The Springboks wrapped up their Nations Championship training camp in Johannesburg on Thursday, and Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus was satisfied that the necessary building blocks were in place as the squad prepares to switch into full Test mode before next week’s competition opener against England at Ellis Park.
Erasmus’ charges travelled from Gqeberha to Johannesburg last Sunday and had a productive training week, which wrapped up on Thursday afternoon. The players will spend the weekend with their families and reassemble at their training base in Johannesburg on Sunday to begin their official Test-week preparations.
The Test against England will kick off at 17h40 on Saturday, 4 July, and will be broadcast live on SuperSport.
“We had a productive training week, which afforded us the opportunity to work on the learnings we took from our matches against the Barbarians and Zimbabwe, so it was certainly a valuable week for the team,” said Erasmus.
“England are a quality outfit, and they will present a completely different challenge to that which we faced against the Barbarians, as they are a settled squad and come off a Six Nations campaign, but we are pleased that we had the opportunity to give our players invaluable game time before the Nations Championship begins.
“The team is aligned on the expectations and standards going into the competition, and we are pleased with the hard work they put in this week, so we are ready to get the international season into full swing next week.”
The England match will be followed by clashes against Scotland at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday, 11 July, and Wales at Hollywoodbets Kings Park in Durban on 18 July.
K-9
When it was first mentioned in 1624, the cricket bat was not a bat but merely a stick, similar to the one used in hockey. In the 1770s after changes in the game’s laws, a swell was designed at the bottom. It was, however, very heavy. The oldest preserved cricket bat was made in 1729 and is kept in Oval’s Sandham Room in London.
Snow Pharaoh
Sport Trivia: What sport would you associate Brian Mitchell with? Answer: Boxing – Brian Mitchell won the WBA junior lightweight title in 1986, and ended up defending it successfully 12 times which in itself was a world record. He retired undefeated in 1991 with 46 wins, one loss, and two draws.