Ken Borland

Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber is hopeful that Duane Vermeulen and the Munster fire-pit duo of Damian de Allende and RG Snyman will recover in time from their mishaps and still be able to play in the series against the British and Irish Lions.
Nienaber confirmed on Wednesday that Vermeulen, man of the match in the 2019 World Cup final, underwent ankle surgery on Wednesday and the Springboks will adopt a wait-and-see attitude to their talismanic eighthman.
De Allende and Snyman both suffered burns during a petrol-and-fire accident in Ireland but barring further bad luck, Nienaber said he expects the centre and the lock, who provide the Springboks with much of their grunt, to be fit for the Lions series.
“Duane had an operation today because his ankle injury required surgery. We hope the surgery goes well and the rehab too, and the feedback we got was that he could take anywhere between five and 16 weeks to be ready, depending on the severity of the injury. And the doctor will only know that once he’s opened him up.
“Jesse Kriel actually had a similar injury just before the 2019 World Cup and he made a quick recovery. So we have discussed it and we don’t feel it’s necessary to get someone in for Duane at the moment. It will all depend on Duane’s rehab,” Nienaber said with the Springbok centre sitting alongside him.
While the details of the fire pit issue make it sound like De Allende and Snyman were up to mischief, Nienaber is certainly not about to have kittens over their behaviour.
“Accidents happen, preferably they don’t and it’s not ideal, but this could not have been controlled and it was not due to their negligence. In Ireland, you must understand, it rains more than it does here and when I wanted to have a wood fire over there, when I missed home, I also took a bit of petrol and put it on the wood otherwise the wood is too wet and won’t catch alight.
“Everyone does it over there and unfortunately the fire just ran up the canister, they then dropped it and the fire went on their legs. Fortunately the burns are just superficial and we have plans to get them in the mix, training, as quickly as possible. I’m optimistic they’ll be able to play against Georgia unless there is infection or they are not able to fly back soon,” Nienaber said.

Gratitude was the first emotion Marco van Staden felt when he heard his name called out at the weekend for the Springbok squad to play in the series against the British and Irish Lions, and not just because he has not been a part of the national squad for a while.

Van Staden watched the live announcement with his parents and grandparents in the Magaliesberg mountains and he was delighted to share the best moment in his career thus far with the family members who sacrificed much so he could put rugby first, making it all the way to the top from a little agricultural school called Hoerskool Bekker. Especially since he is on his way overseas to play for English club Leicester Tigers as soon as his Springbok commitments are over.

“I was with my parents and grandparents and it was quite a celebration. I’m spending all the time I can with them because I’m going to be going overseas in a bit and I won’t be able to see them for a while. They sacrificed so much for me just to get me here, so it was wonderful to be able to share my selection with them.

“I was just very grateful, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, it only comes every 12 years, so it is a big privilege and I am very honoured to be chosen. I’ve missed out on the Springboks in the last couple of years, I’ve only played three Tests and the last one was against Argentina just before they left for Japan for the World Cup,” Van Staden said on Tuesday.

On Saturday he will play his last game for the Bulls, in their decisive Rainbow Cup match against the Sharks in Durban, and adding to the poignancy is the fact that Duane Vermeulen and Elrigh Louw, the two players with whom Van Staden has bedded in so well as a loose trio, will both be missing through injury.

“It’s probably my last game for the Bulls so I want to make the most of it. It will be disappointing to not play together with Duane and Elrigh, because I think we have gelled together well. But Marcell Coetzee will be there and it’s an honour to play with him, he also gives his all out on the field. We’re all just trying to play for the guys next to us,” Van Staden said.

The 25-year-old also said there was no room for individual battles in Saturday’s match, which will see the Bulls needing to collect just one bonus point to book a place in the Rainbow Cup final, although there will be much jostling for places in the Test 23 amongst the 46 players in the Springbok squad.

“My focus is not on playing against Siya Kolisi. The team has a plan to execute and you don’t want to be out of position to make a point of your own. I will be staying within the plan and there’s no question of holding back because I don’t see the benefit in that. I just remember how we could not play any rugby in Lockdown and to not give 100% would be disappointing my team-mates,” Van Staden said.

With the first-choice Springbok pack hit by injuries, it makes little sense for the squad for the British and Irish Lions series to be loaded with outside backs, but that’s exactly what coach Jacques Nienaber and director of rugby Rassie Erasmus have done.

