Rassie set to pick best Boks for tour opener against Scots

The Springboks are likely to front up in their first game of their end-of-year-tour against Scotland in Edinburgh this coming Sunday with close to their strongest possible lineup.

Bok coach Rassie Erasmus selected 35-players for the tour and as he did during the mod-year Tests and Rugby Championship he will probably want to give every player game time during their three matches.

However, Erasmus will also be targeting a clean sweep of the tour and to do that he will need to make sure not to underestimate any of the teams.

The Springboks‘ toughest game of the tour will arguably be their clash against England at Twickenham, on their second weekend (16 November), and they will undoubtedly back their strongest team for that game.

So, the Scotland match will be important to get the team fully up to speed and build momentum so that they are at their best when they take on England.

But they will first need to get a positive result against the Scots who, despite dropping to seventh in the World Rugby rankings, are always a tough customer at home and this last weekend hammered Fiji 57-17.

Scottish confidence

The Boks will, however, be very confident themselves, having enjoyed a 13-year winning run over the Scots, with their last defeat against them coming in 2010 at Murrayfield.

Since then they have won eight straight games — four of them in Edinburgh, while their last meeting was a comfortable 18-3 win during the pool stage of last year’s World Cup.

Siya Kolisi will likely captain the side, while regulars Eben Etzebeth, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Ox Nche, Handre Pollard, Damian de Allende and Cheslin Kolbe should all start, while fullback, scrumhalf, lock and prop, are positions where some interesting decisions have to be made.

At the back, will Aphelele Fassi continue to hang on to the No 15 jersey or will Willie le Roux be backed as he approaches the 100-Test cap mark? And will Jaden Hendrikse shade Cobus Reinach and Grant Williams in the battle to be the scrumhalf?

Up front, will fit-again Franco Mostert slot straight back in at lock, or might RG Snyman get a run, or will Ruan Nortje continue in his role as lineout caller? And, at tighthead, with Frans Malherbe out of the tour, who between Thomas du Toit, Vincent Koch and Wilco Louw will be handed the No 3 jumper?  

The Boks will probably play very similar sides in their first two games, before their back-up players are unleashed in their final game against Wales.

Possible Springbok starting XV

Aphelele Fassi, Cheslin Kolbe, Jesse Kriel, Damian de Allende, Kurt-Lee Arendse, Handre Pollard, Jaden Hendrikse, Jasper Wiese, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Siya Kolisi, Franco Mostert, Eben Etzebeth, Thomas du Toit, Bongi Mbonambi, Ox Nche