Jake White: The Springboks' million dollar question
Saturday was do-or-die. The Springboks let one slip slip and lost for the first time in history at home to Wales in Bloemfontein, so there was no escaping it, they had to win.
If you add the emotion of Eben Etzebeth’s 100th game, and Bongi’s 50th game to the hurt from that loss, it all came out in that first 10 minutes.
From the kick-off, you could see there was no way Wales were going to win that game. Everyone was switched on. When Kieran Hardy bolted through the middle early on and Eben flattened him, that was statement made. I was in the stands and when I looked around, I could feel a spark of electricity from that tackle, even if didn’t have a bearing on the game.
After making so many changes in the Second Test, it was no surprise the big guns rolled out and Wales, who had injury problems of their own, simply had no answer at the scrum and lineout. Once South Africa got into their 22, and got three penalties in a row, they laid down a marker for what was going to happen for the rest of the game. It’s crazy to think the Boks have Malcolm Marx, Steven Kitshoff and Vincent Koch on the bench – boys who would start in any other international front row on the bench – so it’s intimidating. When the Wales scrum started retreating you really feared for them.
The Series has been far from perfect for the Boks but one place they have so much depth is at lock. Eben Etzebeth and Lood de Jager are world class locks but behind them I think RG Snyman is going to be one of the best players in the world when he’s fit. Just you watch. His aerial, ball and contact skills, as well as the fact he’s got a huge engine mark him out as a freak. Luckily we’ve also got Franco Mostert on the bench who can play at 6 and at lock. One player to watch out for is Jason Jenkins. Once he fits into Leinster’s pattern of playing, he has the game to improve them further. With the way Leinster prepare players, I’ve got no doubt he is going to improve massively. The increased competition drives standards.
I must say a word about Eben. I know Bakkies Botha very well, and in my eyes he’s still one of the greatest locks to play for the Springboks, but for Eben to be the youngest Test cap centurion in a country obsessed by rugby is phenomenal. We produce such good locks that they pop up all over the world – just look at Paul Willemse and the role he’s playing with France. To be the seventh Springbok to reach 100 caps is an incredible achievement.
I know there’s lots of chat about the Springboks and there always will be but looking at the Boks recent results, it’s clear they have a tried and tested formula that works for this group of players. If you go into a highly-pressured World Cup, you can be sucked into playing in a style of play you’re not comfortable with. I remember in Australia in 2003, there was a lot of talk about England being boring. The local press were almost baiting them to change their game in the final but Clive (Woodward) never deviated from his gameplan. Greenwood and Tindall through the middle, Hill and Dallaglio carrying and Martin Johnson thundering around the corner. If they weren’t sure what to do, they chucked it to Wilkinson who booted it down the field. It was simple but it landed them the World Cup.
Obviously we’ve seen Ireland playing a different brand of rugby to beat the All Blacks in New Zealand, but the Springboks won’t change. Is it going to be good enough? That’s the million dollar question.
At the moment, I’d say France are the No 1 team in the world, even if they’re not official No 1. They’ve won their last 10 Tests in a row, which is pretty impressive, and they have a massive pack which means they can play it both ways; with natural flair and raw power.
It makes you think Les Bleus have the tools to stop the Springboks’ mauling and set-piece game which is predictable but effective. Look at the Third Test. It was a picture of how the Boks play in a microcosm. Wales would be on the attack in the 22. When they lost a lineout it would be a scrum South Africa.
They would then invariably win a penalty, hoof the ball to the halfway line and then win a maul penalty, before kicking the ball into the 22 where they’d switch to attack-mode without doing too much. That’s a 60m gain. Now, if a side can stop them doing that – and there are sides who can – I’m not sure if that will be enough if the Boks don’t have other ways to win the game.
Tied into that is talk about the Boks’ creative game and whether they can do more. I’d say the structure is pretty rigid. They kick the ball, and if they get it back, switch on to see if they can create something. That’s where players like Cheslin Kolbe and Makazole Mapimpi come into play. The duo thrive in broken-field play when a defence is disorganised but we don’t see too much of them because all sides have massively improved in the air. Individuals work so so hard at it in training. Damian Willemse caught some great balls in the air, and so did Cheslin, but then Wales are no different. Dan Biggar and Liam Williams picked out some great kicks.
The way South Africa plays actually keeps other sides in the game. You seldom see them running away on the scoreboard. They squeeze, squeeze and squeeze until you can no longer withstand the physical onslaught, whereas when Ireland got to 22-3 up by the break, I just knew they were never going to lose that game, in what was a stunning Series victory.
Looking ahead, I foresee some changes with the All Blacks before they come to South Africa in a few weeks so Springbok rugby fans can’t read too much into those results. That is ominous for us. Reading between the lines, change is afoot and I don’t think either there will be the same management or the make-up of that team coming to South Africa. Rugby is one of New Zealand’s biggest cultural exports and they are simply too strong, and too obsessed with where they need to be to allow what’s happening to continue. Four defeats in their last five games is almost unheard of in the professional era. I expect there to be repercussions
Ireland are the current darlings of world rugby but they are a curious case. They have probably been the most disappointing side at the World Cup, never making it past the quarter-finals, which is bizarre because they are so good in-between World Cups. Winning in New Zealand, however, means they are going to be a massive force in France. They have that in the memory banks now and Andy Farrell has shown himself to be a very astute head coach.
