Ross Cronje to miss clash against New Zealand
Allister Coetzee wants South Africa to maintain their unbeaten streak in 2017
©PA
Lions scrum-half Ross Cronje will miss South Africa's upcoming Rugby Championship clash against New Zealand on Saturday due to a stomach bug.
Cronje, who featured for 65 minutes during the game against Wallabies last weekend, has been capped four times for the Springboks - all coming this year has been replaced by Francois Hougaard in the line-up with Bulls' Rudy Paige named on the bench.
Meanwhile, head coach Allister Coetzee has made three other changes to the starting XV with Franco Mostert and Jean-Luc du Preez returning to the line up replacing Pieter-Steph du Toit and Jaco Kriel.
Du Toit moves to the bench after he played for 65 minutes in the game against Australia while Kriel has headed back home with a shoulder injury. With Coenie Oosthuizen also injured with a broken arm, Ruan Dreyer takes his place as tighthead prop.
Coetzee believes South Africa need to be at the top of their game, if they are to upstage the All Blacks and maintain their unbeaten streak in 2017.
"They are the number one side in the world both in rankings and experience and there is no greater contest than to play them in New Zealand," said Coetzee.
"The rivalry between the two sides are filled with rich history, and on Saturday we get an opportunity to be part of that. They are always at their best when playing the Springboks and we are expecting another huge battle.
"There are no room for errors against the All Blacks because they will punish you for every mistake. We prepared well for this challenge and we will get another opportunity to gain more valuable experience as we continue to grow as a team."
South Africa line-up to face New Zealand: 15. Andries Coetzee, 14. Raymond Rhule, 13. Jesse Kriel, 12. Jan Serfontein, 11. Courtnall Skosan, 10. Elton Jantjies, 9. Ross Cronje, 8. Uzair Cassiem, 7. Jean-Luc du Preez, 6. Siya Kolisi, 5. Franco Mostert, 4. Eben Etzebeth (captain), 3. Ruan Dreyer, 2. Malcolm Marx, 1. Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements: 16. Bongi Mbonambi, 17. Steven Kitshoff, 18. Trevor Nyakane, 19. Lood de Jager, 20. Pieter-Steph du Toit , 21. Francois Hougaard, 22. Handre Pollard, 23. Damian de Allende.
