Comment: Rob Houwing, Sport24 chief writer

Cape Town – A lot of people are sure to get “emotional” - perhaps that’s putting it mildly? - over the 37-strong Springbok touring squad named in Pretoria on Saturday.

And of course they always do; it’s been a public and pundit phenomenon since kingdom come.

Although he has some aid in the selection process, the latest party -- for a three-Test, five-match mission to Europe -- certainly has a quirky, quintessentially “Peter de Villiers” stamp branded all over it.

But before we break down the inspiration and, in a few instances, borderline insult unveiled at Loftus by the Bok coach and confidantes, it is worth keeping one pertinent thing firmly in mind: the team for the key objective of winning the Tests against France, Italy and Ireland respectively looks as though it will be mercifully free of eccentricity.

For the overwhelming nucleus of the Vodacom Tri-Nations-winning match-day “22s” remain very much intact, save for the fact that old warhorse Juan Smith is injured and Jean de Villiers and Frans Steyn have rendered themselves unavailable for the time being by quitting the domestic scene.

And, happily, the likeliest and most sensible candidates to replace those players on this tour will be among the swollen group heading “north” for a few weeks.

Schalk Burger may well be a comforting shoe-in for the blindside role in Smith’s absence, while the versatile, seasoned Danie Rossouw is similarly at hand for No 7, say, should the northern-hemisphere going be heavy and an imposing, door-stopper foil is sought for open-side bolter Heinrich Brussow.

No more De Villiers at No 12? No major problem: there is a quality stand-in option in Wynand Olivier, plus whispers that Adi Jacobs could be summoned for fresh scrutiny at inside centre despite his more recent stationing in a No 13 jersey.

Also on tour will be Meyer Bosman, who I thought played a pretty strong game in that spot in the pulsating Absa Currie Cup final for the vanquished Cheetahs, and the vibrant young Western Province midfielder Juan de Jongh – although the last-named player is presumably earmarked much more for “dirt-track” (if there are such things in England) activity against Leicester and Saracens.

The main fill-in possibilities for Steyn at fullback are, similarly, passport-ready and not too hard to digest: De Villiers will play either of Zane Kirchner or his floating “Tiger Woods”, Ruan Pienaar.

That out of the way, the more peripheral Springbok squad members can now be scrutinised. And here, it is true, people are rather more entitled to go “what the heck?” (or even substitute the third word of the protest with something altogether fruitier).

Earl Rose … ah, Earl Rose! There is a jaundiced lobby in this country, I feel, who pig-headedly overlook some of the quite sublime things he can do in rugby matches, while rounding quite savagely on his equally prevalent bloopers.

It is nevertheless a source of annoyance that De Villiers slavishly persists with a player too prone to crazy walkabout in provincial and Super 14 rugby to suggest he’d be able to cut it routinely in the unforgiving Test cauldron.

Griquas’ Riaan Viljoen as an additional fullback was also a bit of a forehead-crumpler, although maybe there’s greater method to this apparent madness, as he has a boot almost as booming as Frans Steyn’s and his suitability to higher stages can at least be studied.

In the pack, Sharks lock Alistair Hargreaves getting a ticket is, well, weird, especially coming at the expense of team-mates Steven Sykes and Johann Muller, who had seemed ahead in both the Durban and national pecking order and arguably have better physical attributes for Europe.

But beanpole Hargreaves ought at least to be fresh (something that will not be said about several senior Bok tourists) after playing minimal rugby this year because of long-term injury, and perhaps someone in high places has a gut feel about him … fair enough?

The back-up hooker situation to Bismarck du Plessis is a tad worrisome: Chiliboy Ralepelle failed in his quest to be fit for the Currie Cup final; will he magically be 100 percent to lead the midweek side, as intended, for the tour?

Only other No 2 in the party – unless captain John Smit makes an emergency switch to his old post if necessary -- is Ralepelle’s Bulls colleague Bandise Maku.

The latter is a fine prospect and reportedly an under-rated scrummager, which is a comfort for scrum-conscious Europe, although there remains something mildly bizarre about the Boks rooting for two Bulls hookers who can’t even crack the Loftus first team.

There is a formidable list – very formidable indeed – of players desperately unlucky to miss the cut after standout Currie Cup seasons.

A few that come quickly to mind include Lionel Mapoe, WP Nel, Wian du Preez and Adriaan Strauss (Cheetahs), Sykes (Sharks), Sarel Pretorius (Griquas) and many more from the resurgent Western Province team which came within a whisker of derailing the runaway Bulls freight train at the Currie Cup semi-final stage.

Still, a few coaches and conditioning people around Newlands may, selfishly, be secretly pleased about men like Wicus Blaauw, Anton van Zyl, Tiaan Liebenberg, Francois Louw, Duane Vermeulen, Peter Grant and Joe Pietersen being able to squarely focus, ahead of most, on Super 14 2010 matters.

In summary, yes, there are some Bok picks that seem daft, and may well be proved to be thus.

But do as I have recommended: consider the Test candidates, first and foremost, and then allow some leeway for “experimentation” in the two other, infinitely lesser-gravitas tour fixtures.

Under those circumstances, suddenly the brew doesn’t appear quite as wacky, does it?