Duo excited to start in “highly motivated Bok team”

Springbok centre Lukhanyo Am and flanker Marco van Staden shot down suggestions on Wednesday that the 10 changes to the Springbok team to face the Wallabies in Perth on Saturday was disruptive to their momentum after their 33-7 victory in Brisbane last week.

The Bok duo added that the players didn’t need extra motivation to maintain that standard of play when they meet Australia in their second Castle Lager Rugby Championship clash at the Optus Stadium.

Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus is trying hard to strike a balance between maintaining the strong form that has seen them win 17 of their last 20 Tests, while at the same time building squad depth with an eye on the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia. As such, he has named a few double RWC winning veterans and alongside a few talented youngsters for the clash.

Van Staden, who featured in the RWC in France last year, disagreed with the critics who adopted a negative view to the team changes: “I wouldn’t say it’s a disruption. I don’t think this team needs any more motivation than we currently have for this match.

“All of us want to use this opportunity, and we took a lot of confidence from training this week. The intensity was really up there, and we want to take that energy into the game.”

With Erasmus’ backline boasting vast experience with the exception of fullback Aphelele Fassi and halfbacks Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Morne van den Berg, and a replacements bench filled with Rugby World Cup-winners, Am echoed Van Staden’s sentiments.

Am said: “We are experienced at franchise level, although some of the players don’t have many Test caps. We have quality leaders in this group, and the fact that some of them have only played a few Tests doesn’t mean they are less experienced leaders.”

Van Staden said the fact that a bunch of players in the starting forward pack play together at the Vodacom Bulls – including himself, Elrigh Louw (No 8), Ruan Nortje (lock), Jan-Hendrik Wessels (prop) and Johan Grobbelaar (hooker) – would also boost their confidence.

“Many of us have played together quite often at the Bulls, which certainly gives us confidence,” said Van Staden. “We’ve been working together well at training (in the Bok camp too), so we are excited about this opportunity.”

Zooming in on the match, Van Staden said improving their breakdown play has been one of the main focus areas for the team this week after they were challenged by the Wallabies in that department at the Suncorp Stadium last week.

“There has been a big focus on that area of the game this week and to correct the wrongs of last week,” said Van Staden. “We’ve been working on trying to control what we can and to ensure that we are ready for whatever they throw at us in that department.”

Am, meanwhile, will take the field in the unfamiliar inside centre position, but he looked forward to the challenge of partnering up with Jesse Kriel, who has been a key figure in the Bok backline the last two seasons.

“I’m excited to play alongside Jesse in the midfield, and the fact that I’ve played outside centre means I understand the role, so I think we’ll compliment one another well,” said Am.

“It’s the first time we’ve been training together at 12 and 13, and it has been going well, so I’m really excited about the match on Saturday.”

On playing inside centre, Am said: “It’s slightly different, but not too much. The roles are more specific when it comes to the set pieces, but in terms of the kick-chase, it’s similar, so it won’t require a big adjustment to my game.”

The Bok midfielder, who appears to have finally overcome a series of injuries that kept him sidelined in the last two seasons, enjoyed working with new Springbok backline coach Tony Brown: “We are moving the ball around more and trying to attack at will. With the focus being on identifying space, it makes us more of a threat to the defence, and it’s nice to try to create space for the outside backs.”

The Springboks wrapped up their main on-field preparations for Saturday’s match on Wednesday and will have Thursday off to rest and switch on mentally for the clash before completing their preparations on Friday at their traditional captains run.

Saturday’s match kicks off at 11h55 and will be broadcast live on SuperSport.