Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber has made only two changes to his starting fifteen for the Rugby World Cup final against New Zealand at the Stade de France in Paris on Saturday evening.
Both changes are at halfback where Faf de Klerk and Handre Pollard start in place of Cobus Reinach and Manie Libbok.
De Klerk and Pollard will start together in a test match for the 25th time – one more than Joost van der Westhuizen and Henry Honiball – making them the most experienced Springbok halfback pairing in history.
The replacement bench is a seven-one split in favour of forwards with Willie le Roux the only backline replacement.
The forwards on the bench are Deon Fourie, Ox Nche, Trevor Nyakane, Jean Kleyn, R.G Snyman, Kwagga Smith and Jasper Wiese.
The most experienced #Springboks team ever will line up for the #RWC2023 Final against New Zealand in Paris on Saturday – more here: https://t.co/oySTFCRVOo 🇿🇦#StrongerTogether pic.twitter.com/JEeGNVyjI1
— Springboks (@Springboks) October 26, 2023
Meanwhile, hooker Bongi Mbonambi will play in Saturday’s final, after no evidence was found that he used discriminatory language towards England flanker Tom Curry.
Mbonambi, the only specialist hooker in the Springbok squad, was investigated following an allegation of a discriminatory comment made to Curry in the first half of last weekend’s 16-15 semi-final win for South Africa.-Additional reporting by Reuters
Below is the live stream of the squad announcement:
