Duane is good to go

Western Province coach Allister Coetzee was not surprised to see Duane Vermeulen named at No.8 for the Springboks.

The abrasive loose forward will make his Springbok debut against Australia in Perth this weekend despite having only recently returned to action from a long-term knee injury.

Vermeulen played for Western Province for 40 minutes against Griquas and then just over 60 minutes against the Lions the following week, but Coetzee says that he will be able to make an impact at Test level regardless.

"He would have played 80 minutes for us this week, I guarantee that Duane will be able to give a good account of himself, so his inclusion wasn't a surprise to me," he said.

Coetzee said that Vermeulen's game suits Bok coach Heyneke Meyer's approach perfectly and tipped him to put in a big performance this weekend.

"I think that what the national coach wants is big, aggressive players and Duane fits the bill definitely.

"I have got no doubt that Duane will make a huge contribution in that Bok side for Saturday. For us his physicality is always unbelievably important, his skillset as a defensive player is fantastic, he is a great contester in the line-outs and he is no slouch when it comes to ball-carrying," he said.