Springboks name team to play All Blacks

Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer says that he will not risk playing centre JJ Engelbrecht if he is not fit to play but will give Engelbrecht until Friday to prove his fitness ahead of Saturday’s crucial Castle Lager Rugby Championship decider against the All Blacks at Ellis Park. Engelbrecht is suffering from a contusion to his quad muscle and if he is not fit to play then Jan Serfontein will be handed his first start with Juan de Jongh coming in on the bench…….. Lions lock Franco van der Merwe is set to make his Test debut at his homeground if Meyer calls upon him from the bench after Juandre Kruger was promoted from the bench back into the starting line-up because of Flip van der Merwe’s one week suspension. Meyer says that Van der Merwe’s debut will be special but that he chose him over Sharks youngster Pieter-Steph du Toit because of Van der Merwe’s experience and the need for a specialist lineout jumper….. Meyer said that the situation with rotating his hookers creates healthy competition in the team and it is important for Bismarck du Plessis and Adriaan Strauss to always put the team ahead of their personal aspirations. Du Plessis has been selected ahead of Strauss this week after Strauss started against Australia……… The presence of Du Plessis in the Springbok starting line-up to face the All Blacks will evoke emotions from the last time the two teams played against each other. Du Plessis was given his marching orders in controversial circumstances after being handed a second yellow card but Meyer says it will be important for Du Plessis to keep his emotions in check but is expecting him to be as physical as he has always been……. Meyer took a moment to speak about Tendai “The Beast” Mtawarira’s milestone of making his 50th appearance for the Springboks this coming Saturday. Mtawarira will join his fellow frontrow teammates Jannie and Bismarck du Plessis who also achieved the milestone this year. Meyer said that Mtawarira has never let the team down and is a man of true character after making a full recovery and making it back into the Springbok team after last year’s health issues with his heart…… If the Springboks are to score the four tries and win on Saturday to secure themselves the Rugby Championship title then Meyer believes that they must stick to their basics but more importantly believe that it is possible to beat the All Blacks……. With sentiment and confidence sky high amongst many Springbok supporters at the good record the Springboks have against the All Blacks at Ellis Park, Meyer warned that it will take more than just history and the crowd to win the game for them. Since the 1995 Rugby World Cup win, the Springboks and All Blacks have played five times at Ellis Park with the Springboks winning four of those Test including the last one in 2004 when Marius Joubert scored a hattrick of tries. The last time the All Blacks won at Ellis Park was in 2000…….. Meyer conceded that his team’s task at beating the All Blacks and scoring the four tries was near impossible but that there could be a plan to unlock their arch rivals in world rugby…….. Franco van der Merwe says it will be a dream come true to make his Test debut against the All Blacks at Ellis Park and that he was prepared to play anywhere for the Springboks in the past year and a half while waiting to be named in the team……. As special as making his 50th appearance for the Springboks will be for Mtawarira, the soft spoken Zimbabwean-born prop says that his goal will be to help the Springboks beat the All Blacks and lift the Rugby Championship trophy……Journalist: Vata Ngobeni