Springbok locks Eben Etzebeth, right, and Lood de Jager are set to play their first Test since November next week against Argentina.
Key Springboks captain Siya Kolisi, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Lood de Jager and Eben Etzebeth will make a welcome return from injury when national coach Rassie Erasmus and his charges travel to Argentina on Saturday for their one-off Test against Los Pumas in Buenos Aires.
The coach named a 26-man squad for the tour, which features several players returning from injury and others who have had a lighter workload over the past few weeks. The squad will travel to South America in two groups on Saturday.
Several players who have been involved in the team’s opening four matches of the season — such as Cheslin Kolbe, Damian Willemse, Jesse Kriel, and Ruan Nortje — will reassemble at the team’s training base in Johannesburg on Sunday to begin their preparations for the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry (RGR) Tour against New Zealand.
"We tried to get the balance right between giving some guys who are returning from injury and who have not had too much game time in our last four matches a valuable run against Argentina, whilst at the same time managing the players who have played a lot of rugby this year," said Erasmus.
