Six Blue Bulls players and another player from Pretoria who has this year already played senior Carlton Cup rugby at the age of 19, were included in the South African u.19 team for a tour to Georgia in November.

Junior Springbok coach Chean Roux last week named a 30-member squad featuring six capped World Rugby u.20 Championship players to tour Georgia from 27 November to 5 December as part of the team’s preparations for the 2020 season.

This tour, which will feature matches against the Georgia u.19 team will replace the u.18 and u.19 assessment camps usually hosted by the Junior Springbok coaching staff with an eye on the selection of the Junior Springbok squad for the World Rugby u.20 Championship.

The squad includes six players who represented the Junior Springboks in the World Rugby u.20 Championship in Argentina, earlier this year, as well as another eleven players who were members of the SA Schools team that participated in the u.18 International series in the Western Cape against Wales, France and England last season.

“We decided to replace the u.18 and u.19 assessment camps with a combined SA u.19 squad that will travel to Georgia and play two matches against their national side. So, this will serve as a fantastic opportunity for these players to prove themselves at this level,” said Roux.

Although the tour is essentially the springboard for the Junior Springbok programme for 2020, Roux emphasized that there will be opportunities for players who are not in this group to stake a claim for places in the Junior Springbok squad next year.

The Blue Bulls players in the squad are: Diego Appollis (centre), Dewald Donald (prop), Werner Gouws (lock), Stravino Jacobs (winger), Dawid Kellerman (centre) and Bernard van der Linde (scrumhalf).

One of the interesting inclusions is that of Ethan Wentzel. The flyhalf, who played for Hoërskool Centurion last season, made his name this year when he played senior club rugby for Centurion in the Carlton Cup.

Wentzel was spotted by Rudy Joubert from the Falcons who selected him for his own u.19 team to strengthen them during the national tournament. With some brilliant performances the talented player then helped the men of the East Rand to finish third in the Northern Division of the u.19 tournament.

Roux saw him in action at the tournament and now he has the opportunity to establish himself as a professional player.

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