The Springboks’ clash with Australia in Perth on 26 September is set to have a significant impact on the opening round of the United Rugby Championship, with South Africa’s four franchises losing several key players to the national squad.
Rassie Erasmus has named his Springbok team for the Wallabies Test, meaning the Bulls, Stormers, Sharks and Lions must now prepare for their URC openers without some of their leading players.
The impact, however, is not evenly spread across the four franchises.
Bulls face biggest selection disruption
The Bulls have six players involved with the Springboks in Perth: Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Johan Grobbelaar, Elrigh Louw, Marco van Staden, Handre Pollard and Canan Moodie.
Their absence could leave Johan Ackermann with some selection headaches ahead of the Bulls’ trip to Italy to face Zebre.
There is still plenty of experience available, though, with players such as Ruan Nortje, Gerhard Steenekamp and Cameron Hanekom expected to remain with the Pretoria-based outfit.
The Bulls will need that squad depth immediately as they begin their campaign away from home.
Stormers retain plenty of firepower
The Stormers appear to have been less severely affected by the Springbok call-ups.
Four players — Zachary Porthen, Wilco Louw, Paul de Villiers and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu — have been added to the Springbok squad for the Perth Test.
John Dobson can nevertheless call on a strong group for the trip to Galway, with established internationals including Siya Kolisi, Damian Willemse, Cobus Reinach and Deon Fourie available for the Stormers.
That depth could prove important when they take on Connacht in their opening fixture.
Sharks lose five Springboks
The Sharks will be without five players selected for the Wallabies encounter.
Ox Nche, Eben Etzebeth, Ethan Hooker, Andre Esterhuizen and Edwill van der Merwe are all part of the Springbok squad travelling to Australia.
There is some relief for the Durban franchise, with Thomas du Toit expected to be available for their opening URC match against Ospreys at Kings Park.
The Sharks will now have to balance the loss of several experienced and influential players with the opportunity for others in their squad to step up.
Lions deal with double blow
The Lions have two players with the Springboks in Perth, with Morne van den Berg and Quan Horn joining the national squad.
Van den Berg was the only Lions player involved in the recent New Zealand Test series, but he will not feature in the franchise’s opening URC match.
Ivan van Rooyen will instead rely on his wider squad as the Lions prepare for a difficult home assignment against Leinster at Ellis Park.
URC opening-round fixtures
The four South African franchises begin their campaigns as follows:
- Connacht vs Stormers — Dexcom Stadium, Galway, 20:45
- Lions vs Leinster — Ellis Park, Johannesburg, 13:30
- Sharks vs Ospreys — Kings Park, Durban, 16:00
- Zebre vs Bulls — Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi, Parma, 18:30
With a number of Springboks unavailable, the opening weekend will provide an early test of squad depth across South Africa’s URC franchises.
For the Bulls, Sharks and Lions in particular, the challenge will be replacing players who would normally be expected to play major roles.
How big an impact will the Springboks’ Perth Test have on the URC opening round?
Which South African franchise has been affected most by the international call-ups? Let us know your thoughts.
