Times changing for Springboks

FUTURE PLANS: VETERANS' DAYS COULD BE NUMBERED

- Ross Roche

FAF DE KLERK

(Picture: Gallo Images)

The Springboks could look a very different team from the one that has done business since 2018 when the next Rugby World Cup rolls around in Australia in 2027.

This became apparent after the naming of their end-of-year-tour squad earlier this week, where double World Cup winners Faf de Klerk, Vincent Koch and 100 cap Bok Willie le Roux were left completely out of the mix.

The 36-year-old Le Roux was never really going to be in the running in two years' time, but De Klerk, currently 34, and Koch, currently 35, could still have had a chance, although that now looks increasingly unlikely unless there is an injury crisis.