Return of the Faf! Springboks call up De Klerk ahead of All Blacks clash
The Springboks have called up veteran scrumhalf Faf de Klerk (right) to their squad in New Zealand for the upcoming Rugby Championship clash against the All Blacks, following Bongi Mbonambi’s departure due to a family matter. Picture: Timothy Bernard / Independent Newspapers
Image: Timothy Bernard / Independent Newspapers
Veteran scrumhalf on Sunday was called up to the Springboks squad in New Zealand, ahead of their Rugby Championship clash against the All Blacks in Auckland next week.
Though the Springboks already have three number nines in their squad with Grant Williams, Cobus Reinach and Morne van den Berg on tour, management decided to call on the experienced World Cup winner.
The reason the Boks added another player to their squad is that hooker Bongi Mbonambi had to fly back to South Africa earlier this week to attend to a family matter.
Though it was strange that the Boks called up a back instead of a forward, it was reminiscent of the 2023 Rugby World Cup when another hooker - Malcolm Marx suffered a tournament-ending knee injury and flyhalf Handre Pollard got the call to join the squad.
Boks Pin Hopes on Faf De Klerk’s Impact in the Rugby Championship
Of course, Pollard would go on to fill a vital role for the Springboks as he was excellent with his place kicking across four appearances at the tournament as the South Africans were crowned champions for the second time in a row.
Now, the Boks will hope De Klerk fill a similarly inspirational role in the Rugby Championship after they lost their opening match at Ellis Park to Australia, before rebounding a week later with a win against the Aussies in Cape Town.
Since the 2023 RWC final in which he played the full 80 minutes, De Klerk has been plagued by injury. He has only played twice for the Boks since, coming off the bench against Italy and Georgia recently.