Springboks Brace For Brisbane
Peter de Villiers: The Springbok coach looks on contemplatively as his charges train in Brisbane
After two bruising encounters in New Zealand, the Springboks now have to suck it up and prepare themselves for a fresh Australian side in their next Tri-Nations encounter in Brisbane this Saturday.
For all coach Peter de Villiers’ talk of a new South Africa liberated from their traditional awe of the All Blacks, the Springboks reaped only injuries and suspensions from their New Zealand tour, and go into the match at Lang Park with their title defence on the brink of collapse. Instructively, De Villiers’ usual bluster has taken a backseat to the more pragmatic business of selections for the Wallabies game, given the immediate goal of simply keeping his team in the tournament.
The Springboks coach resisted changes to the side that was thumped 32-12 in the Auckland opener, but his faith was scarcely repaid with an ensuing 31-17 loss in Wellington. Against the Wallabies, themselves under scrutiny after scratchy June tests against England and Ireland, the playbook has been thrown out the window and the Springboks will line up with nine changes, including four to the starting 15.
With their usually dependable combination of muscle and high-kicking completely unravelled by the attack-minded All Blacks, the Springboks have decided that ball-carrying will be the key to victory on Lang Park’s slick surface.
“Of all the Super 14 teams and the surfaces that are used, (Lang Park) is rated the quickest one,” De Villiers told reporters in Brisbane this week. “We know (the Wallabies) can run the ball and they are very quick across the field so we opt to bring some speed into our team.”
DANGEROUS DUO
To provide that speed, Ruan Pienaar has been given the nod over scrumhalf Ricky Januarie, while flanker Ryan Kankowski and feather-light winger Gio Aplon have also been promoted. All will be required to shut down the Wallabies’ dangerous Queensland Reds midfield pairing of Quade Cooper and Will Genia, who tormented a number of South African Super 14 sides at the venue with their speed and incisive passing earlier this year.
Genia’s return from a broken thumb will give under-pressure coach Robbie Deans some heart after the scrumhalf’s brilliance was sorely missed during Australia’s uninspiring 22-15 win over Ireland at the same ground last month. The Wallabies also welcome back experienced front rower Benn Robinson and lock Nathan Sharpe from injuries to bolster a pack that was savaged by England’s forwards during their split two-test series.
With utility Adam Ashley-Cooper switched to fullback to mop up the Springboks’ aerial bombs, the daunting task of minding flying winger Bryan Habana falls to a 20-year-old with virtually no experience out wide, James O’Connor.
“I’ve had a few one-on-ones with Habana in the past so it’s been a good experience so far,” O’Connor told reporters.
A loss, while devastating for South Africa, will be almost as galling for the Wallabies, whose one bright spot in a gloomy Tri-Nations last year was their 21-6 upset of the Springboks in Brisbane. Deans, who has publicly admitted his tenure could rest on this year’s Tri-Nations results, may take more heart from the past than the present, given the Springboks have proven unable to score a try at Lang Park in 13 years.
REUTERS
Matfield Optimistic About Next All Blacks Encounter
Victor Matfield competes with Tom Donnelly of the All Blacks in the lineout
Victor Matfield believes it won’t take much to turn last weekend’s 32-12 defeat at Eden Park into a victory in Wellington this Saturday.
The defeat in Auckland ended South Africa’s stranglehold over the All Blacks and it was a Test where South Africa came second in almost every facet, however Matfield, who will play his 23rd game against the All Blacks on Saturday, believes the Springboks aren’t far away from where they want to be.
“They [All Blacks] did a lot of things right [in the first test],” said Matfield. “But I must say, we also weren’t there 100 percent. We were probably about 97 and we know in these games if you’re 1-2 percent off your game, you will get smashed. And that’s what happened.
“Hopefully we can be there 100 percent this week and then hopefully it will be a better test match.”
One area where the Springboks will look to return to their usual dominant ways is in the lineouts and Matfield admitted it didn’t go well with John Smit throwing into the set piece at Eden Park.
