Boks need to hit the ground running against never-say-die Wales

Their expected physicality aligned to their historically relentless approach make Wales the perfect opponents for a new generation of Springboks.

The world champions meet Warren Gatland’s side at Twickenham on Saturday (Kickoff: 3pm), aiming to bed in new systems, players and a couple of new coaches. The Welsh are, despite blooding some new faces and trying to pull themselves out of a period of wretched form, the type of opponents that can get under the skin of the South Africans.

“They are big boys and they are hard. I remember the message to us last year from the coaching staff when we played them was they will keep coming until the final whistle,” said the Boks’ skipper for Saturday’s clash, Pieter-Steph du Toit.

“It was after we’d scored our third try last year, and normally the (opposing) team walks back from under their posts to the halfway line, but they were jogging. They were ready for the next moment, trying to get points on the board ... they are not going to stop. They will always keep coming.”

If that holds true, then the likes of wing Edwill van der Merwe and flyhalf Jordan Hendrickse could not wish for a better introduction to Test rugby. They are two of four debutants in the Boks’ match-day 23. 

What was once a very one-sided record in favour of South Africa has in the last decade become an evenly-matched rivalry. In the last 12 Tests between the teams, they have each won six times, with Wales claiming a first triumph on South African soil in Bloemfontein two years ago. 

That was very much an experimental Bok line-up, playing the second of a three-match series, and while there won’t be as many debutants at Twickenham as there were in Bloemfontein, it is an opportunity for the likes of Hendrickse, Van der Merwe, Ben Jason-Dixon and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu to get a tick next to their names at the beginning of the next World Cup cycle. 

“What we want is to test those new combinations, build momentum and to remain among the top three in world rankings. If we can stay there, continue to be competitive and we can bring some new players into the squad, then South African rugby and the Springboks will continue to be in a good place until that next World Cup,” said Du Toit.

The Bok pack is made up of some grizzled veterans, seven of whom know what winning a World Cup feels like, including hooker Malcolm Marx, who returns to the line-up for the first time since last year’s World Cup, which for him ended after the first match. 

“To have someone of that calibre and experience back is unbelievable,” said Du Toit. “It will be great for him. I’ve been in that situation too, making a comeback after a long period out with injury. Look there will be pressure, it is a Test match, but we shouldn’t expect too much. We will support him, but I think he will have a good game.”

Though the match is largely a ‘friendly’ and is being played in the English summer, it’s not one that the Boks can afford to take lightly. Assistant coach Mzwandile Stick mentioned that building momentum for what will be a long international season, is crucial as is making the first experience of the many new faces in the national set-up, both among the players and the coaching staff, a happy one.

“For us it is key to start well,” said Stick. “We are trying to install some new systems, we have a new attack coach, a new defensive coach, so we want to see how those plans will be implemented and how the players are interpreting the new voices that have come on board.”