener

The Junior Springbok starting team to take on Australia in the World Rugby U20 Championship on Sunday shows four changes from their last match in the recent U20 Rugby Championship against New Zealand.

Four changes to the #JuniorBoks team to take on Australia in their #WorldRugbyU20s opener on Sunday - more here: https://t.co/I3BwjYemYM 🇿🇦#JourneyToGreatness pic.twitter.com/XnsljISAr9
— SA Junior Rugby (@SAJuniorRugby) June 27, 2025

The SA U20 side for the match, which kicks off at 3:30pm on Sunday afternoon at the San Michele Stadium in Calvisano, Italy, was named on Friday.

Junior Bok head coach Kevin Foote made one change in the backline and three in the pack from the side that were pipped by New Zealand in Gqeberha last month. Siya Ndlozi replaces Gino Cupido on the left wing, while the rest of the backline remain the same.

In the starting pack, two changes are made at the side of the scrum, with flankers Batho Hlekani and Xola Nyali forming the loose trio combination with No 8 Wandile Mlaba.

The other tweak to the pack is in the front row, where Herman Lubbe gets the nod at tighthead ahead of Jean Erasmus, who is now set to play off the bench.

Jaco Grobbelaar (lock), who joined up with the squad shortly before they flew out from Cape Town, is also set to join the action off the bench.

Among the backline replacements, Ian van der Merwe (flyhalf) and Jaco Williams (outside back) are in line to make their Junior Bok debuts should they come off the bench.

'SYNERGY AND UNDERSTANDING OF GAME'

According to Foote, his charges are looking forward to the prospect of facing a quality Australia outfit in the opening match on Sunday.

The last time these two sides met, in the U20 Rugby Championship, the young Wallabies overturned a 17-point deficit in a tactically astute second-half performance to beat the Junior Boks by 29-24 in Gqeberha.

“We are extremely excited about starting the World Championship in Italy,” said Foote.

“It’s a great country and you can feel the energy within the group. The players have prepared well, they’ve got clarity, and they are just such a great group together.”

On selecting his first matchday squad of the tournament, Foote explained that it was not an easy task.

“Selection is always tough and leaving some guys out is hard, but we’ve gone with a team that has played a lot together now, has a lot of synergy and understanding of our game, and knows how to connect on the field,” he said.

“We are very excited about the team that we have selected, with Riley Norton captaining the side, and he will be assisted by Haashim Pead, JJ Theron and Siphosethu Mnebelele.”

Foote also mentioned it was good to have Grobbelaar back with the team after the big lock completed his Vodacom United Rugby Championship duties with finalists Vodacom Bulls.

“He’s trained very well since joining (last week),” he said. “Having his big physical presence is fundamental to the way we want to play, and the same goes for Jaco Williams (outside back), who also joined late after completing his Vodacom URC campaign with the Hollywoodbets Sharks. The nice thing about them is the calmness that they bring in their roles.”

With defending champions England and the tenacious Scotland also in the same group, Foote said the South Africans are looking forward to getting the annual event under way.

“All of us are looking forward to starting the tournament,” he said. “We are excited about the challenge from Australia, and we cannot wait to get going.”

Rugby’s future stars will play matches across four cities in the Lombardia and Veneto regions of Italy – Calvisano, Rovigo, Verona, and Viadana.

The tournament consists of three pools, each with four teams. After the three pool matches, the three pool winners and the best runner-up out of the three pools will progress to the semifinals.

The winners of the semifinals will contest the final, while the losers of those semifinals will play for third place, with the others vying for positional places.

The Junior Springbok team to face Australia in Calvisano:

15 Gilermo Mentoe

14 Cheswill Jooste

13 Demitre Erasmus

12 Albie Bester

11 Siyabonga Ndlozi

10 Vusi Moyo

9 Haashim Pead

8 Wandile Mlaba

7 Bathobele Hlekani

6 Xola Nyali

5 JJ Theron