Springboks scrumhalf Morne van den Berg makes a clearance kick during the third Test against the All Blacks. Van den Berg has been elevated to a starting role for the fourth Test.
There is a ruthlessness to Rassie Erasmus’ team selection for the final Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry Test against the All Blacks for Baltimore.
With a 2–1 series lead secured after a brutal arm-wrestle at the FNB Stadium in Soweto, the temptation might have been to ring the changes and add some freshness to the team.
Instead, Erasmus has chosen to go for the jugular. By making just a couple of tweaks to his starting XV for Saturday’s series decider against the All Blacks in Maryland, the Springbok head coach has sent an unmistakable message to Dave Rennie;s team … there will be no mercy.
While New Zealand stagger into the inaugural series finale battered, bruised, and essentially running on fumes, the Boks are loading the chamber once more. The big guns are being rolled out again to make sure they secure the three-match series.
