Springbok coach Allister Coetzee has lauded the attitude of the players who attended a three-day training camp in Johannesburg.

An extended 41-man squad, excluding Sharks and Kings players who competed abroad this weekend, assembled on Sunday through to Tuesday at the first of three national camps.

And while the Lions’ players departed the gathering on Monday ahead of a trip to Argentina, Coetzee praised the local franchises for their support to the Springbok cause ahead of a three-Test series against France in June.

‘I think the camp was a big success and I want to especially thank the franchise coaches and CEO’s for supporting us,’ said Coetzee. ‘The collaboration between all parties have been outstanding and it is a direct result of the successful outcome of the three coaching indabas.’

‘The players arrived in good condition, which shows they have been working hard according to their strength and conditioning programmes,’ he added.

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Coetzee confirmed the camps serve as part of a process to get as many young players as possible involved in the Bok set-up.

‘There were several new faces that attended a Springbok camp for the first time and the energy and enthusiasm was great to see.

‘We will hold two more camps in as many months, that will give us added opportunities to look at more new faces because Bulls players will for instance not be able to attend the Stellenbosch camp due to their Super Rugby travel commitments,’ explained Coetzee.

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Meanwhile, newly appointed Stormers captain Siya Kolisi has expressed his delight at being invited to the camp after missing a big part of the 2016 international season due to injury.

‘It’s fantastic be involved in the Bok set-up. This camp gave us the chance to get to know some new faces,’ he said. ‘As players, we want to take responsibility and contribute towards making the Springboks successful again.

‘Although we come from different franchises and compete against each other in Super Rugby, we quickly settled in once we started to discuss the Springbok plan for the international season.’

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