The Boks, According To Dwyer
Australian World Cup-winning coach Bob Dwyer addresses the media
Australian World Cup-winning coach Bob Dwyer last night produced a devastatingly frank assessment of Peter de Villiers’s ailing Springboks.
Dwyer’s view on John Smit? “He is not up to standard. He’s too slow and doesn’t seem to have much enthusiasm for the game anymore. In the case of both Smit and Victor Matfield, it is feasible that as team leaders they are struggling with their own games versus the team’s game. But I think Smit is past it and Matfield may well be past it.”
Dwyer offered a serious alternative to the long-established Victor Matfield/Bakkies Botha second-row partnership. “I think the two best locks in South Africa right now are Danie Rossouw and Andries Bekker. They complement each other and are terrific competitors. But I’m not sure you can play Bekker and Pierre Spies in one team because they’re both wide runners and you might be short of guys in close to do the hard yards.”
Saturday evening at Brisbane’s Suncorp stadium represented a much-improved Wallaby performance, in Dwyer’s view. It condemned the Boks to a third straight loss and virtually no chance of defending their Tri-Nations title.
“I have described the Wallabies’ performance as much improved and declared them on the right track,” said Dwyer. “This is accurate but I don’t want to give cause for too much optimism – yet. Over the past two weeks, I have described the Springbok performances as poor, so a performance with any sort of quality should have produced a win against them, with their current squad and form. They have, after all, conceded about 100 points in the last three weeks.”
CAPITULATION
What then for the Boks?
“Their capitulation on last season’s end-of-year northern tour was nothing short of astonishing, and that same form has continued into this year’s internationals.
“Certainly, they are missing Fourie du Preez, Heinrich Brussouw and Jannie du Plessis, but their established players are just not producing.
“Dare I say it? Victor Matfield and John Smit look past it, and even the great Bryan Habana is having no impact on the game. Why is that, in Habana’s case? There were a number of parts to his game: he had a fantastic kick-chase game but the kicking is now not as accurate because all the kicking is now in the domain of Steyn, whereas before it was shared by Steyn and Du Preez. So the defence against the kicking can be much more focused and the kicking is subsequently not as accurate.
“Habana’s attacking game had two strings to it. One was at the end of a backline attack which, without Du Preez, and Jean de Villiers at centre, has lost most of its sting and there are now virtually no opportunities for him.
“His other attacking opportunities came either as first receiver or as pick and go when he injected himself in close. But the South Africans’ ball recycling has become so stilted that no opportunities exist.”
FLAILING BACKLINE
What of some of the other players in the Bok back line?
“Zane Kirchner is a good player but I have real doubts as to whether he’s a world-class player,” said Dwyer. “He doesn’t have any distinguishing features. He’s reasonable under the ball, reasonable on kick return, fair as an injection into the backline and on defence. But in no facets of the fullback game is he a world XV choice.”
Gio Aplon? “I like him; he’s a nuggety type of player prepared to have a go. But he’s yet to prove himself international class, even though he was outstanding in the Super 14.
Wynand Olivier? “I had to ask a colleague whether he actually played in the second Test against the All Blacks. That may explain Morné Steyn’s absence of form.
“I am most impressed with Steyn’s development as a flyhalf rather than just being a kicker but I haven’t been impressed at all with his international performances.
“But this may well be influenced by a less-than-great performance by the scrumhalf (Ricky Januarie) and inside centre (Olivier). It’d be pretty impressive to play well if you had duds inside and outside you. For me, Januarie isn’t up to it, whereas Ruan Pienaar is quality at both 9 and 10.”
What of Pienaar’s former Sharks colleague Frans Steyn, who is now playing in France?
“Frans Steyn is one of those guys that produces the occasional sublime moment. So I’d always pick him. He is a big strong kid, has pace too and can kick a goal from 60m to win you a game.”
“I’ve just felt in recent times that the South Africans’ adherence to quality technique had really taken some forward steps,” he added. “But in the last year their game seems to have fallen apart. They don’t seem to be doing anything, that seems the biggest problem.”
With thanks to IOL
Boks Lay Solid Foundation
Francois Louw and Ricky Januarie: There's a scrummie on my shoulder!
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
Butch Free To Join Springboks
A clause in Butch James’s contract with the Bath Rugby Club has secured his appearance for the Springboks in Saturday’s Test against Wales.
This came after the board of English Premier Rugby had tried to force the player to be withdrawn from the match.
A legal quirk temporarily resulted in Bath withdrawing James from Saturday’s team under the threat of sanctions by the board, the umbrella body that manages England’s 12 Premier League clubs.
As a result, Springbok coach Peter de Villiers called up Zane Kirchner.
But James, thanks to a clause in his contract with Bath, will now play for the Boks.
The official reason for James’s withdrawal was that the match falls outside of the International Rugby Board’s sanctioned June Test match window, and the clubs are not obligated to release the players.
“This first weekend was intended, under the regulation, to be a period of travel for the players so they would be in the best condition for the June Tests in the southern hemisphere,” a statement from EPR read.
“This now appears to be compromised by international matches being arranged in the northern hemisphere for, apparently, commercial reasons.”
The statement conveniently failed to mention that several leading club players had been released to play for or against the Barbarians last week, and in matches played solely for “commercial reasons”.
