Here’s the reason Handré starts, not Manie

Handré Pollard’s record and familiarity with Cape Town conditions gave the veteran flyhalf the edge in the Springbok No 10 race for Saturday, according to Rassie Erasmus.

Pollard returns to the starting XV at Cape Town Stadium with Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu dropping to the bench after starting in the Boks’ 33-16 defeat by the All Blacks at Ellis Park last Saturday.

The 32-year-old was Man of the Match against Scotland on 11 July in his first Bok outing of the 2026 campaign before a hamstring injury ruled him out of the Wales Test a week later. He last played in South Africa’s win over Argentina almost a month ago.

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Erasmus claimed that Cheslin Kolbe being ruled out among three injury enforced changes influenced his decision to go with Pollard and not Manie Libbok in the second Test of the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series.

“We had a different team in mind. We hoped we could win the first Test match, and we wanted to try some things,” the coach said on Monday. “We hoped Canan Moodie would be fit. I would have loved to play Cheslin again.  

“Then he got injured, and Grant Williams got injured as well. So there are a couple of changes that we wouldn’t have made, and others that we wanted to make, but because of us not getting winning momentum, it’s tough to make more changes.”

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In Kolbe’s absence, Erasmus said two-time World Cup winner Pollard’s kicking ability carries added value: “It’s Cape Town, and it’s probably going to be wet.

“I think we played stupid [last week], and some of the messages came from me – on the pitch, you know, ‘two points is three points is two less than five’ …. 

“With Cheslin out, and Cheslin kicks really well … We’re only flying down on Wednesday, and as I see the weather conditions, there is a chance for rain,” he added. 

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“Handré has always been the guy that does it for us. He grew up in Cape Town; it’s his hometown, the same as Manie.”

The Bok boss also confirmed that Libbok, who played off the wood last week, remains part of the plans for the matches that follow Saturday’s encounter.

“I feel bad for Manie, but we know Manie is still going to play in the next two matches after this one. We think Handré is a good fit [this week].”

Photo: Juan Jose Gasparini/Gallo Images