Loose forward Sibabalwe Mahashe has been a revelation for the Lions this season and as reward he was included in the first Springbok squad of the 2026 season by head coach Rassie Erasmus.
The Springboks’ extended squad shows that the national team already has one eye on life beyond the 2027 Rugby World Cup, with the inclusion of several key youngsters in the first squad of the year.
While head coach Rassie Erasmus had to adjust his squad for the matches against the Barbarians and Zimbabwe in two weeks’ time due to the Bulls playing in the United Rugby Championship (URC) final that weekend, a number of promising players have still earned valuable opportunities.
In the absence of some injured senior players, several rising stars are in the squad and should get game time either for the Boks or the SA ‘A’ team in Gqeberha, while other hopefuls unfortunately missed out on selection. Erasmus included 21 uncapped players alongside a host of senior World Cup winners in the expanded group.
The inclusion of various Junior Springboks, who must still take part in the World Rugby U20 Championship, shows that the Bok coaches are not afraid to expose them to what will be expected of them should they feature in either the Barbarians match or the SA ‘A’ clash.
