The Springbok selection carousel may have spun past Faf de Klerk and Vincent Koch for now, but coach Rassie Erasmus insists the experienced duo remain very much on the national radar.
The pair were omitted from South Africa’s 46-man Nations Championship squad despite attending the recent two-week Bok training camp. Instead, they will pull on Barbarians colours against Wales at Twickenham on Saturday while the Springboks prepare for next weekend’s Nations Championship opener against England at Ellis Park.
For some observers, their absence sounded alarm bells. Erasmus, however, painted a different picture on Tuesday, describing a selection landscape far broader than two familiar names.
“I think there’s a much longer list than just Faf and Vincent,” Erasmus said.
“You can add Bongi [Mbonambi], Jaden [Hendrikse], Jordan [Hendrikse], Ethan [Hooker], Sebastian [de Klerk], Sacha [Feinberg-Mngomezulu], Trevor [Nyakane] and others. Every player’s situation is different.”
Like a seasoned flyhalf reading shifting defensive lines, Erasmus urged patience. The Bok squad, he suggested, is a living organism rather than a fixed monument carved in stone.
Scrumhalf remains one of the positions receiving particular attention. De Klerk featured off the bench against the Barbarians in Gqeberha but was overlooked in favour of Cobus Reinach, Grant Williams, Embrose Papier and Herschel Jantjies.
“We always like to have four nines in our squad. We feel more comfortable with that,” Erasmus explained.
“Cobus is back and he’s an experienced guy at 35. We generally like one of our scrumhalves to be a senior player who can guide the younger guys.
“We know what Faf can do. We’ve worked with him, we’ve trained with him and we know his value.
“We’ve always rated Herschel Jantjies and now we want to have a proper look at him.”
The message was clear. The Bok set-up is not a closed door but can rather be seen as a revolving gate.
Erasmus revealed that several established names remain part of longer-term planning, with injuries, workload management and tactical requirements all influencing selection.
“There are another 15 to 17 players who are injured, being rested or who may be better suited to specific matches later in the campaign.”
In a reminder of how meticulously the Springboks map their route, Erasmus disclosed that planning for the opening phase of the tournament is already complete with Bok team for the England match having already been finalised.
“We have plans for the second game [against Scotland], the third game [against Wales] and the team that will play England,” he said.
“Internally, those plans are already in place.”
For De Klerk and Koch, the road back to green and gold remains open. In Erasmus’ rugby chessboard, today’s omission in not checkmate but more like a strategic pause before the next move.
