Following the announcement of Rassie Erasmus’ final Springboks team of the 2025 Rugby Championship, here are our five takeaways from the matchday 23 to face Argentina at Twickenham.
The top line
Just last week, we noted how rare it is that Erasmus sticks to largely the same matchday 23 for consecutive weeks, and he has just gone and done it again.
For the round five fixture, his hand was forced by the brilliance of the brave squad selection that put the All Blacks to the sword and with the team backing up that performance against Argentina in Durban, the same is true this week.
The Bok boss has named an identical starting XV to the one he picked seven days ago, but technically he has made one change with Ox Nche again selected at loosehead prop after a late withdrawal.
He replaces Boan Venter, who put in a tidy performance, with Malcolm Marx and Thomas du Toit completing the front-row. Eben Etzebeth and the ever-impressive Ruan Nortje are the starting locks, while Siya Kolisi skippers the team in a back-row that features Pieter-Steph du Toit and Jasper Wiese.
After a glorious performance, scoring more points in a Test match than any other Springbok before him, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu is entrusted with the number 10 jumper and will marshal the team around the park with experienced scrum-half Cobus Reinach. Damian de Allende and Canan Moodie combine in the centres with Ethan Hooker, Cheslin Kolbe and Damian Willemse retained as the starting outside backs.
While Erasmus has stuck to the winning formula in the starting XV, he has tweaked his replacements, welcoming back Bongi Mbonambi as cover at hooker, where he will look to make an impact in the front-row alongside Jan-Hendrik Wessels and Wilco Louw. RG Snyman and Kwagga Smith are the two other forward replacements in the five-three split, with the other alternations seeing Grant Williams replace try-scorer in Durban, Morne van den Berg and centre Jesse Kriel replacing Andre Esterhuizen. Manie Libbok completes the matchday squad as the back-up fly-half.
Building combinational depth
In the aftermath of the Springboks’ comprehensive victory over Los Pumas, Erasmus spoke of the squad now building a combinational depth of sorts, with multiple players filling multiple positions with different teammates around them.
This has been particularly evident in the backline with the drastic changes made between the first and second Test against the All Blacks, with the starting backs since the Wellington demolition job only changing because of injuries.
The continuity in selection gives those players just another opportunity to build on those combinations against quality opposition, this time with the intensified pressure on winning or losing the Rugby Championship title.
Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Willemse have proven at club level that their combination as a 10 and 15 works brilliantly, and did so in Durban too. Twickenham is just another test for them, and other combinations like De Allende-Moodie, Nortje-Etzebeth and so on.
Healthy mix
Erasmus has been heralded of late for backing the youthful Springboks stars, but it’s worth highlighting that he has thrown them into the mix with experienced players in crucial positions.
Reinach, De Allende, Kolbe and even Willemse provide the ‘been there, done that’ feel to the backline that gives a bit of a safety net for the likes of Hooker, Moodie and Feinberg-Mngomezulu. The experienced backs on the bench also allow the starters to go out and express themselves with the knowledge that if it’s just not their day, there are more than capable internationals raring to go.
The backs are also armed with almost a full pack of Rugby World Cup winners, with Nortje being the only exception, again, Erasmus surrounding the inexperienced with proven world beaters.
The healthy mix in the matchday 23 is not exclusive to the experience but the style of play too. Reinach brings a calm head at scrum-half as De Allende does in the centres. The midfielder also offers a battering ram carrier among the pace and flair in the backline, while the same is true for Hooker, too.
Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Willemse add tactical kicking brilliance with their attacking excellence, and in the pack, the brutality, work-rate and athleticism are paired with the softer skills and pace from the likes of Pieter-Steph du Toit, Nche, Kolisi and so on.
Pecking order movement
The changing of the guard with the next generation taking over from the double Rugby World Cup winners was never going to be drastic, but it is certainly starting to gradually happen, with the usual pecking order being shaken up.
Previously, one could always tell when the Boks were going full hog into a Test match with Handre Pollard stationed at fly-half, Etzebeth in the pack and the centre pairing of De Allende and Kriel in the backs, but that’s not really the case anymore.
The first of the big changes of the guard happened at the 2023 World Cup, with Willemse usurping Willie le Roux, who has recently been released from the squad, as the first-choice full-back, but more and more of those subtle changes are occurring with each passing game.
Sure, injuries have played their part with Thomas du Toit and Wilco Louw getting real cracks at tighthead while Frans Malherbe and Trevor Nyakane are sidelined, but for the most part, they have taken those opportunities that they have certainly earned. The same is true for Nortje, who was on the fringe of selection last year but is now a regular starter even when the likes of Franco Mostert and Snyman have been available.
Erasmus won’t completely discard the players who have gone back-to-back with the Springboks, but they may need to get used to less involvement in the bigger matches. Particularly if they do not produce performances worthy of the Green and Gold jersey. Returning hooker Mbonambi will know that he is due a big shift after blowing cold in July and against Australia in the Rugby Championship, and that is not limited to just him.
The Bok head coach insists that there is no A or B team, but considering the injury list, one has to feel that if this weekend’s match were a Rugby World Cup Final, this would be the team, on form, he’d be picking or one that is incredibly close to it.
Final litmus Test for mouth-watering November
“This match is a Final for us, and we know how dangerous Argentina can be, so we selected combinations we feel will be best suited for this game,” said Erasmus after naming his squad. “There are minimal personnel changes, with the bulk of the team having done the job for us last week against the Pumas in Durban and our other Castle Lager Rugby Championship matches.
“Ox and Grant could have played last week if we really needed them, but Boan and Morne did really well, while Jesse was rotated in the last two matches and is raring to go. The same applies to Bongi, who last played against Australia, and who is excited for this opportunity. Their experience, combined with the younger players in the team, makes this an exciting squad, which is exactly what we need in a match that will essentially be the Castle Lager Rugby Championship decider.”
Heading into 2025, there were three fixtures that most Springboks fans would have circled on the calendar: the clash at Eden Park against the All Blacks and then the meetings against Ireland and France in Dublin and Paris, respectively.
The first of those ended in disappointment, but this weekend’s game provides a final litmus for the latter pair. Argentina have proved to be a formidable opponent this year, downing the British and Irish Lions, All Blacks and Wallabies and should not be taken lightly despite falling out of contention for the Rugby Championship title.
For the Boks, the pressure will be on them to retain the trophy for the first time since Los Pumas joined the competition, creating a unique pressure cooker clash for Erasmus and co.
It’s been teed up well for the young players in Erasmus’ squad with essentially three ‘knockout matches’ against the All Blacks in New Zealand, Argentina in Durban and now Los Pumas away from home.
Rise to the occasion again, and a very different Springboks team, especially backline, from the ones that faced France and Ireland at the 2023 World Cup could feature in November, which may be the starkest sign of the next generation taking over.