Van Niekerk suffered a neck injury which ruled him out of the 45-26 defeat at the hands of the All Blacks at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday, and White has decided Venter is the best candidate to step in.

"AJ's presence in our squad gives us a number of options up front," said White. "He is a valuable player and I am glad he was available for us."Â

Venter was excited to get news of his call-up.

"It's great to be back in the team, it's always a privilege to be given the opportunity to be part of the national team," he said.

"I will do my best to represent the nation."

White will on Wednesday name his side to face New Zealand for the penultimate encounter in this year's Tri-Nations series at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium in Rustenburg.