The Springboks have already revealed a 33-man squad for their back-to-back games against Argentina, but there could be some changes to come.
The likes of Lood de Jager (lock), Jean-Luc du Preez (loose forward), and Aphelele Fassi (fullback) have already been ruled out with serious injuries, and further medical assessments within the squad will be needed after a bruising battle against the All Blacks.
It has been confirmed that there is a possibility that a further three players could be added to the group later this week, while a group of 30 players will then be selected to travel to London for the final match of the Rugby Championship.
The Springboks have regrouped in Durban
The Bok squad assembled in Durban on Thursday after having a few days off with their families, and attention has now firmly shifted to the games against Argentina at Kings Park in Durban on Saturday 27 September, and at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham, in London on 4 October.
“This group of players have been together for over 13 weeks now, and they’ve shown that they are the right players for this big task against the Pumas,” said Rassie Erasmus.
“We’ve chopped and changed our squad a fair bit this season, playing a total of 46 players in our last eight matches, including in the Barbarians match, and by training together almost daily, we are confident that these are the players who can give us the best shot to try to retain the title.”
Erasmus added: “The fact that the younger and older guys have been training with one another and against one another on the field almost daily really paid off last weekend, and we have no doubt that if we continue showing our faith in these players, we will get the best out of them.
“The bonus for us is that we still have so many players who have been in the system and attended our alignment camps in the last few seasons, and who have been knocking hard on the door, but unfortunately, we could only select a limited number of players for these matches, so we will continue to keep an eye on the others.”
Erasmus admitted that it was disappointing losing players such as Fassi, De Jager, and Du Preez to injuries, but he was satisfied with the depth they had in the Springboks’ squad.
“We are blessed with talent in South Africa, so as sad as we are for players such as Lood, Jean-Luc, Aphelele, Kurt-Lee, and many others, we have capable guys to fill their boots,” said Erasmus.
“We are also fortunate to have so many versatile players who can play a few different positions, and they are equally adept in each of them, regardless of what position they play.”
LATEST SQUAD
Forwards – Pieter-Steph du Toit, Thomas du Toit, Eben Etzebeth, Vincent Koch, Siya Kolisi, Wilco Louw, Malcolm Marx, Bongi Mbonambi, Franco Mostert, Ox Nche, Ruan Nortje, Kwagga Smith, RG Snyman, Marnus van der Merwe, Marco van Staden, Boan Venter, Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Jasper Wiese.
Backs – Damian de Allende, Faf de Klerk, Andre Esterhuizen, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Ethan Hooker, Cheslin Kolbe, Jesse Kriel, Manie Libbok, Makazole Mapimpi, Canan Moodie, Handré Pollard, Cobus Reinach, Morne van den Berg, Damian Willemse, Grant Williams.
