Springbok assistant coach Mzwandile Stick will take cost of the SA ‘A’ team for his or her two matches in the UK towards Munster and the Bristol Bears in November, in a training team which options SA Rugby Director of Rugby Rassie Erasmus and three assistant coaches.
Junior Springbok coach Bafana Nhleko, Sharks coach Joey Mongalo and Griquas scrum coach Wian du Preez will help Stick, whereas Erasmus will oversee the teaching.
The SA ‘A’ team will face Munster on Thursday, 10 November, and the Bristol Bears every week later on 17 November.
Split duties
With the Springboks in motion towards Ireland on Saturday 5 November, France on 12 November, Italy on 19 November and England on 26 November on the Outgoing Tour, Erasmus and Stick will break up their duties between the 2 groups.
Erasmus stated whereas successful the Springbok Test matches was the highest precedence, the SA ‘A’ team performed an equally vital position in participant and coach growth because the Boks gear up for the Rugby World Cup in France subsequent 12 months.
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“The SA ‘A’ matches will have multiple benefits for SA Rugby as it will open the door for some of our top up-and-coming coaches to be exposed to high-level rugby at senior level in a national team set-up, while at the same time allowing us to continue building our player base as look ahead to the Rugby World Cup,” stated Erasmus.
“This season alone we used over 50 players in our Test matches, which is fantastic as one of our core pillars in the Springbok team is to build squad depth, but with limited playing opportunities for several players and the fact that we lost out on a vital year to build our squad due to the COVID-19 pandemic, these matches will be crucial.”
Munster and Bristol
Erasmus added: “The closest one can get to playing for the Springboks is the SA ‘A’ team, and we believe these matches will give us a good idea of the coaches and young players within our ranks as well as offering some experienced players the opportunity to return from injury and get back to form as they contest for places with an eye on Rugby World Cup spots.”
Commenting on SA ‘A’ team opposition, Erasmus stated: “Munster are famend for his or her standing as Irish rugby giants, and as we now have seen in the United Rugby Championship, they are going to check the team to the restrict.
“We count on Bristol to play extra of a working sport, particularly with Pat Lam – a former New Zealand junior and membership participant, and Auckland Blues coach – influencing their fashion of play.
“These are going to be challenging matches, which is exactly what we want less than a year out from the Rugby World Cup.”
The Springbok and SA ‘A’ squads will probably be introduced inside the subsequent three weeks.
SA ‘A’ team administration:
Head coach: Mzwandile Stick
Assistant coaches: Bafana Nhleko, Joey Mongalo, Wian du Preez
Technical analyst: Willie Maree
Operations supervisor: Zintsika Tashe
Logistics supervisor: Barry McDonald
Team physician: Clement Plaatjies
Physiotherapist: Lance Lemmetjies
Conditioning coach: Johan van Wyk
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