Schalk Burger will captain South Africa against New Zealand
Tuesday 21 July 2015 16:34, UK
Schalk Burger will become the 55th Springbok captain on Saturday when he leads South Africa out against New Zealand at Emirates Airline Park in Johannesburg.
The 32-year-old Burger has been named interim captain, in the absence of the injured Jean de Villiers and Victor Matfield. He assumes the captaincy from Matfield, who was ruled out of action in the short term after suffering a hamstring strain in their 24-20 loss to Australia on Saturday.
"Schalk has been a magnificent servant of Springbok rugby and he fully deserves this responsibility," said Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer on Tuesday.
"The resilience he's shown in coming back from serious injury and illness is the kind of qualities I look for in players as well as teams I coach.
"In my eyes, the captaincy is very important and something I never take lightly or want to cheapen. Schalk's character and the fact that he has been a role model for so many through the years made this an easy decision.
"He's always led through example and has distinguished himself as one of the best leaders in South African rugby in the last decade. I'm very excited to see what he can bring in the absence of Jean and Victor."
Humbled
Burger has captained the Stormers in Super Rugby and Western Province in the Currie Cup with distinction and will become the tenth most-capped Springbok on Saturday, winning his 77th cap, moving level with lock forward Mark Andrews.
"I'm a very proud man today, but at the same time I'm humbled by the faith the coach has shown in me," said Burger.
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"Ever since I first put on the Springbok jersey, my dream has been to represent my country with distinction and to make South Africans proud. It's still sinking in that I will actually captain the Boks.
"This is an honour that is bestowed upon only a select few people and I will do whatever is needed for the team. With this position comes massive responsibility and I'm very excited for Saturday."
Watch South Africa v New Zealand live on Sky Sports 1 HD on Saturday from 3.30pm
