South Africa warmed up for the Rugby Championship with a largely second-string selection disposing of Portugal 64-21 in Bloemfontein at the weekend.
The World Cup champion Springboks played with 14 men from the second minute and twice had only 13 players on the pitch.
Andre Esterhuizen was given an early yellow card for head-on-head contact after a crunching tackle forced fellow centre Jose Lima to retire concussed.
The off-field ‘bunker’ officials later upgraded the yellow to a red.
South Africa also had wing Kurt-Lee Arendse yellow-carded in the 35th minute for a dangerous clear-out at a ruck. With six minutes remaining, debutant replacement fullback Quan Horn was also sent to the sin bin after playing an opponent in the air.
However, the focus now shifts to who will make the cut when coach Rassie Erasmus names his squad for the two-Test Rugby Championship tour to Australia.
The bulk of the ‘A-Team’ had the weekend off, for some much-needed R&R.
I have decided to take a look at who put their hands up in the Portugal Test to say: ‘Select me!’
First-team regulars like Kurt-Lee Arendse, Lukhanyo Am, Makazole Mapimpi (although both only recently back from injury issues), Manie Libbok, Cobus Reinach and RG Snyman will be in the selection frame.
However, here is how I rate the players’ prospects, based on their performances in Bloemfontein.
15 Aphelele Fassi: Slim to zero chance. Displayed all his previous frailties. Great on the counter-attack, but suspect on defence and often drifts into obscurity.
14 Kurt-Lee Arendse: He should go. Needs game time and will improve. Showed glimpses of his former qualities with four linebreaks and 80 metres from 10 carries.
13 Lukhanyo Am: Was also short of a gallop, but is in the frame. Not up to Jesse Kriel’s standard at the moment, but a must on tour in case of an injury.
12 Andre Esterhuizen: Pity about his red card, which means he could not display his true qualities. May well be watching on TV.
11 Makazole Mapimpi: May lack conditioning, despite a hat-trick. Seem to have lost a yard or two of his pace. His 23 carries yielded just 122 metres. conceded a couple of turnovers and was found out on defence at times.
10 Manie Libbok: He will be in the squad. His goalkicking woes will continue to haunt him and have slipped down the pecking order. He is also hiding on defence and did not complete a single tackle.
9 Cobus Reinach: His utility value makes him a certainty and so does his experience. His attacking threat and raw pace can’t be coached.
8 Evan Roos: Another player who did not use his opportunity to the full. While his fan club will point to his 17 carries, they might ignore that it yielded a paltry 46 metres. His low workrate on defence (just three tackles completed) and turnovers conceded (one of which resulted in a try for Portugal) is why he isn’t suited to the Bok game plan.
7 Ben-Jason Dixon: He us a #MUST. He didn’t just knock on the door, he busted it down. Second-most tackles completed, most dominant tackles and third-most carries, say all you need to know about a player with Pieter-Steph du Toit like grit.
6 Phepsi Buthelezi: A lot of maturing to do. He seemed to be inconspicuous for long periods and also missed some crucial tackles. His carries were seldom effective.
5 RG Snyman: He is a certainty. That was never in doubt. May have tried too hard to impose himself in a team of inexperienced players, but in the absence of the injured Franco Mostert should start alongside Eben Etzebeth in the second row.
4 Salmaan Moerat (captain): Once the emotion surrounding his captaincy had settled and his game was analysed objectively, you realised how ineffective he was. He is a ‘special project’. However, he needs to do better than a handful of carries, while he missed too many tackles (the most in the match) and conceded turnovers.
3 Thomas du Toit: Another player who walked in through the front door and given he can scrum at loosehead and tighthead (more suited to the latter), he is great value in a tour squad. His workrate needs to improve.
2 Johan Grobbelaar: He is clearly now No.3 in the hooker pecking order and a must for the squad. His core functions and basics are better than solid. The tackles he slipped is a concern.
1 Jan-Hendrik Wessels: Young and raw. One for the future, but a Rugby Championship trip Down Under is not for him, especially with Steven Kitshoff fit again.
Replacements:
16 Andre-Hugo Venter: One for the future, but needs some work. Might get a chance against Argentina.
17 Ntuthuko Mchunu: Another who showed promise, but needs time to mature.
18 Trevor Nyakane: His experience as a squad member may come in handy, but it is beginning to look like he is more a ‘stand-by’ player rather than a squad regular.
19 Ruan Venter: Knocked the door down. Powerful with a huge engine. Still raw, but will benefit from time with the squad on tour – even if he doesn’t make the matchday squad.
20 Elrigh Louw: Could be good value on tour. Has the power and aggression required from a Bok loose forward. Second-most tackles made and some handy metres with the ball in hand.
21 Morné van den Berg: Certainly put pressure on the other scrumhalves with a great service from the base, good kicking game, try assist and not hesitant on defence.
22 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu: A certainty. Just confirmed that he may already have moved past Libbok in the Bok pecking order at flyhalf, while adding that utility value. His goalkicking is world class and other than one missed tackle did not shirk his defensive duties.
23 Quan Horn: Another bright prospect that used his chances, although he may also be earmarked for the Argentina leg.
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