Williams out of Bok tour to Argentina, Van den Berg called up

The Springboks have suffered another big injury blow ahead of their mini tour to Argentina for next Saturday’s Rugby Championship Test against the Pumas in Santiago.

Hot on the heels of the news prop Steven Kitshoff has been ruled out of rugby for several weeks because of a neck injury, comes the announcement that scrumhalf Grant Williams is also out of action and will miss the tour to Argentina.

Lions scrumhalf Morne van den Berg, who was due to play in the Currie Cup semi-final against the Cheetahs on Saturday, will now take Williams’ place in the Bok team.

The world champions are just three log points away from winning the competition title. A win next Saturday would give them the Rugby Championship trophy with a game in hand — against the same opposition in Mbombela on September 28.

Williams blow

Besides Kitshoff and now Williams, other players on the Bok injured list are Damian Willemse, Lood de Jager, Jean Kleyn, RG Snyman, Franco Mostert and Faf de Klerk.

Williams, who started at scrumhalf for the Boks against the All Blacks in Cape Town last weekend, was ruled out of the tour due to a knock to the arm. It is not known for how long he will be sidelined.

Van den Berg – who joined the squad in Stellenbosch on Thursday afternoon — made his debut against Portugal in Bloemfontein and earned his first start in the green and gold against Australia in Perth last month.

“It’s always sad to lose a player to injury, and we feel for Grant who has been waiting patiently for his chance to start this season, which he finally achieved last week,” said Bok coach Rassie Erasmus.

“But we have great squad depth, and if one player is injured it opens the door for another player to make a statement. Morne has only played two Tests so far, and facing Argentina at home is a completely different challenge to what he has faced so far, as is the case with many of the younger players in the touring squad.

“If he receives the opportunity to play, it will be a great way for the coaches to see how he handles with that type of pressure, and it would also be a stern test for him personally.”

The Boks returned to the training field on Thursday after a few days off following the back-to-back Tests against the All Blacks and immediately sprang into action with a gym session and two field training sessions. The squad will depart for Argentina on Saturday.