Warren Whiteley will start at eighthman for the Springboks against the World XV at Newlands on Saturday.
The Lions captain comes in for Duane Vermeulen, who has been ruled out for 10 weeks following neck surgery.
As reported by SARugbymag.co.za on Tuesday, 21-year-old Jesse Kriel will make his first appearance for the Boks at outside centre, with Jean de Villiers set to make his return from injury off the bench. Kriel wore the No 13 jersey for the Junior Boks last year, but has played fullback for the Vodacom Bulls this season.
'Jean is a massive asset to South African rugby and it’s wonderful to know his return to play is progressing so well that we can give him some game time from the bench on Saturday,' said Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer. 'The mere fact that he is back in shape and ready to play is testament to his incredible work-ethic and his professional approach to the game.
'Jean has really put in hours and hours of extra work to get here and he is a great example for any player on how to put yourself in the best possible position to recover.
Meyer said of the selection of Whiteley, Kriel and Koch: 'All three of them were magnificent in Super Rugby and they deserve this opportunity. I’m excited to see how they step up to this level.
'I’ve always rated Vincent and followed his career for a long time. He has really improved a lot recently, which is testament to the hard work he and everyone who has worked with him, has put in. He has proved that players can become Springboks from one of the so-called smaller unions.
'Warren is a specialist No 8 and will have big shoes to fill with Duane Vermeulen out injured. Although he has played in only two Tests, he brings experience and leadership to the pack, having led the Lions with great style this season.
'The reason we’ve decided to go with Francois Louw and Marcell Coetzee is because we have lost some ball-stealing ability with Duane not available, but both our flanks can now fulfil that role.
'Jesse has played at outside centre before and starred for the Junior Springboks in that position in four of their five matches in 2014. He’s also been training with us for a long time and I’m sure he will slot in easily with Damian de Allende in an exciting but a little inexperienced midfield combination.
'I’m very excited to see how Jesse, Damian and Handré Pollard will play next to each other. They are still young and I believe they are the future. They will also have a very experienced back-trio next to them on Saturday. It’s important to have a combination of youth and experience and we’ll continue to work on that.'
Meyer also announced that following a meeting with Jaque Fourie on Tuesday, a mutual decision was taken that he would return to Kobe, his club in Japan, to regain his fitness and to get game time.
'He decided to withdraw from the Springbok squad for now, but we agreed that the door is still open for him to be selected for the World Cup if he's needed,' said Meyer.
Meanwhile, Steven Kitshoff will be out for approximately four weeks after sustaining an injury to the medial ligaments of his left knee on Tuesday.
Springbok team doctor Craig Roberts said Kitshoff was sent for scans on Wednesday morning which confirmed the diagnosis of a grade two MCL injury and he will unavailable for the Boks’ next three matches.
Springboks – 15 Willie le Roux, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Handré Pollard, 9 Ruan Pienaar, 8 Warren Whiteley, 7 Marcell Coetzee, 6 Francois Louw, 5 Victor Matfield (c), 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Beast Mtawarira.
Subs: 16 Adriaan Strauss, 17 Trevor Nyakane, 18 Vincent Koch, 19 Oupa Mohoje, 20 Schalk Burger, 21 Cobus Reinach, 22 Pat Lambie, 23 Jean de Villiers.
Photo: Marty Melville/AFP Photo
