Eight ball carries. Two defenders beaten. Sixty-three metres made. Sixteen tackles. One turnover won. That’s Paul de Villiers‘ return from Saturday’s 42-28 win over Scotland at Loftus Versfeld. Only his second Test.
Nobody scripted this. Paul de Villiers wasn’t named in the original matchday squad for the Boks’ opener against England. He found out he was starting after Siya Kolisi failed a late fitness test on a strained hamstring, with Eben Etzebeth also unavailable. Pieter-Steph du Toit shifted into the second row to make room. Paul de Villiers had hours, not weeks, to get ready.
He didn’t just survive it. He won an early breakdown penalty and got stuck into the physical exchanges, finishing a 45-21 win at Ellis Park looking like he belonged there all along.
Rassie Erasmus wasn’t handing out easy praise afterward. Asked about Paul de Villiers and Cameron Hanekom, playing just his second Test since a 2024 debut and doing it out of position at flanker, he said the pair “certainly weren’t out of class” before adding, “I don’t think they were brilliant.” Guarded words from a coach who doesn’t do compliments for free.
What followed said more. Erasmus made ten changes for Scotland. Paul de Villiers wasn’t one of them. He was one of only five players trusted to start both matches, alongside Jesse Kriel, Damian Willemse, Ruan Nortje, and captain Pieter-Steph du Toit.
Against Scotland, he was everywhere. A weaving run in the build-up to Evan Roos’ try. Constant disruption at the breakdown. Sixteen tackles from a flanker who spent most of the match making Scotland’s ball slower and messier than they wanted it.
Even before a ball was kicked, Scotland’s Rory Darge had already flagged him as a problem, telling reporters he’d watched Paul de Villiers “going after the ball against England and really slowing it down.”
That combination of physical output and game intelligence is exactly why his name belongs in a bigger conversation.
Paul de Villiers already led the Junior Springboks before he’d played a single senior Test. Leadership at Test level is a natural next step, not a stretch, and there’s a reasonable case he could be captaining the Springboks himself in a few years’ time, once Siya Kolisi’s era at the helm eventually comes to an end. He isn’t the only name in that frame.
Junior Boks captain Riley Norton carries the same profile, though a Grade 3 hamstring tear picked up in training has kept him out of the picture since before the England Test.
“This isn’t a one-game story. Paul got thrown into the deep end with no warning and has now backed it up twice in a row. That’s not luck, It’s Springbok Royalty loading…” – Jay
The context around this run makes it more impressive, not less. Erasmus wasn’t experimenting for experimenting’s sake against Scotland. He said before the match that he had one eye on the 2027 World Cup squad, using the fixture to find out who could handle the step up.
Paul de Villiers didn’t just handle it. He was one of the standout performers in a Springbok team that had to fight from 14-14 at halftime to eventually pull away.
He’s been retained again for Saturday’s trip to Durban against Wales. Two Tests in, the sample size is still small. But the shape of what’s building is already clear enough to take seriously.
📸 Images via SA Rugby / Springboks
