Former Springbok captain Victor Matfield believes JJ van der Mescht could emerge as Rassie Erasmus' surprise selection of 2026 after the lock's impressive form for Northampton Saints.
Van der Mescht, who stands 145kg, joined the English club from Stade Francais in 2025 and has transformed his career in the Premiership after four seasons in Paris where he struggled to make an impact. The 27-year-old's performances earned him a place in Erasmus' alignment camp in March.
"JJ van der Mescht from Northampton, 145kgs, has got a call-up. He went over to France as a youngster, went up to about 170kgs at some stage playing for Stade Francais," Matfield said on the Rivals podcast. "I saw him play as a youngster and at schoolboy level he was just unbelievable. He's big but he's fast, he's got great skills."
Matfield suggested Van der Mescht could fill the void left by RG Snyman, who is out for the year. "He won't be used a lot in the lineout, he will be the guy running it up in the midfield and he's got great skills – off-loading and getting through those tackles. I think he might just be the big surprise that Rassie brings in this year."
The former lock also welcomed the inclusion of Bulls scrum-half Embrose Papier in Erasmus' most recent alignment camp, describing his previous omissions as surprising given his form for the Pretoria side.