Rassie Erasmus has confirmed that Handré Pollard, Grant Williams and Canan Moodie will all travel to Baltimore and be available for selection in the fourth and final Test of the Greatest Rivalry series at M&T Bank Stadium.
The trio will join the squad on Sunday's charter flight — shared with the All Blacks — departing days after the third Test at FNB Stadium. Erasmus confirmed all three are expected to be fit for the series finale.
Pollard has been managing a calf injury that handed Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu the flyhalf jersey across the recent Tests. Williams has recovered from the grade one hamstring strain he suffered in the opening Test defeat at Ellis Park, while Moodie is back from the hamstring injury that ruled him out after the Argentina match.
The Baltimore fixture at the home of the NFL's Baltimore Ravens will be the first time South Africa and New Zealand have met on American soil. Erasmus said the NFL setting would not alter the team's preparation. "The field is still 70 metres by 100 metres," he said.
On the logistical curiosity of both squads sharing the same long-haul charter: "Yesterday we were coming hard at each other and now we're sitting on a plane together for 12 or 15 hours," Erasmus said. "It's kind of a weird thing to do." He noted that recovery management would be equally critical for both sides given the shared travel arrangements.