Cape Town - What a difference 10 days make.
Having gone from opposing each other in the 2019 Rugby World Cup final in early November, Springbok prop Tendai "Beast" Mtawarira now finds himself playing for England coach Eddie Jones!
Mtawarira is one of nine Springboks (and three from this year's World Cup-winning squad) included in Jones' Barbarians squad for matches against Fiji (November 16), Brazil (November 20) and Wales (November 30).
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Mtawarira, 34, shocked the rugby world by announcing his retirement from international rugby and the Sharks, but did leave the door open for a possible stint abroad.
Mtawarira retired after 117 Tests - making him the third-most capped Springbok player and the fifth-highest capped prop of all time.
Jones, for his part, experienced the highs of seeing his England side knock defending champions New Zealand out of the World Cup in the semi-finals, only to admit to mistakes in selection for the final in Yokohama as South Africa romped to their third Webb Ellis Cup victory.
In a light-hearted moment in a Barbarians squad gathering on Tuesday, Jones spotted something he liked on Beast's wrist. The video below is definitely worth, um, a watch...
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- Compiled by Garrin Lambley
Eddie Jones ?????????????? and The Beast ???? meeting in camp after being opponents in the @rugbyworldcup Final...
— Barbarian FC (@Barbarian_FC) November 12, 2019
There’s something The Beast has that Eddie likes...??
Definitely worth a watch ????#Baabaas #rugby #rugbyunited #RWC2019 ?? pic.twitter.com/2iSIzZBM32