South Africa, reigning Rugby World Cup champions, will welcome Italy for a two-test series next July, Cape {town} Etc reports.
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Italy has shown notable improvement in their recent campaigns, achieving their best Six Nations performance in years. They secured victories over Scotland and Wales, earned a draw against France, and only suffered defeats to England and Ireland.
Historically, the Springboks have dominated encounters with Italy, winning 15 out of 16 meetings since their first clash in Rome in 1995 – the same year South Africa claimed their first World Cup title. Their most recent match took place two years ago in Genoa, where South Africa cruised to a commanding 63-21 victory.
Meanwhile, the Springboks will be without Salmaan Moerat for their November tour of Britain, as the lock forward is recovering from knee surgery. The 26-year-old, who represents the Cape Town-based Stormers, will only be fit to play at the end of November, assistant coach Dawie Snyman confirmed.
Moerat will miss the two home Vodacom United Rugby Championship fixtures against Munster and Glasgow Warrior that the Cape side will play before the international break in November.
During the upcoming tour, South Africa will face Scotland in Edinburgh on 10 November, England in London on 16 November, and Wales in Cardiff on 23 November. Scotland and England were among the six nations South Africa defeated en route to their record-breaking fourth Rugby World Cup title last year.
Moerat, who earned seven caps this year and captained the national team three times in Siya Kolisi’s absence, leaves the Springbok coaching staff with a selection challenge. Head coach Rassie Erasmus will likely rely on Eben Etzebeth – now the most-capped Springbok with 128 Test appearances – alongside Ruan Nortje, RG Snyman, and Jean Kleyn to fill the second-row positions during the tour.
Although specific match dates and venues are yet to be confirmed, the Springboks have played across several cities this year, including Pretoria, Durban, Bloemfontein, Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Mbombela.
In addition to the Italian series, South Africa will host another rugby union side in July – most likely Georgia – marking a busy mid-year schedule.
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Picture: Adam Pretty / Gallo Images