And if player welfare was really at the heart of the issue, then players such as Saracens’ hooker Schalk Brits should not have been allowed to play for the Barbarians against Ireland at the weekend after being ever-present in the Saracens side that lost to Leicester in the Premiership final last Saturday.
Perhaps EPR should have consulted James if it was so concerned about his welfare.
He would have told them he missed a large part of the early season because of injury and therefore hasn’t been over-played.
James would also have mentioned a clause in his contract that clears him for Springbok duty if he is called up, which supersedes any regulation.
It is all highly embarrassing for EPR, especially because the Springboks selected James 11 days ago – giving EPR plenty of time for it to voice its concern.
It’s the same regulation that the Rugby Football Union and EPR have circumnavigated through a separate private arrangement allowing for the release of English players for Barbarians matches to ensure their commercial viability.
The International Rugby Board at first claimed that EPR was within its rights to withdraw James and others because the match was not being played in the June global release period, and Barbarians fixtures are not Test matches.
The regulation exists to protect players’ rights, but with individual clauses in contracts, the EPR and the rugby board will have to be more cautious about its selective application.
With thanks to timesonline.co.za
Super 14 Face Off
Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! Bryan Habana is no stranger to Super 14 victory
The stars have aligned and South Africa’s global rugby dominance sees two domestic teams competing for the ultimate honour in Super Rugby – with history heavily favouring one team.
History and stats make the Vodacom Bulls favourites to win their third Vodacom Super Rugby title in four years, when they host the Vodacom Stormers in the final of the 2010 tournament at the Orlando Stadium in Soweto at 5pm on Saturday.
Among the distinctions held by the Vodacom Bulls, is the fact that the defending champions will be aiming to become the third Super Rugby franchise to win back-to-back titles after claiming their second Super Rugby trophy last season, following their 61-17 victory over the Chiefs in Pretoria. Only the Crusaders (1998, 1999, 2000 and 2005, 2006) and Blues (1996, 1997) have ever won consecutive competitions.
Other factors in their favour are:
• This is the Bulls’ third Super 14 final in four years – the Stormers are appearing in their first.
• Nine Bulls players – Wynand Olivier, Morné Steyn, Fourie du Preez, Pedrie Wannenburg, Victor Matfield, Danie Rossouw, Derick Kuün, Gurthrö Steenkamp and Pierre Spies – will be playing in their third Super 14 final.
• Zane Kirchner, Jaco Pretorius, Dewald Potgieter, Deon Stegmann, Werner Kruger and Chiliboy Ralepelle represented the Pretoria franchise during last year’s final.
• Jaco van der Westhuizen and Gary Botha were part of the successful Bulls squad that competed in the 2007 Super 14 final at the Absa Stadium in Durban.
• Francois Hougaard and Gerhard van den Heever are the only Vodacom Bulls players selected in their starting line up who have not played in a Vodacom Super 14 final.
• The only Stormers to have appeared in a major final are Bryan Habana, twice with the Bulls in Super 14, and with Stormers teammates Schalk Burger and Jaque Fourie in a Rugby World Cup final.
• The Bulls have won five of the last six meetings between the two teams – the exception being the final round meeting two weeks ago when the Bulls fielded what was essentially a “B” team.
Other statistics to note are:
• Matfield will lead the Bulls for a record 60th time. This means he could join former Crusaders captain Todd Blackadder, and Richie McCaw, as one of the most successful Super Rugby captains of all time by leading a team to the title on three occasions, should the Bulls win.
• The Stormers have the best defensive record in the competition, conceding only 17 tries.
• The Bulls have the best attacking record in the competition, having scored 50 tries.
• The Stormers have the best disciplinary record in the competition having received only one yellow card.
• The defending champions have set a new South African record for the most points scored in a Super Rugby competition.
• This will be the sixth occasion in the history of Super Rugby where a final will be contested in a local derby.
• It is the second time two South African franchises compete in a Super Rugby final.
• New Zealand sides have battled it out in four other finales. Two Australian teams have never competed in the final.
• This will be only the third occasion on which a New Zealand team has not competed for the coveted trophy.
• SARU referee Craig Joubert will handle his 50th Super Rugby game.
The teams are:
Vodacom Bulls – Zane Kirchner, Gerhard van den Heever, Jaco Pretorius, Wynand Olivier, Francois Hougaard, Morné Steyn, Fourie du Preez, Pierre Spies, Dewald Potgieter, Deon Stegmann, Victor Matfield (c), Danie Rossouw, Werner Kruger, Gary Botha, Gurthrö Steenkamp. Reserves: Bandise Maku, Bees Roux, Flip van der Merwe, Derick Kuün, Jacques-Louis Potgieter, Jaco van der Westhuyzen, Pedrie Wannenburg. Coach: Frans Ludeke.
Vodacom Stormers – Joe Pietersen, Gio Aplon, Jaque Fourie, Juan de Jongh, Bryan Habana, Peter Grant, Dewald Duvenhage, Duane Vermeulen, Francois Louw, Schalk Burger (c), Andries Bekker, Adriaan Fondse, Brok Harris, Tiaan Liebenberg, Wikus Blaauw. Reserves: Deon Fourie, JC Kritzinger, Anton van Zyl, Pieter Louw, Ricky Januarie, Willem de Waal, Tim Whitehead. Coach: Allister Coetzee.
With thanks to SARU.
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