Just one week after a lopsided opening Test defeat to the All Blacks in Johannesburg, South Africa’s Springboks have made sweeping changes to their starting lineup for this Saturday’s highly anticipated rematch in Cape Town, dropping underperforming fly-half Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu to the reserves bench. Under new head coach Dave Rennie, a revitalized All Blacks side cruised to a comfortable 33-16 victory in the series opener, putting the defending world champions on the back foot early in the four-match series billed as “Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry”.
Feinberg-Mngomezulu, who struggled throughout the first 80 minutes, was credited with five possession turnovers and repeatedly found himself exposed in defensive gaps before being shifted to full-back in the second half. That underperformance opened the door for 32-year-old two-time Rugby World Cup winner Handre Pollard, who has been recalled to the starting fly-half position for the second Test.
In addition to the playmaker switch, two injury-forced changes have been made to the starting XV: injuries to Cheslin Kolbe and Grant Williams mean Ethan Hooker will start at wing, while Cobus Reinach takes over at scrum-half. There is still uncertainty surrounding the availability of captain Siya Kolisi, who is recovering from a hamstring injury and in line for a return to the back row. To cover for any possible setback in Kolisi’s recovery, Erasmus has named Paul de Villiers as a backup blindside flanker.
One of the most notable inclusions on the Springboks’ replacements list is 39-year-old Deon Fourie, who came off the bench to play 77 minutes in the Springboks’ 2023 Rugby World Cup final win over the All Blacks. If called into action this weekend, Fourie will earn his first international cap since that iconic tournament victory.
Reflecting on the opening Test, head coach Rassie Erasmus acknowledged the mixed performance from his side, saying that unforced errors at critical moments, not a lack of scoring opportunities, cost South Africa a positive result. “There were a handful of positives and negatives last week, but the main thing that let us down was that we created so many chances, but mistakes at crucial times cost us,” Erasmus said. “We’ll put in a lot of work this week to ensure that we are sharp in that regard this weekend because if we had used even some of those chances, the result could have been completely different.”
Across the All Blacks camp, the big story of the week is the imminent international return of star playmaker Richie Mo’unga, who has not featured for New Zealand in three years after signing with Japanese club side Toshiba Brave Lupus. With the 32-year-old now set to return to domestic rugby with the Crusaders and Canterbury, and an injury to Billy Proctor opening up a spot in the selection pool, Mo’unga is now in line for an immediate Test recall as the All Blacks look to close out the series with a 2-0 lead.
Mo’unga, who was the starting fly-half for New Zealand’s 2023 Rugby World Cup campaign and earned a spot in World Rugby’s 2023 Team of the Year, will make his first appearance in a black jersey this week, starting at 10 in a midweek tour match against the Johannesburg-based Lions provincial side. The playmaker says his desire to return to international rugby was sparked during an unexpected moment last year, when he watched a Six Nations match from a Japanese karaoke bar, and he has spent months mentally preparing for his comeback.
“I’m competitive; I want to be the best,” Mo’unga said. “I know that there’s a process to that, and at this point in time, the process looks a bit different around preparing someone else [All Blacks’ current first-choice fly-half Ruben Love] to be the best. I’m really competitive, but I’m also a team man. Whoever gets the role, gets the role, and if it’s not me, I’ll do anything I can to help them succeed. This game was always coming for me. There was always going to be a return. I wasn’t sure when it was, but mentally I’ve prepared for my return in the black jersey, and I’m ready.”
The high-stakes second Test between South Africa and New Zealand is set to kick off this Saturday in Cape Town, with the All Blacks targeting a stranglehold on the four-match series and the Springboks desperate to even the score on home soil.