Jake White’s triumphant Springbok squad is set to be bolstered by the return of three fit-again players for the one-off Test against Wales in Pretoria next Saturday.
After securing a stunning 2-0 series win over the Irish with an emphatic 26-17 win in the second Test at Newlands on Saturday, White is to reacquire the services of utility forward Joe van Niekerk, centre Jean de Villiers and prop Faan Rautenbach.
The three men could rejoin the squad as soon as Monday.
”We are expecting them to return to the squad on Monday,” said assistant coach Allister Coetzee on Sunday.
Also back in contention for places in the match 22 against the Welsh are Sharks wing Henno Mentz and Bulls hooker Danie Coetzee who missed out at Newlands at the weekend. ”They are also on their way back and we will be keeping every one in the squad because we have to chose a larger squad for the Tri-Nations.”
According to Coetzee the Boks are expected to take between 26 and 30 players for the away-leg of the Tri-Nations and the one-off Test against a Pacific Islands combination.
De Villiers and Van Niekerk trained with the Boks during the past week in Cape Town and their return will surely be a relief to White, who has seen a host of top players sidelined through injury.
”There are a lot of positives,” agreed Coetzee, ”and it’s nice to see things coming together. Lots of people thought the Irish would win the series but we left nothing to chance and all the hard work has paid off.
”Our mental toughness is improving each day and we defended like Trojans in the dying minutes on Saturday.”
Not only are results going the Boks’ way but the return of key players is seeing White’s first choice squad take shape again.
The Western Province trio came through a friendly match against the Lions at Newlands on Saturday unscathed, with all three showing promising signs of returning full fitness.
De Villiers showed the knee injury he suffered has mended sufficiently by intercepting the ball inside his half and out-sprinting the cover defence to score.
Van Niekerk — lucky to not receive more for a malicious tackle early in the game — was involved in several of Province’s attacking moves.
Both men were replaced in the 55th minute, but it was clear they had never really reached top gear. More important tasks await them in the coming months.
Rautenbach came on as a replacement at the same time and more than held his ground in the scrums and set pieces, while put in a couple of monstrous tackles.
WP ended up winning the match 28-23 after leading 28-3 with 25 minutes on the clock.
”The confidence is huge and that has a lot to do with Jake’s leadership. The players are also putting in a huge effort. We are becoming a very close-knit family,” said Coetzee.
There were areas that could be improved, most notably retaining possession and developing a killer instinct, said the former Mighty Elephants coach.
Wales, meanwhile, boosted their confidence for the tour to South Africa with a commanding 35-20 win over Argentina in Buenos Aires on Saturday night.
Little leftwing Shane Williams crossed for a hat-trick of tries, while centre Tom Shanklin showed he will prove a handful for the Boks midfield defenders with some barnstorming runs.
Wales arrive in the country on Monday and will be based in Cape Town before travelling to Pretoria on Thursday for the Test on Saturday.
The Springboks arrive at their hotel in Pretoria on Sunday afternoon, with only Jacque Fourie nursing a hamstring strain picked up while scoring his try on Saturday. According to Coetzee, Fourie should be available for selection for the Wales match. – Sapa