Rassie Erasmus was pleased with the foundations being laid at the second Springbok sort-out camp in Cape Town this week and believed it set a good tone for the season ahead.
A group of 38 players attended camp on Wednesday and Thursday. This followed a first alignment camp held in Cape Town in March and a series of online sessions held in early May.
The players participated in a series of gym and off-field strategy sessions provided by the coaching staff to familiarize themselves with the plan the team will implement this season.
“This camp has been very important in exposing our players to the detailed aspects of the game that we want to implement this season,” said Erasmus.
“In our first two alignment camps we have adopted a broader view of what the coaching staff will look at when it comes to team selection and introduced the players to the coaches and their ideas, particularly the new members of the coaching team in Tony Brown. Jerry Flannery and National Counsel Jaco Peyper.
“With our first test less than a month away, it was important to start introducing players to the new system. This will allow players ample time to become familiar with this structure as we plan to select a group of players for the Wales Test. And the series coming in (July).”
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“It was great to see the passion of the players and witness first-hand how they put everything into it to earn a place in the national team. We believe this will make us a good team. The upcoming season,” Erasmus added.
“As a coaching team, this camp has allowed us to better understand the players and their skills, and will give us enough detail to work with over the coming weeks before we come together for our first official training camp, which will be held in June. I was able to.”
Sharks players who will play in the Challenge Cup final against Gloucester at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on Friday night have been excluded from camp.
The reigning world champions are scheduled to open their 2024 season against Wales on June 22, followed by Tests in July and back-to-back games against second-placed Ireland in Pretoria and Durban (July 6 and 13) respectively. and the first Test against Portugal in Bloemfontein (July 20).
The Springboks will gather in Pretoria on June 9 to begin on-field preparations for the season, while the Test squad for the Wales game is expected to be named soon after the Vodacom URC quarter-final on June 8.
Photo: Steve Haag/Gallo Images
