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Cape Town - Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer believes Cheetahs lock Lood de Jager could become a big name in Bok rugby.
De Jager, 21, has been included on the Springbok bench for the Test against Wales in Durban on Saturday and will make his Test debut if he gets on.
He replaces Flip van der Merwe on the bench, after the latter was released to attend his brother's wedding.
De Jager has been in fine form for the Cheetahs in Super Rugby this year, and with Eben Etzebeth and Pieter-Steph du Toit out injured, he got his chance in the Springbok squad.
Meyer, in an interview with the Volksblad website, said De Jager could become a big name in Bok rugby and equal the 50-Test milestone prop Gurthrö Steenkamp is set to reach on Saturday.
Meyer described De Jager as a typical South African lock: "He is hard as nails, a good ball-carrier and has shed a few kilograms by working hard on his conditioning."
Meyer said the fact that De Jager can play at No 4 or No 5 lock makes him a good impact player. The coach was also impressed to learn that the 2.05m giant earned three distinctions in his final year at school.
Kick-off for Saturday's Test at Kings Park is scheduled for 17:05.
Teams:
Springboks:
15 Willie le Roux, 14 Cornal Hendricks, 13 JP Pietersen, 12 Jan Serfontein, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Morné Steyn, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Willem Alberts, 6 Francois Louw, 5 Victor Matfield (captain), 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Gurthrö Steenkamp
Substitutes: 16 Schalk Brits, 17 Tendai Mtawarira, 18 Coenie Oosthuizen, 19 Lood de Jager, 20 Schalk Burger, 21 Ruan Pienaar, 22 Johan Goosen, 23 Lwazi Mvovo
Wales:
15 Liam Williams, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 George North, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Taulupe Faletau, 7 Aaron Shingler, 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Alun Wyn Jones (captain), 4 Luke Charteris, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Ken Owens, 1 Gethin Jenkins
Substitutes: 16 Matthew Rees, 17 Paul James, 18 Samson Lee, 19 Ian Evans, 20 Josh Turnbull, 21 Gareth Davies, 22 James Hook, 23 Matthew Morgan
De Jager, 21, has been included on the Springbok bench for the Test against Wales in Durban on Saturday and will make his Test debut if he gets on.
He replaces Flip van der Merwe on the bench, after the latter was released to attend his brother's wedding.
De Jager has been in fine form for the Cheetahs in Super Rugby this year, and with Eben Etzebeth and Pieter-Steph du Toit out injured, he got his chance in the Springbok squad.
Meyer, in an interview with the Volksblad website, said De Jager could become a big name in Bok rugby and equal the 50-Test milestone prop Gurthrö Steenkamp is set to reach on Saturday.
Meyer described De Jager as a typical South African lock: "He is hard as nails, a good ball-carrier and has shed a few kilograms by working hard on his conditioning."
Meyer said the fact that De Jager can play at No 4 or No 5 lock makes him a good impact player. The coach was also impressed to learn that the 2.05m giant earned three distinctions in his final year at school.
Kick-off for Saturday's Test at Kings Park is scheduled for 17:05.
Teams:
Springboks:
15 Willie le Roux, 14 Cornal Hendricks, 13 JP Pietersen, 12 Jan Serfontein, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Morné Steyn, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Willem Alberts, 6 Francois Louw, 5 Victor Matfield (captain), 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Gurthrö Steenkamp
Substitutes: 16 Schalk Brits, 17 Tendai Mtawarira, 18 Coenie Oosthuizen, 19 Lood de Jager, 20 Schalk Burger, 21 Ruan Pienaar, 22 Johan Goosen, 23 Lwazi Mvovo
Wales:
15 Liam Williams, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 George North, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Taulupe Faletau, 7 Aaron Shingler, 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Alun Wyn Jones (captain), 4 Luke Charteris, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Ken Owens, 1 Gethin Jenkins
Substitutes: 16 Matthew Rees, 17 Paul James, 18 Samson Lee, 19 Ian Evans, 20 Josh Turnbull, 21 Gareth Davies, 22 James Hook, 23 Matthew Morgan
