Springboks considering two test teams

The Springboks believe they now have the ability to select two different test teams, one for each hemisphere.

South African Rugby Union chief executive Jurie Roux raised that possibility as former Super Rugby outfits the Southern Kings and Cheetahs get set to play in Europe’s Pro 14 championship.

‘‘From a rugby point of view, we now have the opportunity to adapt to conditions in the north quicker. The first game of the autumn is really a tough test match because of not being used to those conditions and the environment,’’ Roux told The Telegraph.

‘‘Now in terms of preparing our players for the conditions of the north, you might end up seeing two different Springbok sides being selected; one for inbounds [the June test series] and the Rugby Championship, and one for outbounds [European tours] in conditions that are completely different, and choosing players paced for that.’’

South Africa, who regularly lose star players to rich European and Japanese clubs, are already eager to expand their official northern resources.

Jourie said his organisation’s ambition was to have eight professional franchises in South Africa and have four of those playing in Super Rugby and the other four in Europe.

‘‘I can promise you that if we had more teams to move [into Europe] at this stage then we would do so. There is a massive interest. We envisage two more franchises in South African rugby in the near future with the opportunity to play in the north.

‘‘There are only about three or four potential teams who could really [turn professional], based on the criteria of economic feasibility and sustainability, plus whether they have the support base and quality of players.’’

Keeping the Kings and Cheetahs active after losing their places in the revamped Super Rugby championship for next year was crucial and Roux was delighted with the way they had managed to achieve that.