Junior Springbok captain Paul de Villiers is amongst a group of seven players that will represent the South African Under-20 team for a second year running after being named in the starting team to face Georgia in their World Rugby U20 Championship opener on Saturday at the Danie Craven Stadium, Stellenbosch at 19h00.
De Villiers made his Junior Bok debut in the U20 Six Nations Summer Series in Italy last year, along with the team’s vice-captain Katlego Letebele, Gcinokuhle Mdletshe, Juann Else, Corné Lavagna, Imad Khan and Neil le Roux. All seven were included in the match day squad for the host union’s match at the Danie Craven Stadium in Stellenbosch.
Junior Springbok head coach Bafana Nhleko included five uncapped players in his starting backline and six in the pack, with Lavagna, Mdletshe and Le Roux playing off the bench.
The Junior Springbok team to face Georgia in Stellenbosch:
15. Hakeem Kunene – uncapped
14. Jurenzo Julius – uncapped
13. Katlego Letebele (vice-captain) – 2 caps, 0 points
12. Ethan Hooker – uncapped
11. Masande Mtshali – uncapped
10. Jean Smith – uncapped
9. Imad Khan – 4 caps, 5 points (1 try)
8. Abulele Ndabambi – uncapped
7. Ghudian van Reenen – uncapped
6. Paul de Villiers (captain) – 4 caps, 0 points
5. JF van Heerden – uncapped
4. Coetzee Le Roux – uncapped
3. Mawande Mdanda – uncapped
2. Juann Else – 3 caps, 0 points
1. Phatu Ganyane – uncapped
Replacements:
16. SJ Kotze – uncapped
17. Corné Lavagna – 2 caps, 0 points
18. Zachary Porthen – uncapped
19. Jannes Potgieter – uncapped
20. Gcinokuhle Mdletshe – 4 caps, 0 points
21. Neil Le Roux – 3 caps, 0 points
22. Damian Markus – uncapped
23. Michael Annies – uncapped
