To see the team that will take on Japan on Friday, click here, or follow this link to read Rassie Erasmus's comments on the Test.
Facts and Stats
- This is the Springboks’ first Test match in Japan and the second time the teams have met.
- Japan were the opponents in the Springboks’ opening match of the 2015 Rugby World Cup in Brighton, a seaside resort in the county of East Sussex, England.
- On Saturday, 19 September, 2015, Japan defeated Jean de Villiers’ Springboks by two points in the dying moments of the match.
- Japan are the only nation that can boast a positive winning percentage against the Springboks, other than New Zealand.
Head to head v Japan
Played: 1; Lost: 1; Points for: 32; Points against: 34; Tries for: 4; Tries against: 3; Win%: 0%
Team records against Japan
- Most points: 32
- Most tries: 4
- Most conversions: 3
- Most penalty goals: 2
Individual records against Japan
- Most points: 7 – Patrick Lambie
- Most tries: 1 – By four players
- Most conversions: 2 – Patrick Lambie
- Most penalty goals: 1 – Patrick Lambie and Handré Pollard
Miscellaneous
- There are eight players in Friday’s match-23 who also played in the Test in Brighton. They are Jesse Kriel, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Francois Louw, Tendai Mtawarira, Trevor Nyakane, Siya Kolisi, Handré Pollard and Eben Etzebeth.
- The total Test caps for the Springbok starting line-up is 527.
- There are 183 caps in the backline with 344 caps amongst the forwards. On the bench there are a further 369 caps.
- The average caps per player in the backline are 26, the forwards 43 while the players on the bench average 46.
- The average age of the starting fifteen is 27.
Milestones
- Pieter-Steph du Toit will play in his 50th Test match.
Match officials
- The referee is Nic Berry of Australia. This will be his second Test as a referee of a match involving South Africa and the 11th Test of his career.
- The assistant referees are Ben O’Keefe of New Zealand and Graham Cooper of Australia. Shane McDermott (NZ) is the TMO.