Stormers players Manie Libbok, Sacha Mngomezulu and Evan Roos have been added to the Springboks’ training squad as they prepare for the end-of-tour tour.
The trio will link up with the training camp in Stellenbosch once they return from Wales after their United Rugby Championship tour which concluded on Saturday.
However, their arrivals come alongside the news that Bulls fly-half Johan Goosen and back-row Elrigh Louw will no longer feature at South Africa‘s training camp.
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Goosen and Louw drop out
Goosen is in the return to training stages after suffering concussion, while Louw picked up an ankle injury during the URC success against Benetton on Friday.
Libbok, Mngomezulu and Roos will have a few days off before returning to Stormers‘ training on Wednesday, which opened the door to add them to the camp.
Jacques Nienaber and Rassie Erasmus will name Springbok and SA ‘A’ squads on Friday for the year-end tour consisting of four Tests and two midweek games.
The Boks will take on Ireland in Dublin (November 5), France in Marseille (November 12), Italy in Genoa (November 19) and England in London (November 26).
Meanwhile, the SA ‘A’ side, coached by Mzwandile Stick, will face off with Munster on Thursday, November 10, and Bristol Bears one week later on November 17.
With a large group of players set to be named for the two squads next week, director of rugby Erasmus revealed it made sense to give the three players an opportunity to train with the group before they return to the Stormers to prepare for their United Rugby Championship clash against the Lions on Saturday.
“We are naming a group of 54 players next week for the Springbok and SA ‘A’ squads so it made sense for us to us to invite these players, especially since they will be in Cape Town anyway and have time off,” said Erasmus.
“Evan is a capped Springbok, while Manie and Sacha will be exposed to the national set-up for the first time, and although it is a short camp, this will be an invaluable experience for them. We are excited to see how they slot into the system and what they can do on the field.”
Recovering from concussion
Erasmus explained the move to exclude Goosen from the training squad, saying: “Johan is recovering from concussion, and given the strict return to play protocols, he will not be able to participate fully in this camp, hence we decided it would be best for him to remain at the Vodacom Bulls this week and start preparing for their Vodacom URC game on Sunday.
“Fortunately, he attended our alignment camp earlier in the year and he knows our structures and systems well.
“It’s a pity that Elrigh is injured but he has been with us for a while and is very familiar with our structures, and we’ll keep an eye on the extent of his injury, although it doesn’t appear that he will be available for selection.”
The squad will join up at the Stellenbosch Academy of Sport on Sunday, with the three-day camp running until Wednesday.