Siya Kolisi and Handre Pollard return as Springboks name squad to face Ireland

Erasmus did not have access to several first-choice players for last week's season opener against Wales as the match fell outside the regular international Test window, but that's no longer a concern for the Bok coach, who named a revised 39-man squad on Tuesday.

Most of the players unavailable to him last week were from the Bulls, who were still contesting the URC, as well as those based in England and France, so it's no surprise to see nine players from this group return to the squad.

That includes Rugby World Cup winners Siya Kolisi, Handre Pollard, RG Snyman, Marco van Staden, Kurt-Lee Arendse, Willie le Roux and Jasper Wiese.

Meanwhile, Cheslin Kolbe and Lukhanyo Am - who joined the Springbok squad at different stages during the recent training camp in Pretoria to do their ongoing rehabilitation â- are back from injury.

There are also four uncapped players named in the squad who will be in line to make their Springbok debuts: Bulls hooker Johan Grobbelaar and front rower Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Sharks loose forward Phepsi Buthelezi and Lions scrumhalf Morne van den Berg.

Three players who made their Test debuts against Wales at Twickenham on Saturday have been retained in the group: Edwill van der Merwe, Ben-Jason Dixon and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu.

Erasmus also confirmed that three players in the squad picked up niggles against Wales - Van der Merwe, Faf de Klerk and Makazole Mapimpi, but he was confident there was enough cover in the squad in those positions if required.

The coach also confirmed there were an additional 14 players on standby if needed, a list that includes Siya Masuku, Jean-Luc du Preez, Jordan Hendrikse, Elrigh Louw, Nuthuko Mchunu, Andre-Hugo Venter, Ethan Hooker and Quan Horn.

These players will train with the team at times during the next four weeks before the team's historic Test against Portugal on Saturday 20 July and could be called up at short notice in the event of injuries during the Ireland Tests.

The Boks are already dealing with a number of injuries and several players who would have made the squad have been ruled out, including Steven Kitshoff, Lood de Jager, Jean Kleyn, Canan Moodie and Damian Willemse.

Nevertheless, Erasmus was delighted to see his full squad come together for the first time as they look toward a thrilling season ahead.

"It's great to have the overseas-based and Bulls players back in the mix and with many of them being Rugby World Cup winners, they will bring experience and calm heads to the team," said the Bok coach. "Over and above that, some of the young players who were part of our travelling squad to London really impressed us over the last two weeks, and while some of them have been included in this group, we were limited in terms of the number of players we could pick, so there will always be a few unlucky players.

"Unfortunately, a handful of players are also carrying injuries and were ruled out of the selection mix, but our plan to build depth in the last few years and expose players to Test rugby in the build-up to the 2023 RWC and against Wales last weekend certainly paid off."

On the uncapped players joining the party, the coach added: "Johan (Grobbelaar) and Jan-Hendrik (Wessels) really impressed us at the alignment camps we hosted in the year, and they are talented players with a bright future, so we are keen to see what they can do and the dynamic they add to the team. They are skilful players with immense talent and their selection will offer them a great opportunity to make their mark.

"We also saw what the uncapped players in the travelling squad for the Wales Test have to offer and we have no doubt that if they receive an opportunity to run out in the green and gold this season, they will give their best and wear the badge with pride."

Erasmus said the standby squad could come into the selection mix for the Test against Portugal particularly as they continue to expose a few young players to international rugby.

"We have a jam-packed three weeks lined up with training and the Ireland Test Series, and we'll look at bringing in the standby players intermittently within the next few weeks to train with us and continue to familiarise themselves with our systems, especially with an eye on the Portugal Test.

"This year marks the start of building toward the 2027 Rugby World Cup, so we would like to continue exposing players to international rugby with an eye on that objective."

The 39-man squad gathered in Pretoria on Tuesday and will continue with their training schedule, despite arriving in South Africa a day later than expected after their flight from London to South Africa was cancelled on Sunday night. They will return home for the weekend to spend time with their families and resume their Test week training schedule on Monday for the clash against Ireland at Loftus Versfeld.

Springbok squad for Castle Lager Incoming Series

Forwards: Phepsi Buthelezi, Ben-Jason Dixon, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Thomas du Toit, Eben Etzebeth, Johan Grobbelaar, Vincent Koch, Siya Kolisi, Frans Malherbe, Malcolm Marx, Bongi Mbonambi, Salmaan Moerat, Franco Mostert, Ox Nche, Trevor Nyakane, Evan Roos, Kwagga Smith, RG Snyman, Gerhard Steenekamp, Marco van Staden, Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Jasper Wiese.

Backs: Lukhanyo Am, Kurt-Lee Arendse, Damian de Allende, Faf de Klerk, Andre Esterhuizen, Aphelele Fassi, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Cheslin Kolbe, Jesse Kriel, Wilie le Roux, Manie Libbok, Makazole Mapimpi, Handre Pollard, Cobus Reinach, Morne van den Berg, Edwill van der Merwe, Grant Williams.

Players on standby: Jean-Luc du Preez, Joseph Dweba, Neethling Fouche, Celimpilo Gumede, Elrigh Louw, Wilco Louw, Ntuthuko Mchunu, Ruben van Heerden, Andre-Hugo Venter, Suleiman Hartzenberg, Jordan Hendrikse, Ethan Hooker, Quan Horn, Siya Masuku.

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