Johan Ackermann will coach South Africa A during their two-match series against the England Saxons in June.

The already-capped Boks who will play for the A side are Oupa Mohoje, Nizaam Carr, Coenie Oosthuizen, Vincent Koch, Marcel van der Merwe and Piet van Zyl.

The national selectors also picked seven players who had their first taste of Super Rugby this year: Lukhanyo Am, Jean-Luc du Preez, Lizo Gqoboka, Ntando Kebe, JD Schickerling, RG Snyman and Leolin Zas.

'Many of the players in the SA A squad were considered for the Springboks and will obviously come into consideration in the event of injuries, but we could only select a certain number of players and it will be good to see them get international exposure against a strong England Saxons team,' Bok coach Allister Coetzee said.

'For the first two weeks of our series against Ireland, we will release four players not included in the Springboks’ match 23 to the SA A squad and we will work closely with Johan and his coaching team to get the best out of our players.

'Only players based in South Africa were considered for the SA A squad and it was good to balance the squad with some experienced Test players. However, we’ve also seen an exciting generation of new players emerge in Super Rugby this year – some of them coming through after injuries to other players – and I’d like to see them grab their opportunities against the Saxons.'

Ackermann will be assisted by Chumani Booi and Abe Davids in the coaching group.

The SA A team and the England Saxons’ matches will take place on 10 June in Bloemfontein and on 17 June in George.

South Africa A squad – Lukhanyo Am (Kings), Francois Brummer (Bulls), Nizaam Carr (Stormers), Jean-Luc du Preez (Sharks), Thomas du Toit (Sharks), Lizo Gqoboka (Bulls), Travis Ismaiel (Bulls), Ntando Kebe (Kings), Vincent Koch (Stormers), Edgar Marutlulle (Kings), Malcolm Marx (Lions), Howard Mnisi (Lions), Oupa Mohoje (Cheetahs), Franco Mostert (Lions), Coenie Oosthuizen (Sharks), Sergeal Petersen (Cheetahs), JD Schickerling (Stormers), Courtnall Skosan (Lions), RG Snyman (Bulls), Marcel van der Merwe (Bulls), Piet van Zyl (Bulls), Francois Venter (Cheetahs), Leolin Zas (Stormers).

Springbok squad for Ireland Test series

Photo: Steve Haag/Gallo Images