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Boks call up the Bulls duo after Wessels’ withdrawal

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Boks call up the Bulls duo after Wessels’ withdrawal

Johan Grobbelaar © Gallo Images

Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus has been forced to make one change to his 34-man squad to tour Europe in November after utility forward Jan-Hendrik Wessels was forced out with an ankle injury.

Erasmus has subsequently decided to call up two of Wessels’ teammates – hooker Johan Grobbelaar and prop Wilco Louw – for the three-Test tour where the Boks will face Scotland, England and Wales.

Wessels picked up an ankle injury in the Bulls’ Vodacom United Rugby Championship defeat to the Scarlets last Friday.

Louw’s call-up has been a long time coming, and he has been part of a massive playing force for the Bulls in the URC, and has been knocking on the Bok door for over a season.

Louw was named on Ireland’s Test waiting list earlier this year and has played 14 Tests for the Boks, the last in 2021.

Grobbelaar, meanwhile, has been a regular in the Bok squad this season and started tests against Portugal in Bloemfontein and Australia in Perth.

His inclusion in the group increases the number of players in the squad to 35, consisting of 19 forwards and 16 full-backs.

“It’s always sad to lose a player to injury and we wish Jan-Hendrik all the best on his road to recovery, but this opens the door for Johan and Wilco to make their mark against quality opposition in Scotland, England and Wales”. said Erasmus.

“Jan-Hendrik offered us the luxury of serving as a prop and whore, but with his versatility out of the picture, we decided to call in a specialist prop and hooker.

“Johan has been part of the team this season and is really growing in his role and in the team, while Wilco has been putting in consistently excellent performances for the Vodacom Bulls this season, and has been calling for a while at the door.so I have no doubt that he will want to grab this opportunity with both hands.

“We’re certainly excited to see what they bring to the squad, while the inclusion of Wilco also adds to our player stock as we continue to add depth to our squad.”

The Springboks will leave for a training camp in Jersey, the largest of the Channel Islands between England and France, on Sunday 27 October. The group will then make the trip to Edinburgh on Sunday 3rd November for their opening test of the tour.

The Boks will face Scotland in Edinburgh (Sunday 10 November), England in London (Saturday 16 November) and Wales in Cardiff (Saturday 23 November) on their traditional end-of-year tour.

Updated Springbok squad for Castle Lager away tour:

props: Thomas du Toit (Bath), Vincent Koch (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Wilco Louw (Vodacom Bulls), Frans Malherbe (DHL Stormers), Ox Nche (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Gerhard Steenekamp (Vodacom Bulls).

Whores: Johan Grobbelaar (Vodacom Bulls), Malcolm Marx (Kubota Spears), Bongi Mbonambi (Hollywoodbets Sharks).

Locks: Eben Etzebeth (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Franco Mostert (Honda Heat), Ruan Nortje (Vodacom Bulls), RG Snyman (Leinster).

Loose fronts: Pieter-Steph du Toit (Toyota Verblitz), Siya Kolisi (Captain, Hollywoodbets Sharks), Elrigh Louw (Vodacom Bulls), Kwagga Smith (Shizuoka Blue Revs), Marco van Staden (Vodacom Bulls), Jasper Wiese (Urayasu D-Rocks) .

Scrum halves: Jaden Hendrikse (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Cobus Reinach (Montpellier), Grant Williams (Hollywoodbets Sharks).

Flying Doctors: Manie Libbok (DHL Stormers), Handre Pollard (Leicester Tigers).

Centers: Lukhanyo Am (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Damian de Allende (Wild Knights), Andre Esterhuizen (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Jesse Kriel (Canon Eagles).

Outer back: Kurt-Lee Arendse (Vodacom Bulls), Aphelele Fassi (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Cheslin Kolbe (Suntory Sungoliath), Willie le Roux (Vodacom Bulls), Makazole Mapimpi (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Canan Moodie (Vodacom Bulls), Damian Willemse (DHL Stormers ). ).

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