Earl Rose is not getting enough recognition and deserves his place in the Springbok year-end tour. This is the view of Bok coach Peter de Villiers, who answered the critics that felt he may have made a few selection blunders.

De Villiers, addressing the media after the team announcement in Pretoria, admitted the Free State Cheetahs flyer and Bok Sevens hero Lionel Mapoe may be one of the unlucky players not to make the squad.

However, the Bok mentor said Rose - who has been named as a fullback for the tour - had in fact shown good form in the Currie Cup and just needs more regular game time.

Even though Rose was dropped by Golden Lions coach Hans Coetzee - with Varsity Cup star Earl Lewis preferred ahead of an indifferent Rose until the former got injured - De Villiers feels Rose just needs more game time.

"I looked at guys like Earl and Juan de Jongh and selected them ahead of Lionel [Mapoe], due to the make-up of the squad and the team dynamic," De Villiers told a media gathering.

Rose can make the difference

The Bok coach made it clear that when Rose played for him at junior level he "won games for South Africa" against top countries like New Zealand and Australia and that he deserves a chance to show that he can also do that at senior level.

De Villiers also felt that Rose "actually made the difference to the Lions at the end of the season" and he ascribed their improved form in the latter stages of the Currie Cup to much of his contribution.

"He just needs more chances. He's a confidence player, and the more he plays, the better he gets," De Villiers said.

De Villiers said the two midweek matches on the tour - against Leicester Tigers and Saracens - will also be used to test the next level of players and some of the newcomers a chance to show their worth.

"I'm from the old school, I like the old style tours where you can breach that gap between the guys who would normally play Tests and the guys would fill in when they are not available.

"This is a great opportunity to do just that.

"I think we have a nice blend of experienced players to do the job for us."

There are unfortunate players

He admitted that in some cases there may be reason for players to be unhappy - such as Blue Bulls hooker and stand-in captain Derick Kuun, who has played ahead of Bok tourists Chiliboy Ralepelle and Bandise Maku all year.

"If you look at the first string of players [in those provincial teams], they are the guys who will leave the scene at the same time as our [current] first choice Bok players will leave the scene," De Villiers explained, suggesting that Kuun won't be around after Bismarck du Plessis departs.

"We are looking ahead and we want to remain No.1 for years.

"So we are trying to breach that gap and we don't want to be caught with our pants down.

"There is still life after [the] 2011 [World Cup] and whoever takes the [Bok] team then, we want to leave them a legacy."

De Villiers also defended his decision to select players who haven't got much Super 14 experience.

"Jean de Villiers made his first Test start before he had played Super 14 rugby. It's a good risk to take.

"You can't describe guys like Bandise Maku as second-stringers. Just look at the quality of guys at the Bulls, Danie Rossouw is also second-choice. They've shown when on the field that if they were at other unions, they'd be first-choice."

  • On page two of this article, De Villiers discusses the non-selection of Ricky Januarie...