Building the perfect rugby player: No8
We come to the final position in the pack in our series looking at building the perfect rugby player, with an examination of what goes into making the prototype No8. There is a reasonable amount of crossover with our look at what constitutes the perfect blindside flanker, although the differences between the two are also significant.
With success in rugby so often revolving around how often and how efficiently a team can get over the gainline in attack, the impact of a traditional No8 has never been more keenly felt than it currently is. Below we pick out the five key attributes that go into the position, as well as identifying five current players who best exemplify those qualities.
The primary way No8s help with that battle to win the gainline is through their ball-handling. The position has always been expected to carry the load in this area of the game and that is no different in this current era of rugby. It doesn’t always have to be through brute strength, but they must be adept carriers.
England’s Billy Vunipola arguably leads the way in this area, with his sizeable frame and powerful leg drive helping him win plenty of collisions and break tackles. He is so potent in this area that there were a couple of seasons where you could fairly reliably predict how impressive England would be on the day by whether or not Vunipola was fit and in the starting XV.
In addition to the carrying element, No8s also need to be solid ball-handlers. Whether this is through offloading to keep phases alive, or by being able to accurately pass at speed to find support on a break or shift the point of contact, these loose forwards cannot just be one-dimensional carriers.
There are a few examples who would be suitable here, although perhaps none quite so skilful as Fiji’s Viliame Mata. The long-limbed back rower is capable of lighting up games with his stupendous offloading. Just as we said with Leone Nakarawa in our look at the prototype lock, Mata has repeatedly shown his ability to swing the outcome of games through his ambition and skill execution.
Physicality is another key characteristic of any No8 and links heavily back to their ability to carry the ball, although it also impacts how effective they can be in defence. Denying opposition carriers front-foot ball is another important area of a No8’s game and by hitting as hard in defence as they do in attack, they help make this is a reality.
Few players in the game, let alone at the position, play with the kind of physicality on both sides of the ball that South Africa’s Duane Vermeulen does. Vermeulen is a talismanic figure for the Springboks and is a leader by example on the pitch. If there are any players more consistently physical in world rugby than the South African, it would be news to us.
Not always something that has been associated with No8s, mobility and pace has become a key weapon in their arsenal, as forwards in general have swiftly become more athletic alongside their required size and strength. Having the acceleration and top-end speed to turn a broken tackle into a 20-metre or even 30m break can be key to wearing down and disrupting well-organised defences.
Although he has yet to make his mark in the international arena, England’s Zach Mercer is as good an example as any in this area. The Bath loose forward is almost impossible to corral once he gets into space and he has also shown that same pace and desire when covering in defence, something which is just a further string to his bow.
Finally, we come to the work rate and stamina of a No8. Given the amount of times they are often required to carry the ball per game, in addition to their contributions at the breakdown and in defence, it can be an incredibly physically demanding position to play. In order to keep on top of that workload and still be executing their skills effectively in the latter stages of games, they must boast incredible levels of stamina.
Few can match Ireland’s CJ Stander in this area, with the Munster back row frequently topping the carries, tackles and rucks hit statistics at the end of a game. It’s not just the numbers he puts up, either, with many of his carries and tackles proving to be dominant ones, and that simply wouldn’t be the case if he weren’t conditioned to a level where he could repeatedly pull that off.
Ball-carrying – Billy Vunipola
Ball-handling – Viliame Mata
Physicality – Duane Vermeulen
Mobility – Zach Mercer
Workrate and stamina – CJ Stander
Comments on RugbyPass
No question they were the better team. But that is the beauty of sport isn’t it!
95 Go to commentsEveryone is into Hurling in Ireland according to Porter, but only 11 of Ireland's 32 counties enter a team into the national competition. Same old blarney.
1 Go to commentsLet’s be honest. The draw and scheduling in the World Cup was a joke but South Africa found a way after having to go the hard (nearly impossible) way to the Cup Final via France and England. NZ had a hard game against France (lost) and had 5 weeks to prepare for the Quarter, 3 weeks knowing it was Ireland. NZ theerfore had to win one big game against an Irish team who played SA and then Scotland 7 days before. They won and it was de facto a semi final because they were playing a relatively weak Argentina team and it was a walk over. In the final a very rested NZ team was playing a very tired SA team and still lost. They couldn’t score more than 11 points. Put another way SA had to find a way to win while tired and they achieved that. NZ should thank their lucky stars that they fixed the scheduling in 2015 otherwise they would be dealing with a Bok treble.
