Overview
- Rassie Erasmus confirmed on Wednesday that the 44‑man Springbok group will be split this weekend and that 26 players will travel to Buenos Aires for the one‑off Test on 8 August.
- Two senior forwards, prop Ox Nché and utility Franco Mostert, are ruled out with longer‑term injuries and will remain in South Africa for rehabilitation.
- Several senior players returning from injury — including Siya Kolisi, Eben Etzebeth, Lood de Jager, Handré Pollard, Sacha Feinberg‑Mngomezulu, Ethan Hooker and Canan Moodie — are expected to get game time in Argentina to assess match fitness.
- Five squad members — Evan Roos, André‑Hugo Venter, Jaco Williams, Embrose Papier and Ntuthuko Mchunu — have already been released to their franchises and will face the touring All Blacks as additional trials for national selection.
- Erasmus will finalise the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry squad after the Argentina Test and the ensuing provincial fixtures, a process designed to build depth and confirm which players can sustain a four‑Test series against New Zealand.