Ken Borland

Lukhanyo Am will captain a shadow Springbok side dressed up as SA A against the British and Irish Lions in Cape Town on Wednesday and the captaincy could also be on loan to him for the first Test on July 24 after director of rugby Rassie Erasmus admitted that those players who are currently Covid-positive and isolating will be in a race against time to make that match.

Regular captain Siya Kolisi is one of the players currently in quarantine.

The numerous Covid infections in the Springbok camp led to the second Test against Georgia being cancelled, and Erasmus admitted that that has forced them to pick many of the players they have pencilled in for the first Test for Wednesday night’s game.

“It depends on how the players progress through the Return-to-Play protocol and some of them will definitely be available from Wednesday and Thursday next week. Guys like Frans Steyn and Handre Pollard might make it because they tested positive really early. And some guys can just slot into the team, while others need more time to get their engines running. For them it will be touch and go.

“Losing the second Georgia Test has been massive and it would have been much easier if we had had that game and the SA A one. But we have a lot of knowledge about some of the players, we know their class and how they react under pressure, so for us, it’s not so much about gelling as about match fitness because it’s a bit of a worry for some guys how long it’s been since they last played,” Erasmus said on Monday.

Erasmus is also clearly trying to convince the British and Irish Lions to agree to Saturday’s tour match also being between them and an SA A side, instead of the Stormers. But like an over-enthusiastic puppy getting a paw to the nose, Lions coach Warren Gatland made it clear in his concurrent press conference that he was not in favour of that.

So Erasmus could well be left hoping his team has enough conditioning in the kitty from their three-week camp in Bloemfontein and the single Test against Georgia to match the Lions’ impressive build-up to the Test series.

“We had three weeks of good intensity training in Bloemfontein and the plan then was two Tests against Georgia and the SA A game to be ready and we could not have asked for more than that. So now we have lost one week of training and one match. But after seven days in their hotel rooms, the guys shouldn’t totally go to pieces and get out of shape.

“But I’m sure Warren Gatland wold like to play against the best possible Springbok team and the safest thing medically would be for SA A to play again against the Lions on Saturday. We have been in a totally hard bubble and we are all negative. I’m sure they would not be afraid to play us again and that would be the best preparation for us to provide good competition in the Tests against the Lions,” Erasmus said.

With so much uncertainty around at the moment, it is a good thing that Am has temporarily taken over the captaincy because he is a leader who provides a haven of calm.

SA A team – Willie le Roux, Cheslin Kolbe, Lukhanyo Am, Damian de Allende, Sbu Nkosi, Morne Steyn, Faf de Klerk, Jasper Wiese, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Marco van Staden, Franco Mostert, Eben Etzebeth, Trevor Nyakane, Joseph Dweba, Steven Kitshoff. Bench: Coenie Oosthuizen, Malcolm Marx, Vincent Koch, Nicolaas Janse van Rensburg, Rynhardt Elstadt, Herschel Jantjies, Jesse Kriel, Damian Willemse.

The Springboks returned to training on Sunday but without captain Siya Kolisi who returned a positive Covid test and there will now be a race against time to get him through the return-to-play protocols in time for the first Test against the British and Irish Lions on July 24.

While the entire Springbok squad has been isolating for the last week, the return-to-play protocols can take more than a week and in some cases players have been out of action for three-to-five weeks.

With five other positive cases amongst the players, the home team’s resources are also going to be stretched for the SA A match against the Lions that is still scheduled to happen on Wednesday night, with the squad heading off to Cape Town on Sunday afternoon. Loose forward Dan du Preez, prop Ox Nche, hookers Bongi Mbonambi and Scarra Ntubeni, and wing Makazole Mapimpi are also all in isolation.

Prop Vincent Koch, wing Sbu Nkosi, locks Marvin Orie and Lood de Jager, centre Francois Steyn, flyhalf Handre Pollard and prop Frans Malherbe have also had a brush with Covid in the last week. Bulls loosehead prop Lizo Gqoboka and Sharks hooker Fez Mbatha have been added to the squad.

Head coach Jacques Nienaber has also tested positive and director of rugby Rassie Erasmus will now take over the reins in training in Cape Town. But Nienaber refuses to be negative.

“We are delighted to be able to return to the field and resume our preparations for the Lions series. It has been a challenging week with the Test against Georgia, which was important for us with an eye on preparing to face the British & Irish Lions, cancelled and the entire squad self-isolating for a few days as a preventative measure, so the players cannot wait to get back on the park.

