Jacques Nienaber Kurt Lee Arendse Canan Moodie Jesse Kriel France Argentina springboks Waters Jacques Nienaber Kurt Lee Arendse Canan Moodie Jesse Kriel France Argentina

Nienaber admits gutsy Bok XV muddies WC selection waters: 'Final meeting will be difficult'

news24.com

While there's still a distinct sense that the Springboks won't assemble a World Cup squad with many surprises, head coach Jacques Nienaber admitted that the sheer number of fine showings in Saturday's 24-13 victory over Argentina has presented him with a welcome headache."It's going to be a very difficult team selection meeting," he said. "A lot of guys put their hands up.

Out of the 38 who've featured to date, all of them made their mark."Most of the interesting selection dilemmas lie in the backline, where Canan Moodie and Andre Esterhuizen have muddied the waters considerably.20-year-old Moodie was patently outstanding, delivering a performance brimming with class both on defence and attack.So compelling was his presence that his Bulls team-mate Kurt-Lee Arendse, until this weekend considered his "direct opponent" in terms of being picked for France, was the only unused substitute on the day.Makazole Mapimpi, perceived in some quarters to be under pressure, looked far more comfortable after a misfire against the All Blacks and has arguably made his spot on the plane safe.The other major decision lies with taking Andre Esterhuizen.READ | Springbok World Cup hopefuls turn the screws on Pumas with rousing comeback victoryGranted two opportunities to impress over the past month, the Harlequins talisman has seized them both and will now be genuinely unlucky to miss out, in contrast to four years ago.However, Jesse Kriel's excellent stint off the bench and last weekend's showing at Ellis Park still arguably puts him slightly ahead in the race as he's a veteran of the Springbok setup under the current regime.Esterhuizen could benefit though from Lukhanyo Am's possible misfortune if his leg injury, which saw him replaced at

Related News
Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber urged his side to even greater heights after the Rugby World Cup holders impressed in a 52-16 warm-up win over Wales in Cardiff on Saturday.
Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber may have come across as flippant when addressing Manie Libbok's goal-kicking issues in his past two starting Test matches, but what can't be faulted is the faith he retains in the budding pivot.
CARDIFF: South Africa have room for much improvement, coach Jacques Nienaber said after he handed several players their first international outing of 2023 in a comprehensive 52-16 Rugby World Cup warm-up win over Wales in Cardiff.
Springbok scrum coach Daan Human said team captain Siya Kolisi was very close to returning to playing action for the world champions, but he was coy over whether he would feature in Saturday's Test against Wales in Cardiff.
Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber defended the decision to pick four scrumhalves in his World Cup 33, saying it allows him to have a selection and versatility cushion in the event of injuries while main flyhalf Handre Pollard gets back to full fitness.
Amid much fanfare, the Springboks departed for their World Cup defence on Saturday after a rousing and entertaining send-off at the OR Tambo International Airport.

Latest News

Change privacy settings
This page might use cookies if your analytics vendor requires them.