“We’ve got a good relationship and he knows how I feel about the lineout,” Matfield said of his captain. “But it’s a team effort. Contesting-wise, we were too slow to get to the lineout. We weren’t organised quick enough. They took a lot of quick lineouts, which we knew they would do, and they got away with it. Hopefully this week we’ll be there earlier, better prepared and we’ll get in there.”
“We all know how we play. We won’t go away from that,” he added.
“We’re a team that likes to put pressure on the other team, to really strangle them.
“Because we weren’t there and we weren’t quick enough off our line, we couldn’t do that. We gave them space and time and they penalised us for that.”
Meanwhile, Springboks flyhalf Morné Steyn says he’s confident that there won’t be a repeat of the disappointment suffered last weekend.
“I think the whole team is ready for this week,” he said. “We know it wasn’t the best week that we wanted.”
“We don’t want to take it as an excuse but I think the guys are more comfortable in New Zealand now and the training and everything has been well.”
Last weekend the Springboks were reliant on strong kicking game. It was a tactic that worked for them last year, but with the new law interpretations the game has moved on and it could be said that keeping the ball in hand is now more effective and the Springboks’ style of play has become old fashioned.
However, Steyn believes the Springboks should continue in the manner that proved so successful for them in last year’s Tri Nations.
“We played the same type of rugby last year in the Tri-Nations and it worked for us so we don’t want to change the whole game plan now that we lose one game,” he said. “We’ll stick to our kicking game and what we do but we just want to give the guys outside a little bit more.”
“There’s nothing to be changed now that we lost. Just the small things we have to be 100 percent and concentrate on the kicks to be more specific and on target.”
With thanks to Stuff.co.nz
Boks Braced For “Irritated” All Blacks
Side by Side: A contemplative John Smit and Peter De Villiers address a press conference
John Smit says his Springboks are braced for an “irritated” All Blacks team in the Tri-Nations opener at Eden Park on Saturday.
The Bok skipper believes South Africa’s whitewash of the All Blacks over three tests last year will have New Zealand primed for revenge. Smit fronted a large media gathering in Auckland today where he left little doubt about the challenge he felt his side faced in defending their Tri-Nations title this season, especially in a campaign they open in New Zealand with back to back tests in Auckland and Wellington.
“The All Blacks are going to be as competitive as they were last year, if not more so because of the fact that they didn’t win it last year,” Smit said. “They are the team that has won the Tri-Nations the most out of all three of us. Not winning it really irritates them. I’m pretty sure they are going to rock up pretty worked up and ready to go on Saturday.”
The Springboks have not beaten the All Blacks at Eden Park since 1937 and the last home defeat for New Zealand there was in 1994 against France. Smit said that history wasn’t lost on his team. “It’s a tough place to play rugby against a tough team,” he said of Eden Park.
Asked how his side could make their own history there, he said: “You try and come with the best you have got and you certainly try to stick to your strengths. If you can do that and manage to get a few things right… that hasn’t been done for a long time, because it is such a big challenge. So we are certainly up against it on Saturday.”
PSYCHOLOGICAL BENEFITS
The fact that Eden Park would be the World Cup headquarters next year when the Boks defend their world title had little relevance to this Test according to Smit, who refused to be drawn into the psychological benefits of winning there after victories in Dunedin and Hamilton over the previous two years.
“It’s important for us to succeed in every test,” he emphasised, with the Boks operating under an expectancy that perhaps only the All Blacks can understand. “For us to get too wrapped up in the World Cup now would be a bit foolish. We have a three-week campaign that takes us halfway through the Tri-Nations and they are three important games because we haven’t had much success in Brisbane (against Australia) either.
“It will be the lessons learnt that will help us towards the next World Cup.”
He had watched the June tests in New Zealand and Australia with interest as the All Blacks and Wallabies tuned up, but read little into them as far as what their impact on the Tri-Nations might be.
“It’s hard to judge where teams are at this early in the year – time will tell. It’s always a challenge coming here and you can see that by how seldom we have been able to achieve a result. So it’s nice to come here and have two cracks in a row. But it’s only really nice if you are able to get success on the road.
“Any one of the three teams can lose on any weekend and that’s what makes it such a challenging tournament. You have to try and make a statement every single weekend.”