It’s almost ironic that they may not have to play the All Blacks until the final, and it is the sides they potentially play before who have given them more trouble. In recent history, they have been outmuscled by France and England.
After the Rugby Championship, I feel the Autumn Tests will be the true benchmark of where the Springboks are on their progression. The Boks will play France, Ireland and England for the last time before the World Cup. France are now one of the favourites for the World Cup, Ireland can now back themselves, while England under Eddie Jones have continually said, ‘measure us at the World Cup’. The end of year tour is huge, because it will be a strong indication of which group of players he will takes to France.
Nienaber said the Second Test was a trial for who goes to Europe but I expect a few old faces to be in the mix for the end of year Tests. Cobus Reinach will brought back in alongside Duane Vermeulen, who has definitely been missed, and RG Snyman.
There is another guy who could surprise people; Johan Goosen. He is at the Bulls and though he’s been injured, after watching the current 10s, I feel he could be a catalyst of change. He plays in a different way to the current gameplan but that may actually help him find a space in the squad.
There are tweaks to be made, but overall South African rugby is in great shape. I never worry about the Boks because we always have such strength in depth. Just look at the U20s in the summer series and our Blitzbokke in the Sevens. It’s all enabled by our incredible schools system, which is probably the strongest in the world. Paarl Gymnasium is the ministry of rugby and you have places like Paul Roos, Grey College, KES and Jeppe in Johannesburg. The future is bright.
Comments on RugbyPass
Why cant I watch Rugby games please?
1 Go to commentsBeautiful shot from Finau, end of story. Gutted for Shaun Stevenson though.
4 Go to commentsThe Chiefs definitely didn’t win ugly. They had the superior scrum, a dominant lineout, and their defence was excellent once the Waratahs scored their two tries (thanks to some lucky refereeing calls mind you). They put pressure on the Waratahs lineout throughout the game, and the mind boggles as to why the referee did not award a yellow card or a penalty try against the Waratahs for repeated scrum infringements on their own try line before Narawa’s first try. And the Chiefs were slick with their passing and running angles on attack. It was a dominant performance all round, even with many questionable refereeing decisions.
1 Go to commentsWasnt late. Ref 2 assistants andTMO all saw it so who are you to say it was?
4 Go to commentsAre the Brumbies playing the Blues twice in a row?
4 Go to commentsBig difference from the Saders. Forwards really muscled up and laid a solid platform. Scooter brought some steel and I liked the loosie combination. Newell has been rather disappointing this season but stepped up big time - happy also to see Franks dot down. He should do that more often! Reihana had a good game and there seems to be more flair and invention with him in the saddle. McNicoll plays well from the back and is reliable plus inventive when he joins the line. Keep it up chaps!
3 Go to comments🤦♂️🤣 who cares who’s the best . All I know is the All Blacks have the star coach but have few star players now …
30 Go to commentsJe suis sûr que Farrell est impatient de jouer avec Lopez et Machenaud et d’être entraîné par Collazo… 🤭
1 Go to commentsAn on field red (aka a full red) in SRP must surely carry a bigger suspension than a red card given by the bunker as that carries a 20 minute team punishment. Had Damon Murphy abdicated his responsibility as a ref and issued both Drua players a yellow, which would have been upgraded to a 20 minute red by the bunker, that would have killed Australia and New Zealand’s push for the 20 minute red to be trialled globally from July this year.
11 Go to commentsEver so often you all post a Danny Care story that isn’t the announcement that he has finally re-signed for one more, victory tour season at Quins and I’m just like, “well you fooled me again!” My absolute favorite player ever, we need to make his final year at the Stoop (and Twickers) official already. I know he supposedly snubbed France but I won’t feel better until he signs.
1 Go to commentslate hit what late hit it wasn’t at all late and can clearly see he was committed before the tackle
4 Go to commentsChristian Lio -Willies 2 try perfomance was a standout. As was captain Scott Barrett. Up front was where the boys won it.They are a great team and players. Fantastic Crusaders , you can keep going.
3 Go to commentsI don't know how the locals feel about that? I guess if you call yourselves the Worcester Wasps that might be appease. But really we need more teams in the Premiership in my view so they are not padding it out as they are at the moment. It might curtail so many players going abroad as well
5 Go to commentsNZ 😭😭😭is certainly rivaling England for best whingers cup!😭😭😭 !!!
30 Go to commentsYup. New Zealand won 3 out of 10 world cups played. SA 4 out of 8 attempts 30 Vs 50 per cent.🤔🤔
30 Go to commentsShould've done this years ago. Change Saturday kick off times to around 11am. Up and off and back home before 3pm, limit travel time too. Allows players to actually do something else with their Saturday that's family oriented or being rugby fans they could ‘watch’ pro rugby. Increases crowds etc. How can anyone that enjoys grassroots and pro rugby have to choose between the two on Saturdays?
9 Go to commentsI bet he inspired those supporters just as much.
1 Go to commentsBen Smith Springboks living rent free in his head 😊😂
67 Go to commentsGood to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
30 Go to comments