Boks without Etzebeth for Wales Test
Springbok lock Eben Etzebeth has been sent home ahead of the final Test of the end of year tour.
Etzebeth will fly home on Tuesday as he continues to recover from concussion. The burly lock had a sickening head clash with England eighthman Billy Vunipola in the Boks' 37-21 loss at Twickenham.
He missed the Springboks' 20-18 loss to Italy on Saturday as he went through the return to play protocol.
With only one Test left on tour, the Springbok coaching staff have opted not to call up a replacement for Etzebeth. Lood de Jager and Pieter-Steph du Toit are likely to start against Wales, with Franco Mostert providing cover from the bench. If need be, Willem Alberts can also shuffle into the second row.
After a taxing three weeks of rugby, the Bok coaching staff have decided to reduce the workload in practice this week so that the players go into the Wales clash as fresh as possible.
“They might not be happy with their form of late, but Wales have a quality side, an experienced side. You can say we are both in the same boat at the moment, so it will be a massive Test on Saturday," Springbok coach Allister Coetzee said.
“We will try and keep it simple and we will have clear, simple focus for the week. We want to be mentally sharp and go into the match with fresh energy."
The Boks will name their side to face Wales on Thursday.
If you missed the England-Springbok game, this is the incident where Etzebeth was concussed.
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