Coaches shake up line-ups as Junior Springboks face Australia U20s

The Junior Springboks and Australia Under-20 team will be hardly recognisable from the sides that opened their Rugby Championship Under-20 campaign at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Gqeberha, with both coaches ringing the changes for Tuesday's match. 

Junior Springbok coach Kevin Foote has made several rotational changes to his starting line-up and included four players who played for the SA U20 side last year.

The SA U20s managed to beat Argentina 36-25 in the opening round on Thursday, having trailed at half-time. Australia forced a late draw against New Zealand, scoring the equallising try after the hooter had sounded

Foote has handed starts to JC Mars, Wandile Mlaba, Batho Hlekani and Herman Lubbe, all of whom played for the Junior Boks last year. Scrumhalf Hashim Pead, the scorer of two tries against Los Pumitas, is rested.

The SA U20 coach said it is important to keep their momentum going, manage the load of the players while also building squad depth by giving the players exposure to international rugby.

“We play three internationals against quality teams in just 11 days, and with the short turnaround time between matches, we must be smart with our player load management," Foote said.

“We have good squad depth and it’s important for the players to get a taste of international rugby, while we also want to build on our performance against Argentina, knowing that Australia will pose a huge challenge for us.”

Australia U20s coach Chris Whitaker made eight changes to the starting side that drew with New Zealand U20s as both injury cover and to add more bulk, opting for a new-look backline.

"There are a couple of forced changes but we've also picked a bit of size up front, two second rowers on the bench," he told Rugby.com.au.

"We've picked a five-eighth (flyhalf) with a big kicking game. There's some tactical changes, but it's also about giving some guys some opportunities.

"The Boks, they're a big pack, very physical. We need to take our opportunities, be really solid around the contact area, be really accurate, and take our opportunities when they come."

In the Junior Bok front-row, Simphiwe Ngobese and Lubbe will pack down as props on either side of hooker Juandre Schoeman. Riley Norton is retained at lock and will captain the team again, partnering Morne Venter.

The loose forward combination sees Xola Nyali coming onto the side of the scrum at flanker. He teams up with Hlekani, who made a strong impact off the bench in the second half against the Pumitas, while Mlaba is retained at No 8, to complete the loose trio.

Among the backs there is a new halfback pairing consisting of scrumhalf Ceano Everson and flyhalf Vusi Moyo, while the midfield comprises of Dominic Malgas and Scott Nel. Cheswill Jooste will start again at right wing, and he will be joined in the back three by Siya Ndlozi (left wing) and Mars (fullback).

Foote said he is happy with the balance of the squad.

“It’s a nice match 23 with lots of exciting players and speed amongst the backs, complemented by a big and physical forward pack, and we are looking forward to the game,” said Foote.

“We see Australia as a massive threat with their ball movement and how they play with width, and we expect they will have some special structured set pieces with line-outs and scrums.

“I know Chris Whitaker from our time together in Vodacom Super Rugby, and he is an exciting, attacking coach. We know we will have to be on top of our game regarding their threats.”

The match kicks off at 4.10pm and will be broadcast live on SuperSport. It will follow the 2pm match between Argentina and New Zealand.

The Junior Springbok starting XV: 15 Simphiwe Ngobese 14 Juandre Schoeman 13 Herman Lubbe 12 Riley Norton (capt) 11 Morne Venter 10 Xola Nyali 9 Batho Hlekani 8 Wandile Mlaba 7 Ceano Everson 6 Vusi Moyo 5 Siya Ndlozi 4 Dominic Malgas 3 Scott Nel 2 Cheswill Jooste 1 JC Mars; Replacements: HB Odendaal, Oliver Reid, Jean Erasmus, Neil Hansen, Thando Biyela, Elrich Visser, Kyle Smith, Gino Cupido.