Stormers v Lions: Players that could earn a Springbok callup

With the domestic competitions coming to an end, the international window is upon us and coaches are starting to look even closer at players who could make the cut for the international teams. The current world champions, the Springboks will be under pressure to perform in the upcoming test series. Rassie Erasmus and his coaching crew will be looking at the local based players with even more scrutiny as he has alluded that he might be looking for a new locally based captain.

In today’s all South-African clash in Cape Town, the Stormers faced the Lions who were fighting for a play-off spot but were defeated 29-24 by a late try from the Stormers after leading for most of the game.

It was a good display of rugby from the South African sides, and we’ve picked a few players who might have caught Rassie’s eye.

Mannie Libbok – Rassie has always rated Libbok and we believe he will continue to be included in the Springbok setup. Mannie has always been criticized for his kicking abilities and he showed improvement today making 80% of his kicks from the tee.

Evan Roos – Roos is a young talent who has been called up the Springbok squad before, making his debut in 2022. His performance this season might see him being included in the training squad again.

Sanele Nohamba – The 25-year-old is a versatile player who has shown great improvement and has led the Lions to many great performances this season. He has been included in previous Springbok training squads but is yet to earn a senior cap. The 2024 season might be his time as he has been very impressive at scrumhalf and fly-half.

Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu – Sacha is a young talent who has been on top of his game all season despite injuries trying to hold him back. His talent has led him to be included in the 2022 Springbok squad and we bet Rassie has been keeping an eye on him.

Suleiman Hartzenberg – The 21-year-old is full of talent and has represented the South African ‘A’ team before, he has certainly been impressive this season and will be looking for his senior callup.

Quan Horn – The young full-back has been impressive this season and while he might not be a first choice full-back for the Springboks, he has done enough to earn a callup to the training squad.