Which South Africa team has no returning Springboks?
After the Springboks defeated New Zealand in the Rugby World Cup final to win a record-tying fourth title, South Africans continued to party far into Sunday. Image sourced from the SA Rugby website
Which South African squad doesn’t have any Springboks returning?
CAN YOU GUESS WHO? One South African team doesn’t have the luxury of reintegrating their World Cup winners into the URC fold this coming week, as the majority of clubs are getting ready to do so. That team didn’t produce any Springboks this season.
When the Springboks return to action with their respective franchises for the remainder of the URC campaign, find out which local team did not have the same luck.
The Bulls, Lions, Sharks, and Stormers are the four South African teams that play in the United Rugby Championship. Furthermore, none of them have done well enough this season to be regarded as title candidates.
The Lions are ranked No. 13 in the 16-team standings, while the Sharks are mired near the bottom. After five rounds of play, the Bulls are the highest-ranked local team in seventh place, although the Stormers, in ninth place, are in a somewhat stronger position.
WORLD CUP WINNERS TO THE RESCUE?
However, with the return of their Springbok contingents, things might drastically change for three of these sides.
Kurt-Lee Arendse, Canan Moodie, Marco van Staden, and recent addition Willie le Roux have all reported for duty at Loftus this week, according to a statement from the Bulls.
Lukhanyo Am was added to the Sharks squad this past weekend, and they will be counting on Eben Etzebeth, Ox Nche, Grant Williams, and Jaden Hendrikse—all four Test stars—to bolster their lineup in the near future. Although Makazole Mapimpi, Bongi Mbonambi, and Vincent Koch are three more Boks who are injured, they could all be available for the Sharks in the latter part of the season.
Over at the Stormers, Frans Malherbe, Deon Fourie, Damian Willemse and Manie Libbok will all be up for selection when the Stormers return home from their four-match tour of Europe later this month.
NO SPRINGBOKS TO RESCUE LIONS
The Lions, on the other hand, are the only team that did not add to the Springboks’ lineup this season.
That proved to be no small matter for the Springboks. It must sting a little for the Lions to know that not only are they not entitled to such luxury, but that they may even drop even further in the rankings in terms of player depth and, consequently, the caliber of their on-field performance, given that all the other local teams can call upon their returning World Cup winners to potentially help them turn the corner.
