A near full-strength Springbok side will get their 2025 season underway in earnest when they tackle Italy at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday in the first of two Test matches.
South Africa | Draw | Italy
Handicap
SA | Italy
Rassie Erasmus’ men shook off the rust after putting away a stacked Barbarians lineup 54-7 at Cape Town Stadium and will look to channel that momentum into their first proper Test match of the year. The Bok boss has opted for what is effectively a full-strength matchday squad barring injuries.
After skippering the team against the Baabaas, Jesse Kriel will officially become Springbok captain No 67 in the absence of a crocked Siya Kolisi, with the excellent Vincent Tshituka set to make his Test debut at No 7 and fullback Damian Willemse returning to the national fold for the first time since the 2023 World Cup final.
Jasper Wiese is also back at eighthman after recovering from his injury layoff, while Willie le Roux will make his 99th Test appearance when he features off the bench.
The Azzurri arrive on SA shores after a Six Nations campaign that saw them finish fifth thanks to a sole win over Wales in Rome, and 73-6 hammering of Namibia in Windhoek last week. Although the coming fortnight will present Gonzalo Quesada and his charges with their biggest challenge of the year – back-to-back away games against the back-to-back world champions – it will also serve as something of a litmus test for his side as they continue their evolution on the road to the next World Cup.
In the long term, successive defeats in Pretoria and Gqeberha may not be the end of the world for Quesada and his coaching assistants, who will surely take plenty of learnings from this tour regardless of the results. Still, big blowout losses won’t do team morale any good, but there is reason to believe this group of Italians, with a skilful backline of players like Simone Gesi and Tommaso Menoncello, can dent the Bok defence.
As noted by Bok scrum guru Daan Human earlier in the week, the Italians also have a scrum completion rate of a ridiculous 93 percent, meaning the Bok front rankers can’t afford to take things for granted come the first shove.
Verdict: Springboks on the minus
When all’s said and done, an absolutely stacked South Africa will bash Italy into submission and collect a comfortable win.
