'What needs to be in the back of our minds every training session'

Springboks boss Jacques Nienaber has outlined plans for opening preparation camp in Pretoria from next Sunday ahead of the full squad assembly later in June before the three-Test series versus Wales in July.  

“After months of preparation by the coaches off the field, we are excited to finally return to the field and to put our learnings into practice,” said Nienaber. “We will start our preparations with a group of invited available players, to ensure that we can deliver quality training sessions, and as more players become available following their URC campaigns, they will join the squad. 

“We also have to be cognisant of the fact that we are building toward the 2023 Rugby World Cup, and that every training session and match we participate in, needs to be in the back of our minds.”

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Regarding how the upcoming Springboks camp will be structured under Nienaber, a SARU statement read: “A group of players will be invited to join the first week of the planned three-week Springbok preparation camp in Pretoria from Sunday, as the team gear up for the Castle incoming series, which features three Test matches against Wales in July.

“With three South African franchises in the United Rugby Championship quarter-finals this weekend and only a handful of players being free from their club commitments, Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber has opted to only announce his squad for the international series later next month.

“Selected local players will also be invited to join the preparation camps as their respective franchises’ URC campaigns come to an end. The available players will participate in a series of training sessions over the next three weeks. The training squad will be based in Pretoria until Thursday, June 23, before switching bases to Johannesburg where they will prepare for their opening Test against Wales, which will be hosted at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday, July 2.

 “Their remaining two Test matches against Wales will be hosted in Bloemfontein and Cape Town on July 9 and 16 respectively. This will be followed by a one-week break before the team gathers in Sabie, Mpumalanga, to kick off their preparations for the back-to-back Rugby Championship Tests against the All Blacks in Nelspruit and Johannesburg on August 6 and 13 August.

“The Boks will then travel to Australia for two Tests and one in Argentina before they wrap up the Rugby Championship in Durban on September 23.”

 Nienaber added: “Wales will be inspired to show what they can do in this series. One only has to look at the history books to see how close matches between these nations have been over the years, so we have to hit the ground running in July if we want to win the series and get the season off to the desired start.”