Despite the spectacular claims of a number of Springboks in the opening Rugby Championship match against Australia last weekend, Eben Etzebeth is expected to captain a much-changed team away against the All Blacks on Saturday, with last week’s captain Duane Vermeulen playing off the bench so that Jasper Wiese is given an opportunity to start at No 8.
Etzebeth suffered a shoulder injury playing for the Sharks in the United Rugby Championship. He recovered some time ago and his comeback has been planned for this match against the All Blacks.
Etzebeth is a veteran of 110 Tests for the Boks and has worn the captain’s armband on 12 occasions.
The 31-year-old is expected to captain a side that is vastly changed from the one that beat the Wallabies 43-12.
While a number of the players who did duty at Loftus Versfeld played out of their skins, the Boks have had a carefully worked-out plan to start one team in Pretoria and another in Auckland.
There will be some overlapping but it will mostly be a fresh team that starts against the All Blacks.
For instance, that means the halfback combination will be Faf de Klerk and Damian Willemse, and a midfield of Damian de Allende and Jesse Kriel, while Makazole Mapimpi and Cheslin Kolbe will be the wings.
Some of the players who started against the Wallabies will front up again, including fullback Willie le Roux and tighthead prop Frans Malherbe.
The Boks know that they won’t have the element of surprise in Auckland on Saturday.
The rugby world has taken notice of the South Africans’ magnificent
start to the World Cup year and the New Zealanders are gearing themselves up for a “big one”, as coach Ian Foster calls it.
Perhaps the biggest surprise at Loftus was the meekness of the Wallabies. So much more was expected of an Aussie side that was going to “rip” into the Boks, according to co-captain Michael Hooper.
Bok assistant coach Deon Davids says it will be a completely different ball game at the Mount Smart Stadium.
Davids was among the 21-strong group that departed Johannesburg on Sunday night to join the advance party of 13 players who have been in New Zealand since last Wednesday.
“I thought it was quite an impressive start by the All Blacks (they beat Argentina 41-12),” said Davids.
“They delivered a very physical and intense performance. The fact that they led 31-0 at the break shows what they can do when they get opportunities.
“For us, it’s going to be very important to look after our possession.
“We’re expecting a very tough, physical game from them. It’s never easy going down there, and with the crowd behind them, they’ll be an even tougher opponent.”
Davids and his group only arrived in Auckland last night but he is confident they will have sufficient opportunity to over jet-lag in time for Saturday’s kick-off.
“That process started on Sunday with a medical screening,” he said.
“It’s all about recovery now and slotting into the training sessions in New Zealand as quickly as possible.
“There are players in Auckland already who have acclimatised, so it will be a matter of aligning in terms of our plans going into this game against a very tough opponent.”
@MikeGreenaway67