Rassie Erasmus: Boan Venter’s Springbok call-up not a block on Scotland

The Springboks did not select Boan Venter to block him from representing Scotland in the future.

Due to a mini loosehead crisis in the Bok camp ahead of the start of their international season, coach Rassie Erasmus decided to rope in the Edinburgh player, and confirmed on Wednesday that he could potentially be in line to debut against Georgia should he adapt quickly enough.

Although Venter’s call-up came as a surprise, the Boks have been following his progress as a junior in South Africa way before he moved to the Scottish capital.

He’s been one of the stand-out players for Edinburgh in the United Rugby Championship.

Injuries to Gerhard Steenekamp and Ntuthuko Mchunu, as well as the retirement of Steven Kitshoff, left the Boks a bit thin in the loosehead department.

Thomas du Toit, who can play on both sides, has primarily functioned as a tighthead, while another swinging prop, veteran Trevor Nyakane, is also out injured.

That prompted Erasmus and his coaches to look outside of the players who’ve been involved with the team in some capacity before.

World Cup winner Ox Nché and utility front rower Jan-Hendrik Wessels are the only fit looseheads in the squad ahead of the first match against the Barbarians next Saturday in Cape Town.

“We are not selecting him (Venter) to block him from playing for Scotland,” Erasmus said on Wednesday.

Venter would’ve become eligible for Scotland on residency grounds next year, and would then have the option to follow in the footsteps of Duhan van der Merwe, Pierre Schoeman, Kyle Steyn and WP Nel, who all pulled the Scottish jersey over their head after qualifying.

“That did not have an influence. It is nicer for us to see guys like Duhan play for Scotland, because he probably would not have gotten a chance by us. So, why would you (select) the guy (to block him)? We were aware he (Venter) could have qualified for Scotland.

“We really went and looked (at) who was the next loosehead (in line), and he was on our radar.

“We lost Kitsie, he finished, and we thought he would go on for a bit longer. Gerhard is a bit of an unknown, but with Ox, they were our top three looseheads. Yes, Thomas can play loosehead, but he plays at tighthead.

“Jan-Hendrik is also not the most experienced, so we only have Ox. So, we had to bring in cover. We have taken some big chances on players in the past, but we are reasonably sure he will make it from what we have seen from him.”

The Springboks are currently in their second week of training ahead of the season-opener at the Cape Town Stadium.

“It was a bit of a challenge when the Bulls guys came back (from Dublin after the URC final),” Erasmus said.

“They came in on Monday evening, and we had to change our programme a little bit. Some coaches sat with them to catch up on what they have missed, including Handré Pollard.

“On Tuesday, they did fitness tests, not medical ones, that the other boys did last week already.

“From Thursday, we are all on the same programme, and we can compare apples with apples (ahead of the Barbarians).

“I said that game is a bit of a slippery game, but it is the ideal game, and we wanted it.

“We are a team that loves to analyse the opposition and individual players. We will always do that, and Felix (Jones) plays a massive role in that.”

The tricky part, according to Erasmus, is that you can’t do the analysis on the Barbarians because of how they play.

However, they will focus on the individuals who will run out for the invitational side and how to stop them.