Boks set for Brisbane bubble
IT is expected to be confirmed today that the Rugby Championship will be played out in Brisbane after Sanzaar concluded that the best way forward is to host the Springboks, All Blacks and Argentina in one biosecure bubble in Australia.
The New Zealand Herald and the Sydney Morning Herald both reported that a Sanzaar board meeting yesterday settled on Queensland for the remaining fixtures, after having debated the merits of South Africa and various venues in Europe.
The championship had been thrown into jeopardy when New Zealand last week unilaterally pulled out of a fixture against Australia scheduled for this weekend because of a Covid-19 outbreak in Auckland and called off their two home games against the Boks.
But the Kiwis have now reportedly agreed to travel, and the Boks and the Pumas will shortly fly out to Queensland. The latter two squads have been in limbo in Gqeberha after playing each other twice at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.
The Boks were initially due to play the Wallabies twice in Australia and then move on to New Zealand for the 100th clash between the two teams, in Dunedin, followed by a return match in Auckland. These matches will now take place in Brisbane.
Meanwhile, Sharks scrumhalf Grant Williams has been called up to replace his injured teammate Jaden Hendrikse, who suffered a leg fracture when he came on as a substitute in the Boks’ win over Argentina at the weekend.
Williams has been in hot form for the Sharks in the Currie Cup, and Bok coach Jaques Nienaber had no hesitation in calling up the 25-yearold.
Williams joins Faf de Klerk, Herschel Jantjies and Cobus Reinach as the scrumhalves in the squad.
De Klerk and Jantjies have both been on the injury list in the last two weeks, but are on track with their recovery from a leg strain and hip pointer niggle respectively, and will be available for selection for the Tests against Australia and New Zealand.
“It is sad to lose a player like Jaden, who was really beginning to find his feet in the system and starting to make his mark in Test rugby, but unfortunately injuries are part of the game,” said Nienaber.