Coetzee keeps faith in his hotshot go-to man

team would be working very hard on their fundamentals ahead of the Scarlets clash.

“We will have some time to do some conditioning work which we did not have time to do prior to the start of Pro14. The team will work on those things,” said Davids.

“The Kings will not focus on things that are not in our control and point fingers to circumstances. We want to embrace every opportunity to play Pro14 wherever we play it and we just want to get better as players.

“I was very happy with the five tries against Ulster and I do not think there was anything wrong with the plan. We could have scored even more tries.

“We talked about the feeling after the Ulster game in the cloakroom and we do not want to feel like that anymore.

“The team will not have a break before the Ulster game. I also plan to have a trial game and select two trial teams and get in one or two guys that I would like to take a look at.

“That will enable us to look at different combinations and what the depth of our squad looks like. We also want one or two culture workshop sessions where we continue working on our environment,” said Davids. BARREL chested number eight Duane Vermeulen is back in the Bok squad.

He returns as official replacement for prop Coenie Oosthuizen whose tour is over‚ but in reality has been called up as stand-in for the concussed Pieter-Steph du Toit.

Vermeulen‚ who last played for the Boks in their victory over Ireland last year‚ has only played two Tests under coach Allister Coetzee. He also played in the first Test of that series.

Although Coetzee is increasingly loathed to select foreign-based players‚ Vermeulen’s skill set matches what the coach is looking for.

That much became apparent in the way the coach illuminated what Du Toit had to offer. Whether Vermeulen will leapfrog other squad members into the starting team remains to be seen. Either way‚ Du Toit’s injury has come as a blow.

Usually a lock‚ Du Toit’s efficacy on the side of the scrum had been questioned before he packed down there with some punch against New Zealand in Cape Town.

His partnership with Siya Kolisi and Francois Louw worked on the day.

He delivered another honest shift against Ireland last weekend‚ although most Bok performances of that calibre were drowned out by mediocrity elsewhere.

“He left the field with five minutes left [against Ireland] for a concussion test which he unfortunately failed‚” said team doctor Conrad von Hagen.

“We’ll follow the normal concussion protocol to determine his return to play but he won’t be available for selection this weekend.”

It comes in the back of tighthead Oosthuizen’s devastating injury.

“He had a scan in Dublin and it was a MCL and ACL tear which means he will need surgery and he’ll be out for an extended period.

“He’s on his way home where he’ll see a knee surgeon as soon as possible‚” said Von Hagen.