95 Go to commentsPerhaps if Bongi wasn’t targeted and removed from the game in the first 3 minutes it would have been quite a different game. Maybe if NZ also faced the same competition the Boks faced to their win NZ would have looked quite different. The final score shows who outplayed who.
95 Go to commentsRubbish article! Abuladze played most of Exeters matches when fit. He got injured against Glasgow a while ago and is out for the rest of the season, thats why he hasnt played for Exeter and Georgia recently. Do some proper research next time!
1 Go to commentsGotta love it when kids throw their toys out the pram and can’t hack it with the grown ups debate. Here’s looking at you turlough! 😉🤣
148 Go to commentsThey lost the game period move on
95 Go to commentsSpringboks won! Stop winging. You can change the game however much you and your rugby colonizing IRB want to and the Springboks will win you at that too. Your mind is colonized my friend get a life
95 Go to commentsBen, nobody gets fooled anymore by selective and biased data to support an hypothesis. Games are decided on such small margins these days that you win some and lose some, and dominance is a thing of the rugby past. Look at the RWC circle of fortune…. Ireland beats SA who beat France who beat NZ who beat Ireland. And so it goes on. Match officials help to eliminate real indiscretions. If they had been with us years before, no doubt results would have been different. Remember Andy Haden’s dive from a lineout in 1978 for which a match-wining penalty was awarded? Wales should have beaten the ABs that day. They took the loss like the gentlemen they were.
95 Go to commentsWith all the analysis and how good the all blacks were.The fundamental mistake with the ABs is that this is a test match and not an exhibition.There is no better team(country) in world rugby than the Boks that knows how to win a test match(we are post masters at this).We know our rules, we have the discipline, we tackle like beasts, we take our points and we never give up.I now have educated the ABs supporters(at least say thank you).Please stop “bitching” , accept what the outcome is and move along swiftly.
95 Go to commentsAnd they came from behind to win two big games before the final. No one can say what would have happened. Had the boks gone behind the game plan changes and the result may changes. Ifs and ands are irrelevant. The boks won. Neutral critics enjoyed the games they played. Its not a popularity contest. Get over it and move on.
95 Go to commentsI'm happy for the people of SA to get a second WC. And I mean that. I was very disappointed with this man's “stand on the hand” incident with Josh Van Der Flyer (Ireland). Ireland's downfall in the last WC was they did not rotate their first 15 as the head coach probably should have. That said, I'm happy for SA and genuinely hope it lifts the mood in their country. Ireland did beat them in the first match of the tournament. And before the trolls start trolling ….. please don't bother. Etzbeth said recently that the Irish players said after the match “see you in the final”…..this was actually wishing the SA team the best of luck in the rest, the Irish team were not dismissing the AB’s. This is what Etzbeth was implying. But he was wrong. I no longer live in Ireland. But I hope to see them lift that cup before I pass. Anyway, congratulations SA. 👍
12 Go to commentsMore bloody click bait. Dan Carter has said absolutely nothing. As he should do. Poor journalism again from a site that should know better
9 Go to commentsOh god please help these loosers get over it!!!! You lost. Doesn't matter how many times you dummies are gonna analyse the game, you still lost and we are still Rygby World Champions….get over it, you lost.
95 Go to commentsThe next Willie le Roux. SA are made not to use him.
3 Go to commentsDan has always been as controversial as tea with milk so we were never going to get any definitive answer. So DMac for the win.
9 Go to commentsGoodness. When are the All Blacks and New Zealand commentators going to stop complaining about how they could have won and just try to win next time 😂. In South Africa if you lose you get up and try again. Get over it.
95 Go to commentsHonestly, it doesn’t matter a whole lot. RSA has a ton of experienced talent in its leadership group. I am more interested in who is the new 8 man/8 men and the younger props. The captain may change but the system does not
1 Go to commentsBen, you are one of the most arrogant and self opionated rugby critics I have ever come across (next to Keohane). I hoped that after SA beating the best ranked teams in the world on their way to the WC (something not done before) that you might have the grace to admit that this is a special team that deserved the accolades coming their way. You have no humility and as has been been already pointed out, merely a troll to attract audience numbers. Count me out in the future.
95 Go to comments‘War of independence’. Such a grand name for a few skirmishes. Where were all the great battles of this ‘war’ ? Smith got goosebumps as he was being emotionally manipulated, another mushroom.
1 Go to comments