Bok team vs Georgia

Springbok team to face Georgia at Loftus Versfeld:

Replacements 

1. Malcolm Marx (Kubota Spears) – 33 caps, 25 pts (5t)
2. Steven Kitshoff (DHL Stormers – 47 caps, 5 pts (1t)
3. Frans Malherbe (DHL Stormers – 38 caps, 5 pts (1t)
4. Marvin Orie (DHL Stormers) – 3 caps, 0 pts
5. Jasper Wiese (Leicester Tigers) – uncapped
6. Herschel Jantjies (DHL Stormers) – 10 caps, 20 pts (4t)
7. Elton Jantjies (Pau) – 37 caps, 281 pts (2t, 62c, 49p)
8. Damian Willemse (DHL Stormers) – 6 caps, 5 pts (1t)

Interesting selection with about 4 starters on the bench. 

No De Allende, probably still scaring kids with his burns as RG Snymand

Kwagga at 8, Frans at 12, not sure how he will go

Jessie Kriel at 13, no Am

Bloody Marvin Orie in  the team again

Specman is a big surprise, even just being in the squad - let alone starting. He is a good player, but unwanted by the Bulls. His Defence seemed a bit average, but his attacking game is good. 

Fassi on the wing to debut alongside Willie Leroux seems like a good start to test rugby. 

How many chances must Kwagga get, he is not a test-level player. Too small, given he makes a minimal contribution as a fetcher. Unless Rassie has one last trick up his sleeve the Qagga experiment will continue to fail. 

The front row is a surprise, at least as a starting unit.
The bench is much more experienced, but this could also be a good opportunity to blood the next in line. 

Corrie is the only quota in the squad. 

Cobus Reinach is another surprise, given he has usually been the third choice. 
Hershell Jantjies at scrumhalf is on the bench, while Elton Jantjies is ahead of Morne Steyn. 

Wasn't Hershell Jantjies one of the players who recently got Covid? How can he be available in the team? Surely, he has to test negative first. 

Bit of a strange team if you ask me. Doesn't inspire me with a lot of confidence but let's see how they go and who gets picked for the second Georgia test.

Go Bokke!

We will revert back to our WC team for the Lions….but there are lots of agendas and some odd players still in the mix.

Will Vermuelen, Lood and Snyman be fit? 

We might have to do without Vermeulen, which will expose a lot of myths. He has made his loosie compadres look much better than they really are.

I would have liked to see Jasper Wiese at 8 , at least he replaces what we lose in Vermeulen, not 100% but he is a bloody hard runner. 

I think that if you look at the team, some players  needs game time. Like Pollard, been out all season, so he will probably play in both test against Georgia. 

Etzebeth has been out for a while. 

I'm also expecting to see a different team next week with more fringe players getting a crack. Pity we don't have Dan Du Preez on the bench either, but wonder if the English based players  are in quarantine given that they only finished 2 weeks ago

Bongi warns Boks not to be complacent against physical Georgia...they have good forwards and scrum very low.

The danger is that Georgia will give it their best shot and are highly motivated whilst the Boks are using this for preparation and trial and might not take them too seriously. Rugby can yield strange results sometimes through not taking opposition too seriously...

Rugby-Boks won't let Lions distract from physical Georgia tests | Reuters

Hmm, I think the new players have a lot to prove. 

We probably see some other players next week with the core of Etzebeth, Kriel, Pollard remaining. 

But then there is also the Provincial games for  local players as well as SA A game for the players in the squad to prove themselves. 

Going wide without forward ascendency will lead to stodgy phase play and more shallow up and unders. The current Bok model cannot play off its backline for momentum without freely given space. More specifically, passive defending. Even then, the Boks become quite predictable with the scripted sequences. 

30/06_2021 @ 12.31

The LELOS of GEORGIA

??

Tour of South Africa  |  First Test  |  – Springboks

Fri 02/07_2021  |  Pretoria, Loftus Versfeld  |  21.00 GEO = 17.00 UTC

#

Player

Born

Club

Debut

Caps

Career Stats

Backs

15

Davit NINIASHVILI

2002

Lyon [FRA]

2020

6

4t

14

Akaki TABUTSADZE

1997

Lelo Saracens

2020

12

11t

13

Giorgi KVESELADZE

1997

Gloucester [ENG]

2017

34

5t sb

12

Merab SHARIKADZE ©

1993

_ [clubless]

2012

77

29© 12t

11

Demur TAPLADZE

2000

Lelo Saracens

2020

9

t

10

Tedo ABZHANDADZE

1999

Brive [FRA]

2018

25

2t s 38c 23p [162 pt]

9

Vasil LOBZHANIDZE

1996

Brive [FRA]

2015

58

10t

Forwards

1

Guram GOGICHASHVILI

1998

Racing [FRA]

2018

22

2t

2

Jaba BREGVADZE

1987

Agen [FRA]

2008

66

1© 5t 5sb

3

Giorgi MELIKIDZE

1996

Stade Français [FRA]

2016

28

3t

4

Davit GIGAURI

1994

Tarbes [FRA]

2019

t

5

Kote MIKAUTADZE

Bayonne [FRA]

67

2t 3sb

6

Giorgi TSUTSKIRIDZE

Aurillac [FRA]

2017

3t 2sb

7

Beka SAGHINADZE

1998

Lyon [FRA]

2019

21

3t sb

8

Tornike JALAGHONIA

1998

Biarritz [FRA]

2020

9

2t s

Reserves

22

Giorgi BABUNASHVILI

1995

Aia Kutaisi

2021

3

3c d [9 pt]

21

Gela APRASIDZE

1998

Montpellier [FRA]

2017

34

2t 7c [24 pt] sb

16

Giorgi TCHQOIDZE

1991

Penza [RUS]

2017

16

t

17

Nika KHATIASHVILI

1992

Houston [USA]

2015

sb

18

Luka JAPARIDZE

1998

Brive [FRA]

.

0

.

19

Nodar TCHEISHVILI

1990

Aia Kutaisi

2016

31

.

20

Giorgi JAVAKHIA

1996

Aurillac [FRA]

2019

6

t

23

Ilia SPANDERASHVILI

1997

Penza [RUS]

2021

1

sb

© = as captain;  s = seven-pointer [7pt penalty try]

Watch out for no 13, Giorgi Kveseladze a class centre who plays for Gloucester.

For those who may not be able to get TV coverage you can stream the match on this link, it's in Georgian so obviously turn the sound off but at least you can watch in silence.

https://www.myvideo.ge/tv/rtv

Some of the Georgian names are so long and difficult to pronounce...by the time English commentators have finished pronouncing them, the phases would have changed...my wife's sense of humour...she added the game will be over....LOL