PRETORIA : A new ‘old’ coach and several players returning to the side make Australia an unknown quantity for South Africa, according to Springbok captain Duane Vermeulen, as they prepare for their Rugby Championship opener at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.
Coach Eddie Jones will lead Australia for the first time since 2005 as he reprises the role with the aim of getting his side up to speed in the two months ahead of the Rugby World Cup in France.
Mercurial flyhalf Quade Cooper also returns from a long-term injury absence, while there are four potential new caps for the visitors as they seek to break their Pretoria jinx, where they have not won in six previous visits.
“We are going to have to be adaptable,” Vermeulen told reporters on Friday. “We can only prepare using what we know from last year in the Rugby Championship and their end-of-year tour. Obviously things have changed since then.
“Eddie has selected some old heads, but guys who bring a different flavour to the game. Quade Cooper has a lot of skill, he will bring his little circus tricks and the things that make him a special player.
“We have got how we want to play, and they will have their plan. Then you have to adapt and see what unfolds in front of you.
“Luckily we have some strong decision-makers on the field, guys that can say, ‘let’s focus on this, or try to do that’, whether it be on defence or attack.”
The Springboks have chosen to split their squad having already sent an advance party of mostly experienced players to New Zealand for their second Rugby Championship fixture against the All Blacks in Auckland on July 15.
Vermeulen says those left behind who will feature against Australia have plenty to prove.
“Everyone is pushing for a (World Cup) spot,” he said. “You might say there are certain guys who have nailed down positions, but as players everyone is pushing, in some instances to start games and in others to make the squad (for France).”
Vermeulen, 37, believes he is in the best physical shape for some time having skipped the Boks’ end of season tour last year, and having had his game-time managed by Ulster last season.
“I don’t have any strapping on my body anymore so for the first time in a long while I am feeling good,” he said.
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