Barbarians bank on De Jongh

Springbok centre Juan de Jongh has been added to the Barbarians squad for the match against Australia at Twickenham.

The Western Province captain enjoyed a great season in the Currie Cup, where his five tries have helped his side into Saturday's final. Despite his form, De Jongh looks set to be overlooked by Bok coach Heyneke Meyer, who has instead opted for Jan Serfontein and JP Pietersen in De Jongh's preferred outside centre berth this season.

De Jongh, along with Cheetahs scrumhalf Sarel Pretorius, is the latest South African to be selected for the prestigious club side after several Currie Cup players were called up earlier this month.

Coach John Kirwan has also drawn on his homeland, with a number of New Zealanders also finding their way into the squad after missing out on All Blacks selection. Colin Slade and Steven Luatua lead the way, with Crusaders duo of Dominic Bird and Matt Todd being added to an imposing pack.

Three Argentinian internationals were also added to the mix on Tuesday. The trio featured in Los Pumas' recent victory over the Wallabies.

Barbarians squad – Adam Thompson, Francis Saili, Frank Halai, Tim Nanai-Williams, Patrick Osborne, Fumiaki Tanaka, Mo Schwalger, James Parsons, Nic Cummins, Marnitz Boshoff, Matt Stevens, CJ van der Linde, Coenie Oosthuizen, Thomas du Toit, Michael Rhodes, Jacques Botes, Heinrich Brüssow, Mattias Alemano, Joaquín Tuculet, Tomas Cubelli, Matt Todd, Steven Luatua, Colin Slade, Angus Ta’avao, Dominic Bird, Sarel Pretorius, Juan de Jongh.

Photo: Barry Aldworth/BackpagePix