International Rugby

How Rassie managed workload of his Springboks in Nations Championship

In the 2026 Nations Championship the Springboks used 43 players, yet 27 played less than 80 minutes out of a possible 240 minutes.

Published

1 hour ago

23rd July 2026

Keo

Jesse Kriel of South Africa celebrates after scoring their third try during the 2026 Nations Championship match between South Africa and Wales at Kings Park Stadium on July 18, 2026 in Durban, South Africa. (Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)

Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus rotated and rested players in every one of his Nations Championship Tests but the biggest exception was No 13 Jesse Kriel.

Rassie Erasmus

Kriel and Pieter-Steph du Toit were the only two players in 43 to start and finish all three Nations Championship matches against England, Scotland and Wales.

Kriel also played 80 minutes in the year’s first Springboks outing, against the Barbarians.

Du Toit played 70 minutes against the Barbarians.

Du Toit’s workload was understandable as he missed the entire 2026 of the Japanese League 1 season because of injury. Du Toit played his last match for Toyota Verblitz on the 27th December, 2025 and his first match of 2026 was for the Springboks against the Barbarians.

Erasmus was on record saying he knew Du Toit needed game minutes.

Du Toit, a two-time World Rugby Player of the Year winner, captained the Boks in the absence of the injured Siya Kolisi. He started at No 4 lock against England at Ellis Park, and played the final two Tests as a No 7 flank.

Kriel was the pillar and only consistent the backline, playing 240 minutes in the No 13 jersey.

Kriel, last season, also captained the Boks on a few occasions.

Kriel, in 2026, played 13 matches for the Canon Eagles in six months. His first match for the 2025/26 season was on the 14th December, 2025 and his final league game was on the 9th of May, 2026.

Kriel captained the Eagles.

The Springboks won all three Test matches with Stormers flanker Paul de Villiers the standout rookie of the month. De Villiers made his Boks debut in the opening round against England and started the remaining matches against Scotland and Wales.

Springboks 2026 Nations Championship – Minutes Played

Rank	Player	Matches	Minutes
1	Pieter-Steph du Toit	3	240
1	Jesse Kriel	3	240
3	Paul de Villiers	3	199
4	Damian Willemse	3	181
5	Ruan Nortje	2	160
5	Damian de Allende	2	160
7	Aphelele Fassi	2	139
8	Kurt-Lee Arendse	2	137
9	Malcolm Marx	2	127
10	Jasper Wiese	2	124
11	Manie Libbok	2	113
12	Grant Williams	2	105
12	Ben-Jason Dixon	3	105
14	Gerhard Steenekamp	2	103
15	Jan-Hendrik Wessels	3	86
16	Ruben van Heerden	1	80
16	Cheslin Kolbe	1	80
16	Edwill van der Merwe	1	80
16	Jaco Williams	1	80
20	Cobus Wiese	2	79
21	Handré Pollard	1	77
22	Wilco Louw	2	75
23	Zack Porthen	2	69
24	Cobus Reinach	2	65
25	Johan Grobbelaar	1	61
26	Marco van Staden	2	60
27	Thomas du Toit	1	49
28	Carlu Sadie	1	47
28	Vusi Moyo	1	47
30	Cameron Hanekom	1	46
31	Ethan Hooker	1	45
32	Boan Venter	1	42
32	Evan Roos	1	42
32	Embrose Papier	1	42
35	Elrigh Louw	1	38
35	Quan Horn	1	38
37	Andre-Hugo Venter	1	33
38	Herschelle Jantjies	1	28
39	Ntuthuko Mchunu	1	19
40	Canan Moodie	1	13
41	Andre Esterhuizen	1	10
42	Ox Nche	1	9
43	Vincent Tshituka	1	7

Jesse Kriel – Canon Eagles 2025-26 League One Game Time

League	Date	Opponent	No.	Minutes
League One D1 – R1	14 Dec	Shizuoka Blue Revs	13	80
League One D1 – R4	10 Jan	Urayasu	13	80
League One D1 – R5	17 Jan	Wild Knights	13	80
League One D1 – R6	24 Jan	Kobelco Steelers	13	80
League One D1 – R7	7 Feb	Toyota Verblitz	13	80
League One D1 – R8	14 Feb	BlackRams Tokyo	13	80
League One D1 – R9	22 Feb	Tokyo Sungoliath	13	80
League One D1 – R10	1 Mar	Kubota Spears	13	80
League One D1 – R14	4 Apr	Wild Knights	13	55
League One D1 – R15	18 Apr	Urayasu	13	80
League One D1 – R16	25 Apr	Brave Lupus	13	80
League One D1 – R17	3 May	Sagamihara	13	80
League One D1 – R18	9 May	Shizuoka Blue Revs	13	80