Springboks Louw and Grobbelaar drafted into Bulls bench to face All Blacks in Pretoria

The Bulls have made a late addition to their matchday squad for Saturday’s fixture against the All Blacks in Pretoria, drafting in Springbok forwards Elrigh Louw and Johan Grobbelaar to the replacements bench.

Both players were released by the Springboks to gain extra game time ahead of the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series. The Bulls confirmed the pair will come off the bench, having completed only a single training session with the squad after travelling back from Argentina. It is expected that Jaundre Schoeman and Mpilo Gumede will miss out as a result of the late changes, though the club has not officially confirmed who they replace.

Louw and Grobbelaar both started South Africa’s 17-10 victory over Argentina last weekend at the Estadio José Amalfitani in Buenos Aires, meaning they arrive in Pretoria with recent Test minutes in their legs.

“Having been released to get more game time ahead of Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series, Springboks Elrigh Louw and Johan Grobbelaar have been drafted into the Vodacom Bulls’ squad for tomorrow’s match against the All Blacks,” the club said in a statement. “They will play off the bench as they have had just a single training session with the team after travelling back from Argentina.”

Bulls head coach Johan Ackermann welcomed the reinforcements. “It’s great to have them with us, and we’re looking forward to the challenge,” he said.

The All Blacks, under head coach Dave Rennie, arrive in Pretoria in strong form having won both of their tour fixtures so far — a hard-fought victory over the Stormers in Cape Town followed by a commanding win over the Sharks in Durban on Tuesday.

The Bulls, who have named a competitive side despite the absence of several front-line Springboks, will look to test the New Zealanders at altitude in Pretoria.

Probable Bulls line-up: 15 Willie le Roux; 14 Thaakir Abrahams, 13 Stedman Gans, 12 Harold Vorster, 11 Stravino Jacobs; 10 Curwin Bosch, 9 Embrose Papier; 8 Jeandre Rudolph, 7 Hanro Liebenberg, 6 Marcell Coetzee; 5 JF van Heerden, 4 Ruan Vermaak; 3 Francois Klopper, 2 Juann Else, 1 Alulutho Tshakweni.

Replacements: 16 Johan Grobbelaar, 17 Sti Sithole, 18 Khutha Mchunu, 19 Reinhardt Ludwig, 20 Elrigh Louw, 21 Paul de Wet, 22 Katlego Letebele, 23 Hakeem Kunene.