Excitement builds as Springbok season openers draw nearer

Davids, who will double up as the Springbok and SA ‘A’ team assistant coach, said their preparations were well on track for the matches, and added that they hoped to build on the work done last week as the countdown begins to the season-opening double-header in Gqeberha.

The SA ‘A’ team will take the field against Zimbabwe at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium at 12h00 on Saturday, which will be followed by the clash between the Springboks and Barbarians at 15h00.

“It's fantastic having the young players in the squad and mixing things up with the more experienced players, so there's good progression from our alignment camps into this camp,” said Davids.

“That has also formed a good understanding about what is expected of everyone and about how we do things.

“It’s been good to see the energy and enthusiasm and how the players have related to one another and worked together to get things done, so we're looking forward to this week as we build up to Saturday.”

De Villiers, a former Junior Springbok captain, was delighted to be part of the expanded national squad for the important encounters and said he has thoroughly enjoyed his time in camp thus far.

“It's only been a week, but it’s been awesome, and I’ve learned a lot,” said De Villiers.

“We have great players in the squad, who we are all learning a lot from, so it's a perfect scenario. We also have good coaches who have been great at giving us advice.”

Asked what the main differences for him personally have been between playing provincial rugby and being in the Springbok set-up, he said: “I think the training standards have been a massive thing. You are competing against guys that also play for the Springboks, and all the players want to be here, so I think the intensity of the training sessions is one of the main differences.”

Explaining the decision to train in Johannesburg until Wednesday before making the trip to Gqeberha, Davids said: “We’ve settled well in Johannesburg, and we're comfortable with the surroundings and our training facilities, so we thought it would be best to finish our training here, and have our captains’ runs in Gqeberha going into the games.”

Davids was equally thrilled about the opportunity to double up between the two national teams this weekend: “We’ve tried to keep things aligned in terms of our plans, and that has been our approach in terms of what we've done in the different departments, and I think it’s worked well, and we're on the right track.”

Commenting on what they expected from the Barbarians and Zimbabwe, Davids spoke highly of the opposition, saying they would each bring their own strengths.

“The Barbarians have always selected quality players, and they will have guys with a lot of experience,” said Davids.

“Given how little time they have to train together, they will always go out there to entertain.

“In terms of Zimbabwe, they have also developed quality players, and they have good coaches and assistant coaches, who will bring a lot of structure to their forward play. The fact that they've qualified for the 2027 Rugby World Cup, also makes this a good challenge for them and for us.”

While De Villiers admitted that he was experiencing a mixture of nerves and excitement for the weekend, he refused to look too far ahead and said: “I wouldn't say the penny has dropped. For me, the main thing will be to get the job done on the field, and I’m excited, although there are some nerves. The other stuff obviously comes after that, but that's not where the focus lies at this stage.”

Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus and SA ‘A’ coach Mzwandile Stick will announce their squads for the match on Tuesday.

Davids, meanwhile, also wished the Vodacom Bulls good luck for the Vodacom United Rugby Championship Grand Final against Leinster in Dublin on Friday evening: “We are very excited that they have gone through to the final. We wish them all the best, and the team and the whole of South Africa are behind them.”