WESSELS WARNS THAT BOKS WILL HAVE TO PUT THEIR...

UTILITY forward Jan-Hendrik Wessels says he will play wherever he is needed in the Springboks' first Test of the season against Italy at Loftus on Saturday. 

Equally adept at playing prop and hooker, the 24-year-old said he doesn’t mind which role he has to fill when he takes the field.

With three Tests to his name, Wessels explained: “I don’t have a preference. I just want to contribute wherever I am picked, and as much as I feel for Gerhard [Steenekamp] when he got injured, having to play both positions certainly helped me in getting game time at prop and hooker.”

Of what they can expect from Italy, he added: “We want to go into this match setting a high standard for ourselves. We have massive respect for all the teams we face, and knowing how strong their scrums are, we really want to make a big impact in the set pieces.”

Bok assistant coach Daan Human echoed the front-rower’s feelings, saying: “Unlike the Barbarians, who do not play regularly, Italy do, so we will be facing a proper Test team.

“The one thing about the Springboks is that we do not underestimate any side, and we know that Italy are very focused on their forward play, so it will be a proper Test match.”

Human elaborated on Italy’s performances this season and in the set pieces: “They were very competitive in their first two Six Nations matches, and they have a 93 percent scrum completion rate, which says a lot about that area of their game.

“They also won four scrum penalties and got a penalty try against Namibia, who had a few players who have played in Rugby World Cups before, so we certainly respect them as a team.

“We are not sure who they will play in the pack this weekend, but we know it will be a good contest.”

Coach Rassie Erasmus will name his matchday squad for the game on Tuesday.