Ken Borland

Hooker Bongi Mbonambi is a seasoned and potent member of the front row club and he knows the importance of the Springbok pack being a cohesive unit ahead of the bruising forward battles that lie ahead against Georgia and the British and Irish Lions.

South Africa take on Georgia for the first time since their inaugural meeting and 46-19 win in Sydney in the 2003 World Cup, with back-to-back Tests on July 2 at Loftus Versfeld and July 9 at Ellis Park. The Georgian forwards are a lively bunch and they will provide decent preparation for the Lions series.

“We’re definitely focused on Georgia at the moment, they have a quality pack and they scrum very low so we have to adjust to that. As a pack we want to make sure we are all aligned and on the same page, especially in the scrum and maul. Other countries look at us and see those as a threat and it is definitely one of our weapons, but we do have other weapons too,” Mbonambi said.

The 30-year-old Stormers star, capped 36 times, also acknowledged the gulf between professional club rugby and the international game, which was so rudely exposed by the hammering of the Bulls in the Rainbow Cup final last weekend.

“There’s a massive difference between local and international rugby, the intensity is about 10 times higher. But the coaches are making sure we get back there to those levels, so I am feeling it on the body at the moment. But I’m 100% sure we’ll be ready given the way we are training now,” Mbonambi said.

Apart from the scrums and mauls, Mbonambi obviously also has a key role to play in the lineouts and, as in all facets of their game, the camp in Bloemfontein has focused on ensuring there is no broken language when it comes to communicating about this crucial set-piece, which is usually a South African strength.

“We’re focused on our system and working on the lineout detail. A hooker needs to have a feel for the other players, you need to build that confidence and connection. We always have high standards, but as a thrower I aim for 100%, I want to be perfect.

“The Lions have top-class payers in the lineout so we know we will be under pressure, but we have great coaches who have put things in place and now it’s up to the players just to execute,” Mbonambi, who is renowned for his accurate set-piece work, said.

Temba Bavuma is recovering well from his dislocated finger and is expected to be in charge of the Proteas team for their T20 series against the West Indies that begins on Saturday, with all-rounder Wiaan Mulder and left-arm quick Beuran Hendricks also called into the squad after being in the Caribbean for the Test series.

Bavuma missed the two Tests in St Lucia after first suffering a hip injury and then dislocating his finger during training ahead of the second Test. But team management released a statement on Thursday saying he is “responding well to his middle finger dislocation rehabilitation and is expected to lead the team in the upcoming T20 series”. Bavuma has been lined up by the Proteas to do the traditional captain’s press conference on Friday on the eve of the game.

Mulder, who impressed with the ball and with some outstanding catching behind the wicket in the Tests, has remained in the West Indies as a replacement for Dwaine Pretorius, who unfortunately had to stay behind in South Africa after testing positive for Covid-19, but is asymptomatic. Swing bowler Hendricks has been added to the squad as extra pace cover.

The absence of Pretorius could be a lifeline for Andile Phehlukwayo, whose rather unkempt bowling of late has seen him concede 9.85 runs-per-over in T20 internationals since the start of last year, while he has also scored just 54 runs off 46 balls in nine innings in the same period of time.

South Africa’s four frontline bowlers are likely to be Tabraiz Shamsi, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje and Lungi Ngidi, with George Linde favoured as a spin-bowling all-rounder. That leaves the Proteas with a choice between playing another all-rounder at number six or another specialist batsman.

Aiden Markram, who has been a clean striker of the ball lately in T20 internationals, can bowl a couple of overs of tidy off-spin, and South Africa do seem a little reliant on David Miller and, to a lesser extent, Linde to clear the boundary in the closing stages.

Having played on seam-friendly pitches with pace and bounce on the island of St Lucia, the Proteas are likely to find themselves back on a more usual Caribbean pitch that offers some turn, but T20 is all about runs so a true surface is expected, albeit a little slower than the Test wickets.

The West Indies will pose a formidable challenge because they are able to call on all their T20 stars such as Kieron Pollard, Dwayne Bravo, Chris Gayle and Andre Russell.

