Springboks’ coach Peter de Villiers announces new squad for Tri-Nation Series in Australia
Springboks’ coach, Peter de Villiers, announced the squad for the upcoming Tri-Nation series, which includes three debutants. The three new-comers will be featuring in the opening encounter against Australia on July 23, in Sydney.
The three debutants are Dean Greyling, Werner Kruger and Ashley Johnson. Greyling and Kruger will be playing as props on the Boks’ squad, while Ashley Johnson will be positioned as a loose-forward.
Charl McLeod, who plays as a scrum-half, is also part of the squad and will be making his first appearance with Springboks. All the debutants, except Greyling, have already played with Springboks in friendly matches.
While speaking about the new recruits, the coach of Springboks, de Villiers, stated, “The new caps had outstanding Super Rugby seasons and this is an exciting opportunity for them.”
The coach further explained that the new players are part of the squad because they exhibited good form in their respective leagues and it is entirely up to the players to prove their mettle.
Commenting about the latest changes, the coach further added, "They have been rewarded for their form and now it's up to them. We have got some new combinations, but there is a lot of potential in this side and the players are hungry for this chance."
The three debutants will be marching into the Tri-Nation series under the flag-ship of John Smit. The skipper will lead the 23-man squad and marking his 103rd Test appearance.
Heinrich Brüssow, who was earlier considered in the 23-man outfit, will now be sitting outside the game on account of knee injury, which will take a longer recovery time. CJ van der Linde, has also been taken in the squad as a reserve player.
The backline will be filled up by Ruan Pienaar, Morné Steyn and Wynand Oliver, where Oliver will be filling up for the inside centre’s spot.
For Bjorn Basson, Lwazi Mvovo, Johnson, Kruger and Greyling, this will be their first appearance in the Tri-Nation series, whereas Jean Deysel, Alistair Hargreaves, Patrick Lambie and Charl McLeod are part of the reserves’ squad.
The Tri-Nation series will kick off between the flight-scared, Springboks, and Wallabies with changes which will give the fresh blood the opportunity to test their skills to their full potential.
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