SA Rugby director of rugby Rassie Erasmus says players will be encouraged to showcase their skills during the Cape Town-based ‘Springbok Showdown’.

SA Rugby on Wednesday announced that part of its plans to reignite an exciting four-month local season will pit the country’s best players against each other on 3 October.

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In the match, named Springbok Showdown, a Springbok Green side will take on a Springbok Gold side at Newlands, with Springbok assistants Mzwandile Stick and Deon Davids in charge of the two sides.

Erasmus and Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber will act as the team commissioners.

The match will be similar to New Zealand Rugby’s recent North vs South clash, which pitted the best of their country against each other based on where they played their club rugby. The major difference will be that players will not be selected based on geography.

The selection process will take the form of a draft pick from an enlarged squad of 60 players with Green and Gold team bosses taking alternate turns in an old-style ‘school-yard pick’ to assemble their match-day squads of 25 players each.

The drama will unfold live on SuperSport, with the enlarged squad set to be announced live on Saturday before the crucial draft pick next week.

‘The players will be encouraged to showcase their skills – individually and in their teams – and while it will be full on, we’re expecting to see a highly competitive match of quality players against each other.

‘It will be exciting – from the moment we select the squads, with a number of twists thrown in for good measure – through the buildup to the match and the actual encounter in Cape Town.’

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