Their 46-strong Springbok squad contains eight outside backs, the most well-stocked department of all with one more player than either the loose forwards or props. The allocation of seven loose forwards includes Duane Vermeulen, who suffered what looked like a serious ankle injury at the weekend, and amongst the six locks named for the series, two of them – Lood de Jager and RG Snyman – are still injured.

There are two utility forwards included in Jean-Luc du Preez and Rynhardt Elstadt, but the cynical might surmise that the outside backs have been overstocked in order to get the transformation numbers up – there is only one White player amongst the back three in fullback Willie le Roux.

“Local derbies are like Springbok trials and when you play strength versus strength week in, week out, like the Rainbow Cup has been, then you expect a number of injuries. So every weekend has been quite nervous for us, fortunately there haven’t been too many injuries, but there are many niggles in the squad. We’ll have to reassess after the first couple of weeks.

“But the good thing is our local players will be used to physical rugby, which will be a big part of the Lions series. The big question is when is a player 100% ready for Test rugby, when do we experiment? We play Georgia twice, but we have not played together since the World Cup, so we don’t want to experiment there,” Erasmus said.

Erasmus admitted that he was not optimistic that Vermeulen will be available for the Lions series, and the uncapped Jasper Wiese is likely to replace him at eighthman, with the World Cup winning coach saying the 25-year-old’s form for the Leicester Tigers in the English Premiership cannot be ignored.

“Duane has to be doubtful with his ankle. He’s on his way to Cape Town for scans. I spoke to Jake White [Bulls coach] and it looked bad. For Duane to limp off so early in a match is very unusual, so we are fearing the worst,” Erasmus admitted.

“But Jasper Wiese can play eighthman and we cannot ignore the form he is in, he was outstanding in the Premiership and he knocked the door down weekly. He is explosive and we’re really lucky that he’s versatile, he can play openside as well.”

In just 14 Premiership appearances, the former Free State Cheetahs player has made 701 running metres, beaten 54 defenders, has a 90% tackle success rate and has made eightline-breaks.

The city of Pretoria was in shock on Saturday night as three Bulls players who many considered to be dead-certainties for the Springbok squad to take on the British and Irish Lions were omitted from the 46 players announced by SA Rugby.

Inside centre Cornal Hendricks and loosehead prop Lizo Gqoboka have both been instrumental in the Bulls’ rise to dominance in domestic rugby, while Marcell Coetzee, after five dazzling years with Ulster, made a much-hyped return to local rugby in the match against the Stormers. And he certainly lived up to expectations with a bulldozing display that made up for Duane Vermeulen leaving the field injured.

Hendricks’ omission is the most interesting, with director of rugby Rassie Erasmus admitting the inspirational 33-year-old would have been chosen were it not for the continued doubts the SA Rugby medical staff have over his heart condition, which led them to cancel his national contract at the end of 2015. This is despite Hendricks enjoying two thoroughly healthy and productive years at the Bulls.

“The form Cornal is in, everyone can see that there must be some other reason for not choosing him. We have been scratching our heads over him and his medical condition and he is still very much in consideration. But it’s not up to myself or Jacques Nienaber [coach] to take a medical decision, he must be cleared first by our medical team.

“We spoke nicely with him a couple of weeks ago. The moment we get the green light then we can pick him, but we have to wait for the official word. Neil Powell is waiting too because he wants to take him to the Olympics with the Springbok Sevens,” Erasmus said.

The 46-man Springbok squad is a bit light at inside centre, with Damian de Allende and Francois Steyn the only players who have been regularly wearing the No.12 jersey.

Erasmus said Coetzee was certainly in contention for the squad but they were concerned that he had not played since March due to injury. But locks Lood de Jager and RG Snyman are both still injured and have not played for just as long but are in the squad.

De Jager fractured his femur in early April and Snyman has not played since August 2020 after rupturing his ACL and then picking up an unrelated knee injury last month.

“The difference is Lood and RG have won the World Cup and the Rugby Championship, they have played 20 Tests with us and we know them. We know how to get them fit and we’ll know if they’re sharp,” Erasmus said.

Gqoboka has become one of the darlings of Pretoria with his strong scrummaging and powerful ball-carrying, but Coenie Oosthuizen, who last played for the Springboks so long ago he might need a visa, and Ox Nche have leapfrogged him into the Springbok squad.

Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber admitted Gqoboka was unfortunate, but pointed to him arriving at an alignment camp last week with his foot encased in a moon-boot. Bulls coach Jake White had said earlier in the week though that Gqoboka should be okay to play next week.