Proteas T20 Squad – Temba Bavuma (captain), Quinton de Kock, Bjorn Fortuin, Beuran Hendricks, Reeza Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen, George Linde, Sisanda Magala, Janneman Malan, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Andile Phehlukwayo, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi, Rassie van der Dussen, Kyle Verreynne, Lizaad Williams.

Far from being an environment that alienates anyone, the Proteas camp now has a player-driven culture and everyone has bought into the new captaincy ideas of Dean Elgar, coach Mark Boucher said when asked whether the team looked so happy just because they won the Test series against the West Indies or whether there have been off-field changes that have made a difference.

Boucher said the triumph was the result of “a lot of hard work” off the field and some hard chats the team had sitting around the fire in Pretoria on their pre-tour camp.

“When we sat around the fire in Pretoria, the new captain [Elgar] asked some questions about where we are and where we want to go and there were some tough conversations about the necessity of performing for the Proteas badge again. It’s been quite a tough couple of months for certain guys. But the players are now driving the value system they put on the table in our Skukuza culture camp last year, which is why they’re so happy.

“The team have played really well. We have not won away from home for a long time and the belief taken away from that is important. We asked them to play for each other and we’ve seen that, it was really a team effort and we played the big moments very well.

“The best place to learn is in foreign conditions and we learned a lot of lessons in Pakistan. Different conditions are what develops players. The skills have been executed fairly well and I look forward to seeing how we go when we’re put under pressure because then we can judge whether we are really on track,” Boucher said.

The former captain, Quinton de Kock, was the player of the series for his 237 runs at an average of 118, and far from being angry at his demotion, the wicketkeeper/batsman responded with a flurry of runs and was a breath of fresh air in the changeroom as well.

“Quinny’s been through a tough time of late, not scoring the same amount of runs as he’s used to, but he made such an impact on the whole series. While the other batsmen did well to bat time and force the bowlers to come back for third and fourth spells, Quinny has that x-factor that means he can just take the game away from the opposition.

“I’m very happy that he’s in a very good space and he’s been fantastic off the field, funny and lighthearted. And the way he’s kept wicket has been so good too, he’s been very neat and taken some great catches,” Boucher said.

Being a haven of inclusivity is something Siya Kolisi’s Springboks take very seriously and that also extends to how welcome new players feel in the system, according to centre Lukhanyo Am, one of the leaders in the group.

“The system here is player-driven and we are trying to minimise the gap between seniors and juniors because we are all pulling together in the same direction. The majority of the group is experienced and World Cup winners, we have a pool of senior players but the competition will always be there though, it’s a strength and a positive that we feed off each other.

“We’re not here for ourselves but for the jersey and the country. It’s a player-driven environment so we take ownership, there is shared responsibility and we are all helping where we can. It’s been really exciting to watch the youngsters and the up-and-coming players,” Am, who captains Kolisi at the Sharks, said.

Rosko Specman may be 32 years old, but the wing is one of the new faces in the Springbok squad and would love to consider himself as still being up-and-coming.

“There’s a great vibe in camp with all the different vibe guys from the different unions making sure we bring the energy. That makes it easy to fit in and I’m just trying to be like a sponge, getting all the information I can out of Willie le Roux and Cheslin Kolbe on how to get my game to the next level. Just to be in the same squad as Cheslin is wonderful,” Specman said from Bloemfontein.

Specman is a Free State Cheetahs player now, although he was on loan to the Stormers recently, the Springbok Sevens star having first made his name in XVs rugby with the Bulls. Although he has apparently privately referred to his departure last year from Loftus Versfeld as being contentious, he struck a more conciliatory tone this week.

“As one door closes another one opens, although I did not leave the Bulls on my own terms. But I have made peace with it, I see it as a turning point and maybe I didn’t do what the coach wants, maybe I was the problem. It just shows you in rugby that you can score a hat-trick in one game and then be gone for the next match.

“I also had a good time at the Stormers, I went there because I wanted to get game-time. But I have a good understanding with Hawies Fourie at the Cheetahs, and he might let me go to the Stormers again if I need game time. I’m 32 years old now but I’m still working hard. And it was Hawies who said I’ve been to the Olympics Sevens before but I haven’t been a Springbok before,” Specman said.