Springboks Have Options When Replacing Injured Captain Siya Kolisi
When it comes to stand-ins for injured skipper Siya Kolisi at the Rugby Championship in July, South Africa head coach Jacques Nienaber has plenty of options.
Prop Steven Kitshoff, lock Eben Etzebeth, and loose forwards Lukhanyo Am and Damian de Allende Duane Vermeulen and Pieter-Steph du Toit are both in the running.
Kolisi is rehabilitating from a significant knee injury that necessitated surgery and will not be available for selection until August when the Springboks play three pre-World Cup warm-up games.
South Africa will begin their World Cup defence against Scotland on September 10 in Marseille, and the Springboks are sure Kolisi will be fully fit.
When it comes to stand-ins for injured skipper Siya Kolisi at the Rugby Championship in July, South Africa head coach Jacques Nienaber has plenty of options.
The AFP is familiar with centres. Prop Steven Kitshoff, lock Eben Etzebeth, and loose forwards Lukhanyo Am and Damian de Allende Duane Vermeulen and Pieter-Steph du Toit are both in the running.
Kolisi is rehabilitating from a significant knee injury that necessitated surgery and will not be available for selection until August when the Springboks play three pre-World Cup warm-up games.
South Africa will begin their World Cup defence against Scotland on September 10 in Marseille, and the Springboks are sure Kolisi will be fully fit.
But, Am and Du Toit may be retained for the match against Australia at Loftus Versfeld, which director of rugby Rassie Erasmus regards as important.
“I appreciate that a lot of the public and media attention has been on the match against our great rivals the All Blacks, but we dare not lose our opening Rugby Championship match.
“The Wallabies are coming here with a new coach in Eddie Jones and our rivalry with him goes back many years.
– ‘Put one over us’ –
“Eddie coached the England team we beat in the last World Cup final so he will be more than keen to put one over us,” said the 2019 Springboks coach.
The former Ulster striker Vermeulen, who turns 37 next month, would be a popular pick, but Erasmus has hinted at a new role for him.
“Duane can perhaps fulfil a role similar to that of Francois Louw at the last World Cup — coming off the bench with 12 or so minutes to go and making a huge impact”.
But, with first-choice number eight Jasper Wiese expected to arrive in Auckland early, Vermeulen might start in Pretoria.
According to Springbok insiders, Am embodies the quiet authority of Kolisi, South Africa’s second most successful post-isolation captain behind John Smit, with a 64 percent win rate.
Du Toit, the 2019 Rugby Player of the Year, is an excellent flanker who can also play lock, but he is prone to injuries, one of which nearly resulted in a limb amputation.
Prop loosehead Kitshoff led the Stormers to the United Rugby Championship final in 2023. He is, however, frequently used off the bench, with Ox Nche starting.
Etzebeth has previously led the Springboks, and his 110-cap experience makes him an obvious choice.
South Africa will prepare for the World Cup with three Rugby Championship matches and three warm-up games.
Following Scotland, the Springboks will face Romania, Ireland, and Tonga in Pool B, with the winners and runners-up advancing to the quarter-finals.
France, Ireland, South Africa, and New Zealand, all three-time World Cup winners, are the favourites to win the four-yearly global championship.
