Where are they now? Rassie Erasmus’ first seven Springboks debutants

With the fixture against Wales taking place outside the official international window, player availability was limited, and seven uncapped players were named in the starting XV at Washington DC's RFK Stadium.

South Africa ultimately slipped to a dramatic 22-20 defeat to Wales, despite second-half tries from two of those debutants, Travis Ismaiel and Makazole Mapimpi.

Wales' late winner, scored by Ryan Elias after Tomos Williams charged down Robert du Preez's kick, ensured Erasmus began his tenure with a soon to be uncustomary defeat.

In total, 13 South Africans made their Test debuts that day — seven starters and six replacements.

For this retrospective, however, we are only focusing on the seven players who walked out from the start. Now, More than eight years on, this septet of careers have taken remarkably different paths.

Nche arrived in Washington as a 22-year-old Cheetahs loosehead who had already developed a reputation for unusual athleticism and immense scrummaging strength.

He made his Test debut against Wales before making way in the second half, beginning his remarkable international career, that would establish him as the world's finest loose-head prop.

Today, Nche is one of the most recognisable members of South Africa's front-row arsenal. The Sharks prop has accumulated 52 Springbok caps, and has become synonymous with the "Bomb Squad" approach that has helped define the modern Springboks.

Nche is a beloved member of the men in green and gold, who is happy to remind any front row prospect that 'salads don't win scrums'.

His biggest international achievement came in France in 2023, when he was part of the Springbok squad that won the Rugby World Cup, as he was not part of South Africa's 2019 World Cup-winning squad, having missed out behind the man known simply as 'The Beast' Tendai Mtawarriar. Nche has also since won Rugby Championship titles in 2024 and 2025.

His destructive scrummaging and low centre of gravity has made him a particularly valuable weapon against elite opposition.

He remains with the Sharks in Durban, and continues to operate at the highest level of the international game, with perhaps only England and Bristol's Ellis Genge rivaling him as the world's best in the number one jersey.

At 2.03m, Jason Jenkins looked every inch the imposing South African lock when he partnered the phenomenal Pieter-Steph du Toit in Washington.

The 22-year-old had come through the Blue Bulls system and was viewed as a powerful, athletic second-row prospect. His first Test, however, would also prove to be his only Springbok appearance.

Jenkins subsequently built a successful career overseas following the 'one and done' hit out in green and gold. He played in Japan with Toyota Verblitz before moving to Ireland, where he represented both bitter rivals Munster and Leinster.

During his time with Leinster, he made 39 appearances across the United Rugby Championship and Champions Cup over two seasons.

After several years abroad, Jenkins returned to South Africa and joined the Sharks for the 2024/25 season. He remains with the Durban club, bringing considerable European experience to their pack.

Despite his success at club level, Jenkins never added to his solitary Springbok appearance. His lone cap came on that wet Washington afternoon — making him the only one of the seven starting debutants whose Test career ended after a single appearance.

Kwagga Smith's route to Test rugby was anything but conventional. Before becoming a Springbok, he had established himself as a star of South Africa's Blitzboks Sevens programme, winning an Olympic bronze medal at Rio 2016.

His transition to the 15-man game with the Lions of Johannesburg, and eventually earned him a chance under Erasmus' watchful eye.

Smith started at blindside flank in the American capital and brought the relentless work rate that would later become his trademark.

More than eight years later, he has amassed 63 Springbok caps, 11 tries and 55 points, making him one of the most experienced players to emerge from that experimental team.

He has also become particularly associated with the Springboks' impact-substitute strategy, regularly entering matches against tiring opponents and injecting pace, mobility and breakdown pressure.

Smith was part of both South Africa's 2019 and 2023 Rugby World Cup-winning squads, making him one of the two-time champions to emerge from that Washington group.

He currently plays his club rugby in Japan with Shizuoka Blue Revs. Smith missed out on South Africa's 2026 international season through injury, but remains one of the most experienced members of the generation that helped establish the modern Springbok side.

Ivan van Zyl was handed the No.9 jersey for Erasmus' first Test, tasked with directing an inexperienced backline against Wales.

