The Springboks have gone for continuity in selection in their team to face Ireland in the opening Test of the Castle Outgoing Tour at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Saturday, with five DHL Western Province players named in the 22-man squad.
There are just three changes to the team that started in the Springboks’ last Test, against New Zealand in Soweto last month, and all three have been forced because of injury.
Twenty-two-year-old Pat Lambie starts at flyhalf in place of the injured Johan Goosen while JP Pietersen returns at right wing and Juandré Kruger takes over at lock. The latter pair replace Bryan Habana and Andries Bekker respectively, who were both ruled out of the tour because of injury.
Habana, of course, injured his knee in last month’s Absa Currie Cup Final – as DHL WP beat the Sharks to lift the trophy for the first time since 2001 – whilst Bekker suffered a freak toe injury two weeks before on Western Province duty. The five remaining WP players are thus captain Jean de Villiers, centre Juan de Jongh, No.8 Duane Vermeulen, lock Eben Etzebeth (pictured) and new signing Pat Cilliers who will join De Jongh on the bench.
For the first time, the Springboks have named an eight-man replacements bench, in line with the new laws that determine a full front row of two specialist props and a hooker have to be selected.
Returning to Springbok duty for the first time since 2008 is Schalk Brits, who will start on the bench next to CJ van der Linde and new DHL WP signing Pat Cilliers. Should former Stormers and WP star Brits make an appearance, it will be his first Test for South Africa since appearing against Australia four seasons ago, whilst Van der Linde has not appeared for the team since the 2011 Rugby World Cup.
Meyer said the match would be a major Test in trying conditions for his young team. A temperature of around five degrees is forecast for Saturday afternoon, while winds and a 25% chance of showers are also predicted.
“I’ve said from the outset that I’d like to see which of the players can handle the northern hemisphere conditions on this tour, as it will be the same for the Rugby World Cup in 2015,” said Meyer.
“We’ll be facing an Ireland team that is never an easy opponent in Dublin. The Springboks have only won one of their last four Tests here and since they lost at Aviva Stadium against South Africa in November 2010, they have recorded a number of good victories at their home ground.
“They are a quality and well-balanced side with good experienced players. We’ve seen in our last number of Tests against Ireland how dangerous they can be, but we’d rather focus on our own game and would like to start this tour on a positive note.”
The Springbok team to face Ireland in Dublin is:
15. Zane Kirchner (Vodacom Blue Bulls – 21 caps)
14. JP Pietersen (The Sharks – 45 caps)
13. Jaco Taute (MTN Golden Lions – 2 caps)
12. Jean de Villiers (DHL Western Province – 81 caps, captain)
11. Francois Hougaard (Vodacom Blue Bulls – 24 caps)
10. Pat Lambie (The Sharks – 17 caps)
9. Ruan Pienaar (Ulster, N-Ireland – 60 caps)
8. Duane Vermeulen (DHL Western Province – 4 caps)
7. Willem Alberts (The Sharks – 17 caps)
6. Francois Louw (Bath, England – 14 caps)
5. Juandré Kruger (Vodacom Blue Bulls – 5 caps)
4. Eben Etzebeth (DHL Western Province – 8 caps)
3. Jannie du Plessis (The Sharks – 39 caps)
2. Adriaan Strauss (Toyota FS Cheetahs – 18 caps, vice-captain)
1. Tendai Mtawarira (The Sharks – 41 caps)
Reserves:
16. Schalk Brits (Saracens, England – 3 caps)
17. CJ van der Linde (MTN Golden Lions 73 caps)
18. Pat Cilliers (DHL Western Province – 4 caps)
19. Flip van der Merwe (Vodacom Blue Bulls – 20 caps)
20. Marcell Coetzee (The Sharks – 9 caps)
21. Morné Steyn (Vodacom Blue Bulls – 41 caps)
22. Juan de Jongh (DHL Western Province – 12 caps)
23. Lwazi Mvovo (The Sharks – 7 caps)
Kick-off: 7.30pm (SA time)
Referee: Wayne Barnes
