Siya Kolisi retains Springbok captaincy

Two-time Rugby World Cup-winning Springbok captain Siya Kolisi will retain the captain’s armband in the Incoming Series that kicks off against Ireland in Pretoria on July 6, Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus announced on Wednesday.

Erasmus confirmed Kolisi, who is based at French club Racing 92, will again lead the team, ending speculation the loose forward could be replaced by a locally based Bok captain. Kolisi guided the Boks to Rugby World Cup glory in 2019 in Japan and 2023 in France.

“Siya will be the captain and will again wear the No 6 jersey,” Erasmus said. “He’s fit and isn’t carrying any injuries.”

Erasmus also provided good news on the injury front after concerns about several players carrying minor injuries following South Africa's 41-13 Test win against Wales at Twickenham on Saturday.

“Where we stand with injuries is Cheslin [Kolbe] has been cleared to play and we’ll manage Edwill [van der Merwe], Faf [de Klerk] and [Makazole] Mapimpi this week, though they should be available for selection for the first Ireland Test,” he said.

The coach said wing Canan Moodie, who had surgery for a fractured finger earlier this month, could also make a welcome return to the national team in the next few weeks. 

With a handful of less experienced players and four potential debutants named in the 39-man squad announced on Tuesday, Erasmus emphasised the importance of building squad depth as the team swings into full action with an eye on building towards the 2027 World Cup in Australia.

“We earmarked Jan-Hendrik Wessels from our Elite Player Development (EPD) system from under-15 level, when he was playing prop then,” Erasmus said.

“We don’t have control over where the franchises select the players, but with him able to play hooker and prop it offers us additional options among the forwards.

“Johan Grobbelaar was also one of the standout hookers in the United Rugby Championship this season for the Bulls. Sacha [Feinberg-Mngomezulu] has also come through the ranks and been part of our structures before with the SA ‘A’ team and understands our systems and slotted in with ease.

“We are at a stage where we are trying to expose players to the Springbok environment as much as possible.

“We had four new capped players against Wales, and we have four debutants in this squad — Phepsi Buthelezi, Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Johan Grobbelaar and Morne van den Berg — and there could be a few more against Portugal if we achieve our goals against Ireland. So we could have a healthy new crop of national players later in this season.”

Erasmus refused to be drawn into the reported banter from the Irish, saying: “If there’s one team that has the upper hand, it’s them. We haven’t beaten them since 2016.”

SA Rugby