Rassie Erasmus wants one thing understood before a ball is even kicked in Buenos Aires: the Springboks Argentina Test is not a formality on the way to bigger things. It is the thing. Speaking to media on Tuesday as his squad settled into camp in Johannesburg, the Bok coach was blunt about where his head is at this week, and it isn’t on New Zealand.
“First and foremost, we want to beat Argentina, just like every other team, we want to win every Test match we play,” Erasmus said.
The bigger picture, he conceded, is never far from view, with a World Cup year closing in and Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry against the All Blacks looming in August. But the Springboks Argentina Test comes first, and Erasmus was adamant that respect for Los Pumas isn’t optional.
What makes this particular Springboks Argentina Test unusual is who’s walking back into camp. Ten experienced Springboks are returning from spells on the sidelines, and this week in Johannesburg is effectively their reintroduction to Test rugby ahead of the Argentina trip and the four-match series against New Zealand that follows.
The two enforced absentees are the headline exclusions. Ox Nche and Franco Mostert remain unavailable through longer-term injuries, and Erasmus confirmed there was no ambiguity there. “There are only two guys who won’t be available due to longer term injuries, and they are Ox Nche and Franco Mostert,” he said. Losing Mostert’s utility across the back five and engine room is a blow, and losing Nche’s ballast up front is another, but Erasmus wasn’t dwelling on it. The focus stays forward.
Where it gets interesting is everyone else. Wilco Louw is back and, by Erasmus’s own account, ready to go. He’s named alongside some of the Boks’ biggest names as players who’ll get game time in Argentina specifically because they need it.
Eben Etzebeth returns after his own injury lay-off, as does Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, and André Esterhuizen is back in the frame too. Add Siya Kolisi, Handré Pollard, Lood de Jager, Ethan Hooker, Canan Moodie and Morné van den Berg to that returning group, and Erasmus has a genuine selection headache dressed up as good news.
“Apart from them, everyone is ready to play,” Erasmus said of the squad beyond Nche and Mostert. “I wouldn’t say it is ideal that they are all returning from injury now. We would have liked the guys not to be injured and to have been able to manage their time right from the start.” It’s a rare admission from a coach not known for airing frustrations publicly, but it underlines just how much rugby this group has missed collectively, and how much catching up needs to happen in a hurry.
That’s exactly why the Springboks Argentina Test matters more than a standalone fixture usually would. Erasmus was explicit that this match against a team South Africa faces annually in the Rugby Championship, and who are also competing in the Nations Championship, doubles as a genuine audition. “Argentina are a quality team, and you’ll quickly see who is ready to play against New Zealand two weeks later,” he said. “That said, this match wasn’t planned with that reason in mind, it was always about honouring our relationship with Argentina, but yes, most of those guys will be involved.”
“Ten Springboks walking back into camp in one week isn’t a problem, it’s a luxury most coaches would kill for. Rassie just has to be ruthless about who’s actually Test-ready!” – 🎙️Jay
The logistics behind the scenes are just as telling as the team news. The Springboks squad trained for two days after assembling in Johannesburg on Sunday, with Wednesday set aside as a rest day before the group wraps up on-field preparation on Thursday. From there, most players head home for a short break, while the touring squad for Argentina, to be announced on Saturday, splits into two groups for the journey to South America.
Erasmus was equally clear on how he plans to manage the transition from Argentina back into Greatest Rivalry mode. He doesn’t want to carry players on tour who won’t get meaningful game time, and he doesn’t want to release players to their franchises if there’s any doubt about depth for the All Blacks series. “As far as we can release players without jeopardising squad depth, we’ll try to do so,” he said. “We might also still release more players from the group if they don’t get enough game time in the Springbok Tests.”
Notably, Erasmus kept the conversation locked on Argentina even when asked directly about New Zealand’s touring squad, which was announced this week. “I saw the squad was announced and had a brief look at it, but at this stage we’re all locked in for Argentina,” he said. It’s a small moment, but it says everything about the discipline Erasmus is demanding from his Springboks camp this week.
There’ll be time to dissect the All Blacks later. There’ll be a group that stays behind in South Africa and starts that process while the touring Springboks squad is in Buenos Aires, but for now, the Springboks Argentina Test is the only fixture that exists.
He wasn’t dismissive of Argentina’s form either. “It sounds like everybody’s really excited about the squad and the way they’ve played in the first three games, and we know it’s going to be tough, but Argentina is our first goal right now,” Erasmus said. Los Pumas have been dangerous under Felipe Contepomi, and a full-strength Springboks group returning from injury will need more than reputation to get the job done in Buenos Aires.
Erasmus will finalise his official Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry squad once the touring group is back from Argentina, but for now, all the noise around the All Blacks series can wait. Saturday’s touring squad announcement will show exactly how much faith Erasmus has in his returning stars, and whether the likes of Etzebeth, Kolisi, Pollard, Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Esterhuizen and Louw are trusted to deliver against a Pumas side that has South Africa’s full attention this week.
📸 Images via Springboks / SA Rugby
