But, neither player has featured much this season and it would not be a surprise if they didn't make the matchday-23.
Siya Kolisi and Ox Nche have played little rugby this Test season because of injuries. Picture: Sebastian Frej/Getty Images
Springbok assistant coach Felix Jones hinted that captain Siya Kolisi and powerhouse prop Ox Nche are on track to be included in the Boks’ match 23 for the opening Test of Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series against the All Blacks at Ellis Park on Saturday.
Both Kolisi and Nche were serious doubts heading into the match week, but on Monday coach Rassie Erasmus said that if they made it through training they would be considered for selection, and Jones backed that up on Tuesday.
They could thus both find themselves on the team sheet when the side is named on Thursday afternoon, but whether they will start or play off the bench will be interesting, as Kolisi has only played 24 minutes of international rugby this season and Nche just eight.
Injuries
Kolisi was injured before their first Test of the season against England, and went on to miss all their Nations Championship games, then returned in their one-off Test against Argentina, only to be forced off with a hamstring injury in the first half.
Nche was also a first half casualty, in the Test against England, suffering a knee injury and has not been seen since.
“Both are tracking pretty well. There have been no flags or issues from what we’ve seen today (Tuesday) in training. We still have another session later in the week, but there’s been nothing majorly negative coming out of either of their recovery plans,” said Jones.
But this season already Erasmus has mentioned that players were in line for selection, and then not picked them, so it also wouldn’t be a surprise if neither of them was on the team sheet.
Enough cover
The Boks also have plenty of cover for both, with Paul de Villiers, Marco van Staden and Deon Fourie the options if Kolisi is missing, while Gerhard Steenekamp and Boan Venter would be the front runners to feature if there is no Nche.
Looking towards the match, Jones said that it would be two very prepared teams coming up against one another, with the All Blacks having played three tour matches against the South African franchises, while the Boks got good game time into some returning players against Argentina.
“New Zealand have had their franchise games, and we’ve had Argentina for some players, while a group of players remained behind in South Africa to do specific work,” explained Jones.
“I don’t think any preparation really replicates the level of intensity you’re going to experience when New Zealand plays South Africa. But I think both teams would say going into this game that they feel prepared.”
