Confirmed: Springboks to Wear Traditional Green Jerseys Against Portugal
The Springboks will don their traditional green jerseys when they face Portugal in Bloemfontein this Saturday.
During the recently-concluded two-Test series against Ireland, the Springboks had to wear their alternate white jerseys, despite being the home team. This was in accordance with World Rugby’s new color blindness policy, which prevents clashing colors on the pitch. This policy also saw the Springboks wearing their backup kits in several games at last year’s World Cup.
However, it has been confirmed to TheSouthAfrican that the Springboks will be able to wear their highly favored green and gold jerseys for the one-off Test against Portugal this weekend. The match in Bloemfontein kicks off at 17:00 on Saturday.
Springboks Determined to Bounce Back
The Springboks began the 2024 season on a strong note with a 41-13 victory against Wales at Twickenham in June, followed by a 27-20 win over the world’s second-highest-ranked team, Ireland, in Pretoria two weeks ago.
However, a slow start in the first half of the second Test against the Irish in Durban last Saturday proved costly. The Boks lost the series decider 25-24, following a last-minute drop goal by the visitors.
Assistant coach Deon Davids elaborated on Springbok head coach Rassie Erasmus’ comments on Sunday, stating that they plan to release a few players on Wednesday afternoon to rest and recover before the Rugby Championship, which kicks off against Australia in August. Davids emphasized the importance of balancing team selection with managing player workload.
“We have a clear strategy about where we are as a team now and what we need to do going forward, so there are two key factors for us this week: managing the players and building squad depth,” said Davids.
“We have a tough and long season ahead, so it’s vital that we manage the players effectively. But we also want to build squad depth for the future, so we’ll try to balance those aspects as well as possible this week.”
Erasmus will announce his matchday squad to face Portugal on Tuesday.
