The Junior Springboks are motivated and determined to finish the U20 Rugby Championship on a positive note when they face New Zealand at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Gqeberha on Sunday.
SA U20 head coach Kevin Foote has included five players from the side that faced Australia earlier in the week for their clash against New Zealand.
In the pack, loosehead prop Simphiwe Ngobese, lock and captain Riley Norton, and No 8 Wandile Mlaba are retained from the side which fell just short against Australia.
Vusi Moyo, who gave a strong performance against the Aussies, retains the flyhalf berth, while Cheswill Jooste will run out at right wing as the only backs starting again.
Norton, Mlaba and Jooste will start their third successive games in the competition.
The Junior Boks had a robust review of their match against Australia and have worked hard on those aspects of their game which they have identified for improvement.
According to Foote, the Junior Boks are all highly motivated and very positive for the exciting challenge of facing South Africa’s biggest rugby rival in front of what promises to be a big crowd at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.
“Obviously, we were bitterly disappointed with not winning the Australian game, but there were some great learnings for us in preparation for the World Championship,” said Foote.
“I thought that our set piece took a big step forward, and we controlled a lot of the game for a period, but there are aspects for us to work on, in particular our breakdown. We got turned over too often while some of the kicking patterns were out of character, which we look to fix and get some clarity around that.”
Regarding team selection for the New Zealand match, Foote explained: “We’re bringing some players back from the first game while retaining some guys who played in the second game. That will bring some freshness to the match-23, and there is real excitement in the squad for our match on Saturday.
“We believe we have a good and confident team, and all the players have put in a massive effort during the last two and a half weeks. We want to finish strong in front of our home crowd on Mother’s Day, making our mothers proud and celebrating all the moms in the country.”
South Africa and New Zealand have a special rivalry on the rugby field that is full of tradition, and that is something that Foote and his Junior Boks are very aware of.
“Playing against New Zealand is one of the biggest honours in rugby and playing in the green and gold jersey against them is always very special, and something we don’t take for granted,” Foote emphasised.
Sunday’s clash with New Zealand is the last fixture of the U20 Rugby Championship. Kick-off is at 16h10 and the match will be broadcast live on SuperSport. Argentina and Australia clash at 14h00.
Junior Springboks: 15. Gilermo Mentoe, 14. Cheswill Jooste, 13. Demitre Erasmus, 12. Albie Bester, 11. Gino Cupido, 10. Vusi Moyo, 9. Haashim Pead, 8. Wandile Mlaba, 7. Matt Romao, 6. Thando Biyela, 5. JJ Theron, 4. Riley Norton (c), 3. Jean Erasmus, 2. Siphosethu Mnebelele, 1. Simphiwe Ngobese. Replacements: 16. Juandre Schoeman. 17. Oliver Reid. 18. Herman Lubbe. 19. Morne Venter, 20. Batho Hlekani, 21. Ceano Everson, 22. Kyle Smith, 23. JC Mars.