“But these are extraordinary times and we have to adapt as a team, and I have to commend the players and management for that. We are a tight-knit coaching team and everyone takes responsibility in their respective roles. It is also great to have Rassie steering the ship while I am away. He has been part of the system for several years and he guided these players to the Rugby World Cup title, so the team is in great hands,” Nienaber said.

They say a week is a long time in rugby but the Sharks proved – at least in the first half – that a couple of days can also bring a massive change in fortunes as they matched the British and Irish Lions blow-for-blow until the red card to scrumhalf Jaden Hendrikse knocked the stuffing out of them.

Having been hammered 54-7 by the touring Lions at Ellis Park in midweek, the Sharks fielded a new-look team for their hastily-arranged rematch at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday and produced a tremendous first-half display as they held the Lions to 26-26 at the break. The physicality and intensity of the Sharks was at a whole new level, and they managed to create the first cracks we have seen in the touring team, who conceded four tries under the pressure.

And then Hendrikse was red-carded five minutes into the second half for elbowing an opponent in the head, and the wheels fell off as the Sharks succumbed to a 71-31 thrashing.

“In terms of intensity, we were matching the Lions but then the red card obviously didn’t help. We knew we had to come out firing in the second half as well, we had to keep that intensity after the break. For our young team, with lots of 21-year-olds, to put them under pressure was fantastic. The loose trio, especially, they all played for the U21s last year and they certainly matched the Lions’ physicality.

“In the first half we managed the game well and the defence was outstanding, we certainly put pressure on them. That’s a really important aspect because it complements your attack and you can use that turnover possession. I think the Springboks would have seen that with a good kicking game and strong defence, there will definitely be opportunities to force the Lions into mistakes,” Sharks coach Sean Everitt said.

Everitt added that he had sympathy for Hendrikse, a 21-year-old who had a moment of stupidity broadcast around the world.

“Jaden is not a malicious player but there was a bit of niggle in the game and it was a tough contest. He’s a youngster who did something stupid and he’ll get to know where to draw the line, he will learn from it. We have to respect the opposition and we will have a chat.

“Off the field Jaden is totally the opposite, he’s actually very quiet. I feel for the guy, he’s very remorseful and I’m sure it won’t happen again,” Everitt said.

The frustration of red cards ruining thrilling rugby matches was once again to the fore as the British and Irish Lions hammered the Sharks 71-31 at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday night, the match turning into a one-sided affair after Sharks scrumhalf Jaden Hendrikse was sent off for a moment of madness.

The Sharks had produced a ferocious response to their drubbing in midweek in their first meeting with the Lions, and at 26-26 after a dazzling first half, the stage was set for a marvellous second half.

But then five minutes after the break, Hendrikse, who is generally an infuriatingly niggly scrumhalf to play against, crossed the line by hitting a Lions player on the back of the head with his elbow. Referee Wayne Barnes quite rightly red-carded him and that was the end of the contest.

The Sharks, so valiant and determined in the first 40 minutes, had the stuffing knocked out of them as the Lions roared their way to seven more tries in the second half. Hooker Jamie George, flank Tadhg Beirne and wing Anthony Watson, who showed why everyone in the UK raves about him, all came away with braces.

In the first half, the Sharks had rebounded from their mauling in midweek with a superb display of scrambling defence and they were extremely stingy with the amount of space and time they gave the Lions. The tourists, under such determined pressure, showed that they are human as well and the mistakes came.

Wings Anthony Volmink, who scored twice, and Thaakir Abrahams showed their ace finishing skills, while Hendrikse scored a fine intercept try inI the 24^th minute and lock Reniel Hugo charged down a kick for outside centre Werner Kok, who again played with great fervour, to score.

The loose trio of Phepsi Buthelezi, Celimpilo Gumede and Dylan Richardson were outstanding for the Sharks.

The second half promised so much but true rugby fans will have hated the mismatch it became. On the bright side, the Sharks showed in the first half that the dominance of the Lions and the shackles they impose can be broken.

Scorers

Sharks – Tries: Anthony Volmink (2), Thaakir Abrahams, Jaden Hendrikse, Werner Kok. Conversions: Lionel Cronje (3).

British & Irish Lions – Tries: Chris Harris, Jamie George (2), Duhan van der Merwe, Tadhg Beirne (2), Jack Conan, Elliot Daly, Anthony Watson (2), Tom Curry. Conversions: Dan Biggar (8).