Junior Boks face depth test after injuries, suspensions and senior call-ups

The talent pipeline in South African rugby is flowing freely, but for the Junior Springboks it came at the cost of losing two standout players.

- By Craig Ray

Lock Riley Norton and flyhalf Vusi Moyo look set to make their Test debuts for the senior Springboks sometime in the next month after being included in Rassie Erasmus’s Nations Championship squad.

That two current Junior Boks are deemed good enough for Test selection against the likes of England, Wales and Scotland says something about their individual talents, and about the system that produced them.

It also provided a headache for Junior Bok coach Kevin Foote, because he has two very sizeable holes in his squad to fill for the defence of their Junior World Championship title in Georgia in the coming weeks.

Norton was set to captain the Junior Boks in Tbilisi, and Moyo was one of the vice-captains.

Neither will be there, and although Foote said the right things about being proud of the players, his mandate is to win trophies. Losing two of his key personnel just three days before departure was not ideal.

It didn’t help that injuries also robbed the Junior Boks of brilliant 18-year-old utility back Zekhethelo Siyaya. The fullback/wing/flyhalf sustained a concussion and a facial injury during a freak collision in the SA “A” clash against Zimbabwe at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium last weekend.

Tough prop Kai Pratt was also ruled out of the tournament, but on the plus side, last year’s star schoolboy centres Markus Muller and Ethan Adams are both in the squad.

“Everyone in the Junior Bok setup is delighted for Riley and Vusi, and we wish them well for the Nations Championship,” said Foote. “It is every young player’s dream to represent the Springboks, and they thoroughly deserve their opportunity.”

Foote’s problems were compounded because he lost not only Moyo but also the squad’s other flyhalf, Yaqeen Ahmed.