Esterhuizen ready to mentor new-look Springboks

IT was not too long ago that there was genuine concern that the Springboks would battle with a supposed “injury crisis” this season, and that Rassie Erasmus and Co’s player management would be tested with the upcoming Nations Championship and Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry on the horizon.

- MORGAN BOLTON

The Boks’ opponents, no doubt, looked on with glee, perhaps seeing a chink in the armour, an exploit to target, a shortcoming to play mental games around in the coming months. Perhaps the one major takeaway from Erasmus’s most recent squad, however, is that South African rugby is indeed in rude health.

The likes of Quan Horn, Riley Norton, Carlu Sadie, Andre-Hugo Venter, JJ Kotze, Ntuthuko Mchunu, Zachary Porthen, Ben-Jason Dixon, Paul de Villiers, and Vusi Moyo — with ages spanning from 19 to 29 — are all on the precipice of their Test careers. The SA ‘A’ team who will face the Zimbabwe Sables on Saturday (kick-off 12pm), meanwhile, is jam-packed with Young Turks and seasoned franchise players ready to make the step up into international rugby.