‘Playing for Boks against All Blacks at Ellis Park my rugby highlight,’ says Elrigh Louw

Springbok loose forward Elrigh Louw is slowly establishing himself in the Bok setup, and he believes that they are building something special as they prepare to face the All Blacks for the second time in the Rugby Championship at the Cape Town Stadium on Saturday.

It has been a superb comeback from Louw, after it seemed like Evan Roos had moved ahead of him on the national team’s loose forward pecking order, when Roos started two of the Boks’ opening four Tests of the season.

However, some average form from Roos, followed by him deciding to have surgery on a recurring injury problem, kept the Bok door ajar and Louw has stormed through it and taken his chance with both hands.

Bok starts

With Jasper Wiese still suspended Louw started both Bok games Down Under at eighthman, and although Wiese returned to face the All Blacks, Louw retained his spot in the match 23, ahead of Marco van Staden, indicating that the Bok management are happy with what they have seen from him.

Louw said that the competition in the Bok squad, and particularly in the loose forward department, was great, and that he was really inspired by utility forward Pieter-Steph du Toit, who played in three different positions over the past weekend.

“The competition in the squad is healthy and I really believe we are building something special. I enjoy Jasper and the way he plays,” said Louw earlier this week.

“A player like Pieter-Steph du Toit is great. Just the way he handles himself, how he just accepts to play any position on the field. It’s not a big issue for him to play at No 4, 5 or 7. It’s a great example for us youngsters. He never turns his nose up at working for the team on the day.”

Bomb squad

Playing against the All Blacks at Ellis Park over the past weekend, coming on as part of the Boks’ famed ‘Bomb Squad’ and helping them storm back to take the win, was a dream come true for Louw, who is also aware that they will face a different atmosphere in the second game in Cape Town.

“Personally, it was a massive dream come true to face New Zealand and also to do so at Ellis Park. At this stage it has to rank as my biggest rugby highlight, and especially the way we came back from behind to get the win,” said the Bulls man.

“We were prepared to play for the full 80 minutes, and every player on the bench delivered a good effort, so I don’t think it was a case of the All Blacks being tired, it was rather a matter of us playing until the final whistle, and I’m happy that the guys went all the way.

“Cape Town is renowned for their support for the All Blacks, but the people’s support for us also means a lot, so I don’t think it will be a big factor in our motivation for the match and how we perform.”