Rassie Erasmus says clever rotation and the courage to back squad depth will be the key to a successful 2026 international season for the Springboks.
The Bok coach understands that he’ll have to make some bold calls if they are to survive the most demanding season in years, while still building for next year’s World Cup.
South Africa’s season begins with a bruising July run against England, Scotland and Wales on consecutive weekends, before escalating into an unprecedented four-Test showdown with the All Blacks across August and September – a series that ends 12,800km from home on neutral ground in Baltimore, USA.
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Logistics alone underline the scale of the challenge.
“I think we fly there together on a charter plane at midnight on the Saturday [after the third Test in Soweto],” Erasmus told media in Cape Town on Monday.
“We’ve done it with Argentina a couple of times where you sit on a plane and they’re sitting one side and we’re on the other.
“It will be interesting and challenging. We don’t have the answers right now, but they’re in the same boat.”
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Those unanswered questions centre on how Erasmus manages his squad across four straight weekends against the All Blacks.
Facing New Zealand once is hard enough. Doing it four weeks in a row, with intercontinental travel thrown in, forces a rethink.
Yet Erasmus sees opportunity in the chaos.
“It’s very exciting. I loved it when we toured there and I like midweek games,” he said. “We have the luxury of releasing players for those games [to their URC sides], so we can maybe juggle it a bit more.”
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Rotation, though, won’t be cosmetic. Erasmus has already shown he is prepared to make sweeping changes if the bigger picture demands it.
“We did it last year. We played one Test in Auckland against them and then a totally different side the next weekend in Wellington,” he said.
“I don’t think we will be as radical as that, but if we’re not ballsy enough to do it in the Greatest Rivalry and take a chance, I don’t think we will win it. We need that courage.”
Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry is reignited. 🇿🇦🇳🇿🔥 pic.twitter.com/J1WCrV2Bh9
— SA Rugby magazine (@SARugbymag) October 16, 2025
Photo: David Rogers/Getty Images
