Boan Venter and Marnus van der Merwe in line for Bok debuts against Georgia

Boan Venter and Marnus van der Merwe in line for Bok debuts against Georgia

Edinburgh prop Boan Venter and Scarlets hooker Marnus van der Merwe look set to make their Springbok debuts against Georgia on Saturday.

Fresh off back-to-back wins over Italy, Bok coach Rassie Erasmus is keen to continue building depth and give promising players their first chance on the international stage.

"I think we would love to give a few guys their first Test. Boan and Marnus should be in the picture," the Bok mentor revealed on Saturday.

Both Venter and Van der Merwe have been involved in the squad this season but have yet to earn their first official Springbok caps.

Looking beyond the weekend's Test, Erasmus outlined plans to start paring down the squad with an eye towards next month's Rugby Championship.

"We've taken the entire group to Mbombela and will possibly only keep some squad members here until Wednesday," he added.

"After the Test against Georgia, the entire squad will get a week off. We'll probably then call in around 35 players before we play against Australia."

The Boks open their Rugby Championship campaign against the Wallabies in Johannesburg on 16 August, followed by the second Test in Cape Town a week later.

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