Dan Biggar will lead Wales in Pretoria this weekend, as Wayne Pivac names the Northampton Saints fly-half captain of his first Test side to kick off the team’s tour of South Africa on Saturday.
The 32-year-old will earn his 101st cap as he skippers from fly-half at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday (2 July, kick-off: 4.05pm BST) – with the sold-out clash set to see the Springboks feature in front of a full crowd on home soil for the first time since claiming the Rugby World Cup in 2019.
Head coach Pivac said: “South Africa are world champions. We’ve played them recently in the autumn but we don’t think there will be too much change. They’ve got a very big side, a six-two split on the bench.
“We don’t expect much change from the way they played against us previously and it’s been very effective for them. We’re expecting a very tough game.
“This is our first tour away as a group so it’s fantastic for us. The guys have had a good week’s build up, have really enjoyed each other’s company and just being away in different surroundings. It’s going to be a great atmosphere Saturday, a great challenge and one we’re looking forward to.”
SOUTH AFRICA vs WALES
Saturday 2 July, 2022
Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Kick-off: 4.05pm BST
Live on Sky Sports Action with highlights on S4C
15 Liam Williams (Cardiff Rugby – 78 caps)
14 Louis Rees-Zammit (Gloucester Rugby – 16 caps)
13 George North (Ospreys – 102 caps)
12 Nick Tompkins (Saracens – 20 caps)
11 Josh Adams (Cardiff Rugby – 39 caps)
10 Dan Biggar (Northampton Saints – 100 caps), captain
9 Kieran Hardy (Scarlets – 11 caps)
1 Gareth Thomas (Ospreys – 10 caps)
2 Ryan Elias (Scarlets – 27 caps)
3 Dillon Lewis (Cardiff Rugby – 38 caps)
4 Will Rowlands (Dragons – 18 caps)
5 Adam Beard (Ospreys – 34 caps)
6 Dan Lydiate (Ospreys – 65 caps)
7 Tommy Reffell (Leicester Tigers – uncapped)
8 Taulupe Faletau (Cardiff Rugby – 89 caps)
Replacements:
16 Dewi Lake (Ospreys – 5 caps)
17 Rhys Carre (Cardiff Rugby – 16 caps)
18 Tomas Francis (Ospreys 64 caps)
19 Alun Wyn Jones (Ospreys – 150 caps)
20 Josh Navidi (Cardiff Rugby – 30 caps)
21 Tomos Williams (Cardiff Rugby – 33 caps)
22 Gareth Anscombe (Ospreys – 31 caps)
23 Owen Watkin (Ospreys – 31 caps)
