Springboks ready to 'give everything' in All Blacks series, says Erasmus

Springboks ready to 'give everything' in All Blacks series, says Erasmus

Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus and his squad completed an important two-day training block on Saturday as preparations stepped up for the Rugby's Greatest Rivalry series against the All Blacks.

The Springboks returned to the training field on Friday after spending most of the week recovering from their 17-10 win over Argentina in Buenos Aires and adjusting to the local time zone.

The squad will now have a short break with their families before beginning a full Test week ahead of next Saturday's series opener at Ellis Park.

The teams will meet in four Tests, with the second clash in Cape Town on August 29, followed by Johannesburg on September 5 and the series finale in Baltimore on September 12.

Hooker Johan Grobbelaar and utility forward Elrigh Louw, who were released to play for the Bulls against the All Blacks on Saturday, will rejoin the Springbok squad on Sunday.

"It was important to manage the players who travelled to Argentina well and afford them sufficient time to recover from the match and switch back into the domestic time zone, which is why we only started training as a full group late in the week," said Erasmus.

âœBut we are pleased that the players are well recovered and ready to give everything for the forthcoming Tests against the All Blacks.â

Erasmus says the Boks are viewing the four Tests as a series of knockout matches, as there is no room for error.

âœIt will undoubtedly be a very challenging tournament, but we are looking forward to it as a collective,❠he said. "This series is almost like playing the knock-out stages of a Rugby World Cup because we are facing one of the world's best week in and week out, and we all understand the magnitude of the RGR series.

"It's a new and exciting challenge, and we have been putting in a lot of work behind the scenes, especially the group of coaches and players who remained behind in South Africa in the last two weeks, so we will fine-tune the areas of our game which we would like to improve next week as we get ready to take the field."

Saturday's first Test at Ellis Park kicks off at 17h10.

READ MORE: All Blacks dealt fresh injury blow as Caleb Clarke ruled out of Greatest Rivalry