OPINION: The Boks are a mine full of rugby gems

Every provincial or franchise rugby coach will tell you that to win a major competition you need a few Test players in your ranks: men who’ve been there and down that, guys with experience of playing at the highest level.

Well, the same can be said of a country’s Test team … to be number one in the game and to be a World Cup-winning team you need world class players in your set-up.

And that’s exactly why the Springboks are two-time world champions and currently the best team on the planet – they have a few world class players who in their respective positions are the best in the game.

For me, the following Bok players are currently the best in the business: Ox Nche, Eben Etzebeth, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Damian de Allende, Jesse Kriel and Cheslin Kolbe.

Heck, right now you could even include Aphelele Fassi in this list because he’s been some revelation since returning to the Bok set-up this year.

Best in the game

Of course, everyone has their own choices and thoughts and some might even say Malcolm Marx and Frans Malherbe should be in this grouping. It’s always fun seeing who fans and pundits pick as their best players.

Regarding the very best in the game right now? Well, the thing is the northern hemisphere teams haven’t been in action in the last two months for any players to be considered the best on recent form.

Some have recently stated Nche is the best player in the game right now, others have said it’s Kolbe, while Du Toit also has his fans.

France’s Antoine Dupont has regularly over the last few years been considered the best player on Earth and he’d certainly be right up there, but it’s always a subjective choice.

The good news for the Boks is they currently have some quality players they can pick from and there are several rising stars who’re going to be knocking on the “best door” in a few years’ time.

And how wonderful it is that these young men, the stars of the future, have world class players around them to guide them and give advice.