Warrick Gelant is relishing the prospect of lining up alongside Duhan van der Merwe for the first time since their Outeniqua High School days when the Barbarians face the Springboks in Gqeberha on 20 June.
The two attended school together and moved to the Bulls at the same time, but a professional partnership never materialised as Van der Merwe's career took him to Scotland and international rugby with the Scottish national side. The BaaBaas squad brings them back into the same jersey more than a decade later.
"We went to the Bulls at the same time, and I thought we might get a chance to play together there, but we never got it," Gelant said after the Barbarians' training session in Cape Town on Monday. "For obvious reasons, he's in Scotland and playing for their national team, and we thought that dream was down the drain. And then last night we got together and realised we're back together, so it's special."
The Barbarians squad also includes Alex Nankivell, TJ Perenara and coaches Scott Robertson and Felipe Contepomi.
Gelant pushed back on any suggestion the visitors would approach the match without structure or accountability. "It's not necessarily about going out and just doing what we want on the pitch without taking responsibility. The Boks are the world champions, and there's almost no weakness in their team, which makes things very difficult but which is also very exciting. Balancing the hard graft and flashy work — that will be the challenge."