Back with the Boks, Coetzee looks to seize the moment against Wales

Springbok loose forward Marcell Coetzee is thrilled to be back with the national team and is champing at the bit to get stuck into Wales in the second Test at the Free State stadium in Bloemfontein on Saturday.

Coetzee last played for the Springboks in 2019 against Argentina, where he was injured and subsequently ruled out of contention for selection to the Boks’ World Cup squad.

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He has been in top club form over the past few seasons and was finally rewarded by being included in the national squad for the international season and admitted that being back in the team feels similar to when he first made his debut.

“It does feel more-or-less because it’s been a while. I played my last Test in 2019 and after that you just realise what you have when you come back to the system. To represent your country is a great honour, so just to be back in the system is amazing,” said Coetzee.

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“This is now about seizing the moment, creating your opportunities and just taking it. You have to take it moment for moment, play for play and that’s how the games going to present itself,” Coetzee added.

“There are going to be tough times, there will be times when you have to grind in deep, but you just have to take it as it comes.”

Exciting loose trio

Coetzee will feature in an exciting loose trio against Wales, with Pieter-Steph du Toit and Evan Roos rounding out the back three, and is eager to build a strong partnership with them in the match.

“If you take Pieter-Steph he was world player of the year (in 2019) so he brings a massive amount of experience to the loose trio. Evan (Roos) had an exceptional season for the Stormers, so it’s good for him to be rewarded,” said Coetzee.

“The biggest challenge now for us as a loose trio is to build that synergy and cohesion. These are men that you want next to you and we are looking forward to the opportunity this weekend.”

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The complete overhaul of the match-23 for the second Test also didn’t come as a surprise to Coetzee. He admitted the coaches had hinted at the plan before the first Test.

“To get the opportunity and backing from the coaches is a great honour. We sort of knew what the plan was, but we needed to see how it went over the weekend,” explained Coetzee.

“The coaches then still backed the plan and that gives us players a lot of confidence, knowing we have their backing going into this game.”