Durban — With the Springboks’ first Test match of the year only two months away, the world champions made the big switch to Test mode on Wednesday when they gathered in Durban at the first of two preparation camps this month ahead of the July 8 kick-off against the Wallabies in Pretoria.
This camp, which includes 15 players, will conclude on Friday, while the second preparation camp — which will feature players from the Stormers who are preparing to face Munster in the United Rugby Championship final in Cape Town next weekend — will run from May 29-31.
The group of players — which includes centre Lukhanyo Am, wing Makazole Mapimpi, hooker Bongi Mbonambi, utility forward Kwagga Smith and fullback Willie le Roux — assembled in Durban on Tuesday evening and got straight into the swing of things on Wednesday morning with field training sessions, gym, and team meetings.
They will have a further two field training sessions on Thursday and one on Friday before returning home.
“It was fantastic to see how excited the players and members of team management were to return to the national set-up when we arrived in Durban,” said Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber.
“This is a massive season for us and judging by the players’ enthusiasm we are excited about the journey ahead as we prepare for the Rugby Championship, our Rugby World Cup warm-up matches and the international showpiece in France.
“With these players having completed their franchise and club commitments, they can now turn their attention fully to the international season.”
Nienaber added: “We have a small group of players at this camp, but this affords us the luxury of giving them special attention. As we said at our first training camp in February, every minute with the players is crucial for us to get our systems in place to ensure that we peak at the right time during the World Cup.
“We’ll have a bigger group of players at the next camp and at our Rugby Championship training camp in June, but this week will assist us greatly in putting the groundwork in place.
“Having a few injured players here such as Siya (Kolisi) and Eben (Etzebeth) is also a bonus, as they’ll participate in all our team meetings, while our medical team have already started working with them.”
The Springboks will begin their official preparations for the Rugby Championship at a training camp in Pretoria from June 12-30.
After playing Eddie Jones’ Wallabies at Loftus Versfeld, the second Test of the condensed version of the Rugby Championship is against the All Blacks in Auckland on July 15), before the Boks return to South Africa for the closing match of the competition against Argentina in Johannesburg (July 29).
The Springboks will play three Rugby World Cup warm-up matches: against Argentina in Buenos Aires (August 5), Wales in Cardiff (August 19) and New Zealand in London (August 25).
They will then make their way to France for the international extravaganza where they face Scotland in Marseille (September 10), Romania in Bordeaux (September 17), Ireland in Paris (September 23) and Tonga in Marseille (October 1) during the pool stages.
Players invited to Springbok camps (in alphabetical order):
Lukhanyo Am (Sharks), Kurt-Lee Arendse (Bulls), Pieter-Steph du Toit (Toyota Verblitz), Thomas du Toit, Eben Etzebeth, Jaden Hendrikse, Siya Kolisi (all Sharks), Willie le Roux (Toyota Verblitz), Makazole Mapimpi, Bongi Mbonambi (both Sharks), Canan Moodie (Bulls), Ox Nche (Sharks), Kwagga Smith (Shizuoka Blue Revs), Marco van Staden (Bulls), Grant Williams (Sharks).
Springbok 2023 fixtures:
Rugby Championship:
Saturday, 8 July – Springboks v Australia (Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria)
Saturday, 15 July – Springboks v New Zealand (Mount Smart Stadium, Auckland)
Saturday, 29 July – Springboks v Argentina (Emirates Airline Park, Johannesburg)
RWC warm-up fixtures:
Saturday, 5 August – Springboks v Argentina (Velez Sarsfield, Buenos Aires)
Saturday, 19 August – Springboks v Wales (Principality Stadium, Cardiff)
Friday, 25 August – Springboks v New Zealand (Twickenham, London)
RWC fixtures:
Sunday, 10 September – Springboks v Scotland (Stade Marseille, Marseille)
Sunday, 17 September – Springboks v Romania (Stade de Bordeaux, Bordeaux)
Saturday, 23 September – Springboks v Ireland (Stade de France, Paris)
Sunday, 1 October – Springboks v Tonga (Stade Marseille, Marseille)
Weekend of 14/15 October – Quarter-finals
Weekend of 21/22 October – Semi-finals