After much agonising and deliberation over his final choices, Junior Springbok head coach Kevin Foote has named a powerful squad of 31 players for the Rugby Championship U20 tournament in Gqeberha in May.
Five capped Junior Boks are included in the line-up, including three who took part in the inaugural southern hemisphere tournament in Australia in 2024, where the SA U20s finished second behind New Zealand.
The Junior Boks will play Argentina, Australia and New Zealand at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium from May 1-11.
Batho Hlekani (loose forward), Haashim Pead (scrumhalf) and JC Mars (outside back) are the trio who will be returning for their second Rugby Championship, while the two other returning Junior Boks are Wandile Mlaba (loose forward) and Herman Lubbe (prop).
Divan Fuller (flanker), who has also been capped by the Junior Boks, will miss the tournament through injury.
The naming of the squad was the culmination of a thorough preparation process, which started with two training camps at the end of 2024.
There was also a training block after the festive break, a short tour to Georgia, which was followed by a third training period.
Foote said there was excitement in the camp in the build-up to the Gqeberha event.
“The Rugby Championship is a great opportunity for our players to test their abilities against quality opposition from New Zealand, Australia and Argentina, and we are looking forward to the challenge of playing quality opposition in front of our passionate Eastern Cape fans,” he said.
“We worked with 80 players during our various training camps, which gave us a fantastic opportunity to test and assess our depth.
“I believe we have selected a competitive Junior Bok squad, consisting of players who have really put their hand up during the camps.
“A few missed out due to injury, while there are also a couple who were retained from last year.”
Foote said it had not been an easy task to reduce the squad, and he commended the entire training group for their effort during the preparation blocks.
“The players all did their part, and I am pleased with their effort,” he said.
“We could only announce a 31-man squad, but that doesn’t mean those players who will not play in Nelson Mandela Bay are out of the reckoning for the World Rugby U20 Championship.”
Foote said they would monitor player progress in SA Rugby’s U21 Cup competition, which starts in May, and emphasised that the door was not closed at all, considering there was still another training block to come after the Rugby Champs in the build-up towards the World Rugby U20 Championship in Italy.
The Junior Bok squad will assemble on Tuesday in Gqeberha, where they will fine-tune preparations for the tournament.
Junior Bok squad:
Props: Ranon Fouche (Bulls), Jean Erasmus (Bulls), Simphiwe Ngobese (Sharks), Herman Lubbe (Western Province), Oliver Reid (Western Province).
Hookers: Siphosethu Mnebelele (Bulls), Jaundre Schoeman (Bulls), HB Odendaal (Lions).
Locks: Neil Hansen (Lions), Morne Venter (Lions), Riley Norton (Western Province), JJ Theron (Bulls).
Loose forwards: Batho Hlekani (Sharks), Xola Nyali (Western Province), Matt Romao (Sharks), Wandile Mlaba (Western Province), Thando Biyela (Lions).
Scrumhalves: Ceano Everson (Sharks), Haashim Pead (Lions), Elrich Visser (Cheetahs).
Flyhalves: Vusi Moyo (Sharks), Kyle Smith (Western Province).
Centres: Albie Bester (Sharks), Gino Cupido (Western Province), Demitre Erasmus (Bulls), Dominic Malgas (Western Province).
Outside backs: Scott Nel (Sharks), Gilermo Mentoe (Lions), Siya Ndlozi (Western Province), Cheswill Jooste (Bulls), JC Mars (Western Province).
Gqeberha fixtures:
Thursday May 1, 2pm: New Zealand vs Australia, 4.10pm: Junior Boks vs Argentina.
Tuesday May 6, 2pm: New Zealand vs Argentina, 4.10pm: Junior Boks vs Australia.
Sunday May 11, 2pm: Argentina vs Australia, 4.10pm: Junior Boks vs New Zealand.
Tickets are priced at R20 a person and will be available at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium ticket office or online from Webtickets.
The Herald
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