Joseph Dweba insists his Springbok dream is still very much alive, despite an extended spell away from Rassie Erasmus\u2019 Test squad.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The powerhouse hooker featured six times in the Green and Gold jersey between 2021 and 2023, but has not added to his tally since, while the Springboks have tightened their grip on the Test game courtesy of another Rugby World Cup victory alongside successive Rugby Championship titles.<\/p>\n
\u2018The moment you perform on the field, you\u2019ll get a shot\u2019<\/p>\n
Dweba faces the unenviable task of competing with some of the best hookers in the world for a spot in the Boks\u2019<\/a>\u00a0squad, with the likes of reigning World Rugby Player of the Year Malcolm Marx, double World Cup-winner Bongi Mbonambi and Johan Grobbelaar all featuring in recent Tests, but he has not yet given up on his hopes of a recall.<\/p>\n \u201c100%, it\u2019s still a desire to play for them,\u201d Dweba said.<\/p>\n \u201cAs a player, you just need to perform. The moment you perform on the field, you\u2019ll get a shot.<\/p>\n Damian Willemse is \u2018wasted\u2019 on the wing as Schalk Burger issues Glasgow Warriors warning<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m focusing on performing for the club, and if we do well, then the rest will take care of itself.\u201d<\/p>\n His words also follow those of Chiefs director of rugby Rob Baxter, who previously aired his belief that Dweba, who joined Exeter this off-season from the Stormers, could work his way back into Test contention in a similar way to that of Nic White and Dean Mumm during their stints at Sandy Park.<\/p>\n \u201cNic\u2019s still playing (for Australia) now, he left us four years ago,\u201d Baxter told BBC Sport<\/a> back in September.<\/p>\n \u201cWe signed him when he wasn\u2019t in any international recognition at all, played two seasons with us and has never stopped playing for Australia since.<\/p>\n \u201cDean Mumm was the same. He dropped out of international recognition, had an OK season with the Waratahs, came back and was inspirational for us to the degree that Australia wanted him back for a World Cup.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t see Joseph being any different in his career. I think there\u2019s a lot left in him.<\/p>\n \u201cHe thinks there\u2019s a lot left in him, and he\u2019s training and playing like there\u2019s a lot left there.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019d like to think you\u2019ll see a really revived Joseph Dweba this season. I\u2019d like to think you\u2019d see him as a revived player in a revived Exeter Chiefs<\/a> team.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018I\u2019ve grown as a player\u2019<\/p>\n And that is certainly the case.<\/p>\n