With thanks to stuff.co.nz
Mallett Backs Boks For Tri-Nations
Italy coach Nick Mallett believes that South Africa can, once again, dominate in this year’s Tri-Nations competition.
Mallett, whose team was thrashed 55-11 by the Springboks in East London on Saturday, predicted that the confidence currently streaming through the Springbok camp would stand the South Africans in good stead when they kick off their Tri-Nations title defence against the All Blacks in Auckland.
“We’ve seen this team really mature over the past couple of years,” Mallett said.
“They really respond well to challenges. Back in the 90s it was tough to go over there on tour and win matches but now the players don’t fear [the Wallabies and All Blacks] and they believe they can beat them. In fact, they think they are better than them and, after last season’s performance and the success of the Bulls in the Super 14, they’ve every right to be confident.”
The Boks’ first Test performance against Italy, in Witbank last weekend, was widely criticised after the team’s lacklustre performance resulted in a flurry of tactical errors and a general inability to score tries. However, after the return of some of their top players, including skipper John Smit, there was little room for manoeuvre for Mallett’s feeble chances on Saturday.
“It was a shoddy performance by the Springboks last week and it wasn’t a great performance by us but you have to put in the work before you can knock over a team, even one like Italy, and this week they did that,” Mallett expressed.
“This is a really strong Springbok side, the best they can put out – give or take one or two players – and they showed it this week as normal service was resumed.”
With thanks to SA Rugby.com
Southern Hemisphere Rugby Rules
Springbok captain John Smit in Cardiff: All in a day's work
South Africa, along with the other rugby powerhouses of the Southern Hemisphere, has remained dominant in World Rugby for the better part of the past two decades – much to the dismay of Northern Hemisphere pundits.
Prior to the inaugural 1987 World Cup, European nations crossed the equator in the infrequent expeditions of the amateur rugby union era with understandable trepidation.
Aside from a handful of celebrated exceptions, notably France’s famous 1958 series win over South Africa, the southern hemisphere citadels usually repelled all invaders with ease. Fast forward to 2010 and, after six World Cups and the advent of professional union, the only difference appears to be the sheer number of modern internationals.
Each of the Six Nations championship contenders will be in action in the southern hemisphere this month in a frenetic series of internationals. But, with the possible exception of grand slam champions France, they will have travelled much as they did during most of the 20th century – with hopes higher than expectations.
World champions South Africa, who have won the ultimate tournament twice in four appearances, set out their stall last weekend when a team with probably four first-choice players at most, defeated Wales 34-31 in Cardiff. The Springboks beat the British and Irish Lions last year, they are the current Tri-Nations champions, and the Bulls defeated the Stormers in an all-South Africa Super 14 provincial final.
South Africa will play Six Nations champions France in a one-off test on Saturday between possibly the two major contenders at next year’s World Cup in New Zealand.
DISMAL RECORD
France, as they were in 1987 when they lost the World Cup final to New Zealand in Auckland, are the standard bearers for European rugby. But they are missing key players through injury and coach Marc Lievremont has made it consistently clear that all his efforts are concentrated on winning the World Cup for the first time.
Since England became the first, and to date, only European country to win the World Cup in 2003, the four home nations have lost all 25 away matches against Tri-Nations opposition. England, who face a two-test series against the Wallabies, have gone backwards since 2003 and they were lucky to escape with a 28-28 draw against the Australian Barbarians on Tuesday.
Ireland, who have never beaten New Zealand, and Wales, who have never defeated them away, play one and two tests respectively against the All Blacks. The Irish faltered this year after winning the 2009 grand slam and they will take the field without the Lions captain Paul O’Connell. Wales, as they showed against South Africa, often look like world-beaters for an hour before fading in the final quarter.
Scotland, with two tests in Argentina, has on paper the easiest task. Argentina, though, has always been a difficult tour for any side, the Pumas possess a redoubtable pack and the Scots have beaten them only twice in 10 tests.
The World Cup has changed the face of rugby with every test, tour and championship now viewed in the context of the four-yearly tournament. What has not changed is the gulf between the hemispheres.
REUTERS
Loading ...