Then, the 22-year-old Blue Bulls scrum-half was regarded as a tactically astute player with an effective kicking game, but his international career would ultimately be brief.

Van Zyl earned six Springbok caps in toal, all during 2018, before moving out of the national-team picture fold. His club career, however, developed considerably further.

In 2021 he left the Bulls for Saracens, where he became an important part of the London club's backline. His finest moment came in the 2022/23 Premiership final, when he scored Saracens' fourth try as they defeated Sale Sharks 35-25 at Twickenham to win the title.

Van Zyl remained with Saracens for several seasons before leaving at the end of the 2025/26 campaign.

He subsequently returned to South Africa, joining the Sharks for the upcoming URC season. His six-Test Springbok career may have been short, but his European career turned him into an experienced scrum-half and Premiership winner.

André 'The Giant' Esterhuizen was selected at inside centre in Washington, where his size and direct running made him a natural fit for Erasmus' physical approach.

At 24, the Sharks midfielder was already earning a reputation as one of South Africa's most imposing backs, and his international career would eventually stretch far beyond that first appearance.

Esterhuizen has since collected 35 Springbok caps, six tries and 30 points, establishing himself as a versatile midfield option capable of bringing significant physicality to the game.

His club career took him to England, where he became a key figure for Harlequins and was named the RPA Players' Player of the Year in 2022, following an epic Premiership winning campaign with London club.

He returned to the Sharks in 2024 and has since remained an important member of the Springbok squad, having enjoyed a cross-positional venture to the back row, and out on the wing.

Esterhuizen was part of South Africa's 2023 World Cup-winning squad, adding a global title to a career that has seen him play in two hemispheres.

In September, Erasmus named Esterhuizen Springbok captain for the forthcoming Test against Australia — another significant milestone for one of the seven players who started that extraordinary first game in Washington.

Few stories from the Washington debutants are as unusual as Travis Ismaiel's.

The Bulls winger celebrated his 26th birthday on the day of his first Test and marked it in spectacular fashion, scoring South Africa's opening try of the second half after intercepting a loose Welsh pass.

However, it proved to be Ismaiel's only appearance for the Springboks.

He moved to Harlequins in 2019, but a chronic shoulder problem eventually forced him into retirement in 2021, bringing his 15-a-side career to an abrupt end, as one of the real 'what could have been' Springboks.

But that was not quite the end of his rugby story. After recovering sufficiently from the injury, Ismaiel made a remarkable return to the field with the Blitzboks in 2023.

His comeback completed a rare international journey that saw him represent South Africa at junior, 15-a-side and sevens level.

World Rugby documented his return and selection for the Sevens Series in North America, giving him another opportunity to represent his country after his Test career had appeared to be over.

His playing career ultimately moved towards its conclusion, with Ismaiel turning his attention towards software development. From one Test cap and a birthday try in Washington to an unexpected return to the international stage in sevens, his journey has certainly been unconventional.

Makazole Mapimpi's first Springbok appearance was the beginning of one of South African rugby's great success stories.

The late-developing winger had taken an hard fought route into professional rugby, progressing through the Border Bulldogs, Southern Kings and Free State Cheetahs before finally earning his opportunity with the Sharks.

Against Wales all those years ago, he announced himself immediately, scoring South Africa's second try of the afternoon as Erasmus' side fought back into the match.

More than eight years later, Mapimpi has 47 Springbok caps, 33 tries and 165 points, placing him third on South Africa's all-time Test try-scoring list.

His career reached its defining moment at the 2019 Rugby World Cup, when he scored South Africa's first try in the final victory over England — becoming the first South African to ever score a try in a men's Rugby World Cup final.

He subsequently won a second World Cup medal in 2023, as Rassie's men went 'Bokke-to-Bokke' by retaining the Web Ellis Trophy over the All Blacks.

Still with the Sharks, Mapimpi remains one of the most recognisable players produced by Erasmus' first Springbok selection.

What began with a try in a losing side in Washington developed into a remarkable international career, two World Cup titles and a place among South Africa's most prolific try-scorers.