Boks Lay Solid Foundation

 

There was much hype ahead of the clash between the reigning Tri-Nations and Six Nations champions, but when the final whistle blew, only one team stood proud.

Inspirational performances from the newer caps in the Bok squad guided the side to triumph, with Francois Louw putting in a faultless showing on the deck, eventually securing his first Test try in only his second appearance, and Stormers teammate Gio Aplon bringing his A-game to the French.

South Africa’s victory against the mighty Les Bleus should not be taken for granted – indeed, it’s a vital stepping stone to a winning build-up ahead of this year’s Tri-Nations tournament, and next year’s Rugby World Cup in New Zealand. From the tight five to the outside backs, the Springboks possess the depth and talent to go the distance.

Last week in Cardiff they played in patches but at Newlands on Saturday the world-champion Springboks were the complete article as Aplon’s brace of tries helped them bury France 42-17 in their one-off test match.

With France starting as Six Nations champions and boasting the cream of the European Cup talent from the past northern hemisphere season, the game was expected to be a typically tight Springbok/French showdown. That it wasn’t going to turn out that way was obvious from the first eight minutes, which was all the time the Boks needed to ensure that it was going to be no contest. The thing about France is that you never know which French team is going to pitch, and a Bryan Habana intercept in the opening two minutes sent Pierre Spies in for a long-range try that had the effect of stunning the visitors.

They scarcely had time to absorb the shock when the Boks were on the board again. This time it was created from the traditional platform of an attacking lineout, with the Bok forwards setting in motion a driving maul that sowed confusion in the French defence, which was all the nippy Aplon needed to weave his way through for a brilliant try – his first at this level. The Morné Steyn conversion made it 14-0, and it was nearly 21-0 just a few minutes later as the Boks employed a Stormers move in which Ricky Januarie broke on the blindside and a midfield loop put fullback Zane Kirchner in with a sniff of the line. Alas for Kirchner, the Bulls player was held up just short, but the Boks won a penalty and Steyn made it 17-0.

Instead of fearing a Bok defeat, for the Newlands fans there were suddenly suggestions of a Springbok repeat of 1997, when Gary Teichmann’s team smashed France 52-10 in the match that signalled the closure (for regular international rugby purposes) of the old French headquarters at Parc des Princes.

With France now forced into a catch-up game against the last team in world rugby you would want to play catch-up rugby against, it became a real possibility as the gap on the scoreboard made the Boks even more confident, and prompted the French to become more suicidal. A Steyn penalty made it 20-0 after 23 minutes, and it’s worth mentioning that up until this stage, the French had not been awarded a single penalty, while the Boks had seven over the same period. It was to remain that way for the next 13 minutes, with the French being so surprised when eventually they did get a penalty from a scrum, that they promptly lost the ball through an unforced handling error. But by that stage they were well out of it, in spite of an excellently engineered try from wing Aurelian Rougerie in which most of the running, and the well timed final pass, was done by No 8 Julien Bonnaire.

The conversion made it 20-7, but the Boks struck back almost immediately with what was effectively the killer punch – a long-range pass from Morné Steyn that put big Gurthro Steenkamp in for a try in the corner and the Boks into a 25-7 lead. Although Steenkamp enjoyed his try, the Boks did appear to struggle in the scrums, and a series of defensive scrums in front of the posts on the halftime hooter eventually yielded a penalty which the French elected to kick – they had earlier spurned an opportunity from the same position – to make the half-time score 25-10.

Bok skipper Smit did not return for the second half, and was replaced by Chiliboy Ralepelle. The good news, is although Smit left the field with a hamstring injury, it was only a precautionary measure according to the Bok management. More good news was that the Boks did not fall apart without Smit on the field, and they were seldom challenged during a second half where their superiority over France was emphatic. Apart from an early Steyn penalty which made it 28-10, the French did start off the second half with intent, but were undone by another intercept try.

This time it was Gio Aplon who picked up a ball that had spurted through a French player’s legs off a full line movement, in which the French had a definite superiority in numbers. The French looked well set to score, so when Aplon ran the length of the field to convert the seven-pointer it was effectively a 14-point swing. It was that sort of day for France, with nothing going right for them, while for the Boks it was the opposite. However, it could be argued that this is what distinguishes the real champion team from the also-ran – the ability to make your own luck. And like the Bulls in the Super 14, this Bok team knows how to apply pressure and capitalise on it.

 

With thanks to SA Rugby

Jun 14, 2010 | Categories: Rugby, Slider | Tags: Aurelian Rougerie, Bok, Bryan Habana, Cardiff, Chiliboy Ralepelle, France, Francois Louw, French, Gio Aplon, Gurthro Steenkamp, John Smit, Julien Bonnaire, Les Bleus, Morne Steyn, New Zealand, Newlands, Parc de Princes, Pierre Spies, Rugby World Cup, Six Nations, South Africa, springboks, Tri Nations, Zane Kirchner | Leave A Comment »