{"id":94213,"date":"2026-04-24T14:55:16","date_gmt":"2026-04-24T12:55:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ssschoolsplus.co.za\/?p=94213"},"modified":"2026-04-24T14:55:16","modified_gmt":"2026-04-24T12:55:16","slug":"norton-to-lead-junior-boks-against-physical-los-pumitas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/?p=94213","title":{"rendered":"Norton to lead Junior Boks against physical Los Pumitas"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
Vusi Moyo, Riley Norton, and Kevin Foote (Photo: SA Rugby)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Riley Norton will lead the Junior Springboks in their 2026 Under-20 Rugby Championship opener against Argentina\u2019s Los Pumitas on Monday, as they aim to make an immediate impact in front of their home crowd in Gqeberha.<\/p>\n

The match at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium starts at 16h10 and will be broadcast live on SuperSport.<\/p>\n

Norton, who led the SA U20s to the Junior World Championship title in Italy last year, will captain an exciting-looking side, with fellow 2025 JWC winners Rambo Kubheka (prop) also in the starting lineup, while Oliver Reid (prop) and Vusi Moyo (flyhalf) are primed to make an impact from the bench.<\/p>\n

The Junior Boks\u2019 match-23 is a blend of familiar faces who have been part of the squad set-up over the past few months, along with several promising players who featured for the successful SA U18 team last year.<\/p>\n

Moyo returns to action after a hip injury ruled him out of the tour to Georgia earlier this year, and he is set to provide cover from the replacements\u2019 bench against a tenacious Los Pumitas outfit. Reid will also bring valuable experience when he enters the match.<\/p>\n

FNB UCT wing Jack Benade has been rewarded for his form during the recently completed FNB Varsity Cup, as well as for impressing during the two-week training camp in Stellenbosch. He will wear the No\u202f14 jersey, with Lindsey Jansen occupying the opposite wing.<\/p>\n

With Markus Muller (inside centre) called up to the DHL Stormers camp, the Junior Boks\u2019 midfield combination will now feature the powerful Ethan Adams at inside centre, partnered by Samuel Badenhorst on the outside.<\/p>\n

Alzeadon Felix, an injury replacement at the global showpiece in Italy last year, will start at fullback to complete the back three, while Yaqeen Ahmed and Hendr\u00e9 Schoeman will form the halfback pairing, rounding off the starting backline.<\/p>\n

Up front, Kubheka and Danie Kruger will pack down on either side of Liam van Wyk (hooker), while Norton will be partnered in the engine room by Heinrich Theron.<\/p>\n

Luke Canon, Kebotile Maake and Thomas Beling form the loose trio combination, with the task of curbing the Argentine threat at the breakdown \u2013 an area where a fierce contest is expected between the two sides.<\/p>\n

Reflecting on his matchday squad, Junior Bok head coach Kevin Foote said they are under no illusion about what to expect from Argentina on Monday.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are known for their physicality and their solid set piece, so we know we will have to steady ourselves for a very tough contest,\u201d said Foote.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur recent contests have been very close \u2013 they played exceptionally well against us in this tournament last year, and we had to dig very deep to overcome them in the semi-final of the World Championship last year in Italy.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Junior Bok coach said they enjoyed a warm welcome in the Friendly City along the Eastern Cape coast and were eager to make the people of the region proud with a good performance.<\/p>\n

\u201cArgentina, like the other southern hemisphere sides, prefer a high-tempo game with plenty of ball in play,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are a battle-hardened, tenacious outfit, and we will have to work extremely hard throughout the contest if we want to impose ourselves.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur DNA is our physicality, and we are looking forward to playing an exciting brand of rugby.\u201d<\/p>\n

Apart from Muller, the Junior Boks will also be without the services of Cheswill Jooste (wing, Vodacom Bulls) and Zekhethelo Siyaya (fullback, Hollywoodbets Sharks), both of whom are on Vodacom United Rugby Championship duty.<\/p>\n

Luan Giliomee (utility back) and Siphosethu Mnebelele (hooker) are also unavailable for selection due to injury.<\/p>\n

The Junior Boks\u2019 clash against Argentina kicks off at 16h10 and will be preceded by the tournament opener between Australia and New Zealand at 14h00. The SANZAAR U20 Rugby Championship will feature the best young talent from South Africa, New Zealand, Australia and Argentina.<\/p>\n

Tickets for the U20 Rugby Championship will be priced from only R35 per person per day for two matches, and will be sold exclusively by Ticketmaster \u2013 CLICK HERE<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Junior Springbok side to take on Argentina U20 in Gqeberha:<\/strong><\/p>\n

15. \u2060Alzeadon Felix
\n14. \u2060Jack Benade
\n13. \u2060Samuel Badenhorst
\n12. \u2060Ethan Adam
\n11. \u2060Lindsey Jansen
\n10. \u2060Yaqeen Ahmed
\n9. \u2060Hendr\u00e9 Schoeman
\n8. \u2060Kebotile Maake
\n7. \u2060Thomas Beling
\n6. \u2060Luke Canon
\n5. \u2060Riley Norton (captain)
\n4. \u2060Heinrich Theron
\n3. \u2060Danie Kruger
\n2. \u2060Liam van Wyk
\n1. Rambo Kubheka<\/p>\n

Replacements<\/strong><\/p>\n

16. \u2060Mahle Sithole
\n17. \u2060Oliver Reid
\n18. \u2060Kai Pratt
\n19. \u2060JD Hattingh
\n20. \u2060Risima Khosa
\n21. \u2060Jayden Brits
\n22. Vusi Moyo
\n23. \u2060Khuthadzo Rasivhaga<\/p>\n

U20 Rugby Championship fixtures (all matches live on SuperSport):<\/strong><\/p>\n

Monday, 27 April<\/strong><\/p>\n

14h00: New Zealand v Australia<\/p>\n

16h10: Junior Boks v Argentina<\/p>\n

Sunday, 3 May<\/strong><\/p>\n

14h00: New Zealand v Argentina<\/p>\n

16h10: Junior Boks v Australia<\/p>\n

Saturday, 9 May<\/strong><\/p>\n

14h00: Argentina v Australia<\/p>\n

16h10: Junior Boks v New Zealand<\/p>\n

Issued by SA Rugby Communications<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Riley Norton will lead the Junior Springboks in their 2026 Under-20 Rugby Championship opener against Argentina\u2019s Los Pumitas on Monday, as they aim to make an immediate impact in front of their home crowd in Gqeberha. The match at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium starts at 16h10 and will be broadcast live on SuperSport. Norton, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":85789,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-94213","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94213","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=94213"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94213\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/85789"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=94213"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=94213"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=94213"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}