Why Krappie gets the nod and Manie doesn’t start for Springboks in RGR finale
A couple of strong showings off the bench from Morné van den Berg has seen him rewarded with a start in the fourth RGR Test against the All Blacks.
In the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry Test between the Springboks and the All Blacks at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, scrumhalf Morné van den Berg, affectionately known as Krappie, will start the match, marking a significant opportunity in his budding international career. Krappie, who has been a consistent member of the Springboks over the past two seasons, has only played nine Tests, four of which were starts.
His biggest start was against the struggling Wallabies team in 2024, and he has started twice against Italy and once against Wales.
Despite his recent performances on the bench, flyhalf Manie Libbok, who has been a key player due to injuries, has not been given a start. The Bok coach, Rassie Erasmus, explained that Krappie has been with the team for a while now, having been unlucky with injuries and had many good players ahead of him. He attributes Krappie's selection to the team's desire to exploit the gaps and weaknesses in the All Blacks' defense in the later stages of the game.
Erasmus also mentioned that Manie has been strong off the bench but is not yet at the top of his game, and fears that if Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, the starting flyhalf, gets injured, Manie might only come on for a brief five-minute stint.
Written by urgent.news from The Citizen's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
