Rassie Erasmus is thrilled about Embrose Papier's return to the Springboks, anticipating a fruitful synergy with Handré Pollard in their upcoming match at Loftus Versfeld. Papier, who last played for the Boks in 2018 under Erasmus, comes off a stellar season with the Vodacom Bulls, earning the title of South Africa’s URC Player of the Season. This Saturday, he will join forces with his Bulls cohort Pollard at halfback in a revamped lineup against Scotland, featuring ten new starters from the team that recently triumphed over England in Johannesburg.
On Monday in Pretoria, Papier shared his pre-game feelings, stating, "There’s always nerves before a Test match but I’m super excited for the opportunity and yeah, we are just looking forward to the game." At 29, this match marks his first start for the Springboks in seven years.
"Firstly, I thought he played really well this season,"
Erasmus remarked when discussing why Papier was brought back after such a lengthy hiatus. He acknowledged the stiff competition within the team, citing established players like Faf de Klerk and Cobus Reinach."But I think none of us can look past the fact with how well Embrose played this year,"
he continued, noting that Papier's form and the recent injuries and dips in form among other players carved out this opportunity.Erasmus is confident that the existing chemistry between Papier and Pollard will play to their advantage, especially at a venue both are familiar with. The strong representation from the Bulls is evident not just in the backline with Papier, Pollard, and Canan Moodie, but also in the pack where Cobus Wiese and Ruan Nortjé will operate the second row, flanked by Wilco Louw and Johan Grobbelaar.
The coach also mentioned the strategic selection of the squad, focusing on fitness and performance potential rather than just sticking to familiar combinations. With an average of 25 caps per player and several having fewer than ten, Erasmus acknowledged, "Our average caps I think must be 25 caps, which is not a lot. There’s 11, 12 guys who’ve got less than 10 caps. We will definitely go into this match with a much less experienced team compared to Scotland, so this will be a nice test for a lot of these guys."
The match promises to be a significant test for the new-look Springboks as they face a more seasoned Scottish team, blending seasoned strategies with fresh talent.