Mapoe in as Boks opt for consistency

Cape Town - Lionel Mapoe will replace Jesse Kriel at outside centre in the only change to the Springbok line-up for the second Test against France in Durban on Saturday (kick-off 17:05 SA time).

Springbok coach Allister Coetzee named an otherwise unchanged team on Thursday for the second encounter against Les Blues at Kings Park.

Mapoe returns to the Springbok starting line-up as replacement for Kriel, who is unavailable after he suffered a blow to the head last Saturday at Loftus Versfeld.

All five players who made their Test debuts last weekend - Andries Coetzee (fullback), Raymond Rhule (right wing), Courtnall Skosan (left wing), Ross Cronje (scrumhalf) and Dillyn Leyds (outside back) - were retained by Coetzee, who said he wanted to maintain continuity and build momentum.

“We kept changes to a minimum and one change to the squad means we can continue to work on our continuity, which is so important,” said Coetzee.

“This is a new group, so playing together again means that the important combinations are gaining more experience. It is also nice to reward good performances and all of them deserve another opportunity.”

Coetzee said the Springboks worked hard during training this week and called for improvements in all areas of their game, especially as the French are expected to be bolstered this week with the inclusion of several players from Clermont and Toulon, who were not available for the opening Test.

With Kriel not available for the Durban encounter, the Springbok coach explained that the decision to select Mapoe next to Serfontein was an easy one.

“Jan Serfontein had a very good match at inside centre in Pretoria and we wanted a specialist at No 13 as replacement for Jesse, so Mapoe is a logical choice. It also means we’re preventing making two changes to the team,” said Coetzee.

The Springbok coach reckons France will no doubt increase their physicality and effort in the second Test.

“The forward battle will always be a very important part of the game,” said Coetzee.

“We know we will be up against a very well prepared French team in the second Test and we are readying ourselves for that. They would like to bounce back and we would like to continue with our processes. Both teams have a lot to too play for.

“Although not perfect, I’m pleased with the set-pieces and expect a huge onslaught from the French in both areas. We created a number of scoring opportunities, which is a great positive, and hopefully our execution will be better this time.”

Earlier, France confirmed eight changes to their starting line-up.

Teams:

South Africa

15 Andries Coetzee, 14 Raymond Rhule, 13 Lionel Mapoe, 12 Jan Serfontein, 11 Courtnall Skosan, 10 Elton Jantjies, 9 Ross Cronje, 8 Warren Whiteley (captain), 7 Oupa Mohoje, 6 Siya Kolisi, 5 Franco Mostert, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Tendai Mtawarira

Substitutes: 16 Bongi Mbonambi, 17 Steven Kitshoff, 18 Coenie Oosthuizen, 19 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 20 Jean-Luc du Preez, 21 Francois Hougaard, 22 Frans Steyn, 23 Dillyn Leyds

France

15 Scott Spedding, 14 Yoann Huget, 13 Damian Penaud, 12 Gaël Fickou, 11 Virimi Vakatawa, 10 François Trinh-Duc, 9 Baptiste Serin, 8 Louis Picamoles, 7 Kévin Gourdon, 6 Yacouba Camara, 5 Romain Taofifeuna, 4 Yoann Maestri, 3 Rabah Slimani, 2 Guilhem Guirado (captain), 1 Jefferson Poirot

Substitutes: 16 Clément Maynadier, 17 Eddy Ben Arous, 18 Uini Atonio, 19 Julien le Devedec, 20 Bernard le Roux, 21 Antoine Dupont, 22 Jean-Marc Doussain, 23 Nans Ducuing