'Very uncharacteristic': Barrett's response to Bridge's blunder
All Blacks fullback Jordie Barrett says he isn’t too dismayed by George Bridge’s misfortune under the high ball during Saturday’s victory over the Springboks in Townsville.
Barrett was a pivotal figure in New Zealand’s tense 19-17 win over the Springboks at Queensland Country Bank Stadium as he was cool, calm and collected both off the kicking tee and amid South Africa’s relentless aerial bombardment.
The 24-year-old didn’t miss a kick at goal and slotted the match-winning penalty late on in the piece to give the All Blacks a hard-fought victory over their fierce rivals in their 100th clash against each other.
Barrett’s influence on the outcome extended to his ability under the high ball as he defused the box kicking of Faf de Klerk and Handre Pollard’s bombs time and time again.
As a result, the 31-test international provided the All Blacks with a firm sense of safety in the backfield, but that feeling of security came under threat early on in the match when a spillage from Bridge gifted the Springboks their only try of the test.
De Klerk launched a sky-high box kick from the middle of the park in the sixth minute, which Bridge looked to field from inside his own 22.
However, the 26-year-old wing inexplicably coughed the ball up 10 metres from his own tryline, which allowed Springboks wing Sbu Nkosi to pounce on the loose ball and run in an easy try.
Speaking about the incident on Sunday, Barrett conceded that it was out-of-character of Bridge to drop the ball from a seemingly regulation box kick, but reassured reporters of his teammate’s ability under the high ball.
“It was very uncharacteristic of George,” Barrett said when asked what he said to Bridge after his high-profile error.
“We watch him at training and we watch him every week and he catches everything, literally, and, ironically, I think in that game, a couple of minutes later, he took a near-impossible catch right on the sideline.
“Look, I didn’t say too much to George. I know what he’s capable of, and so does he, and we were just about getting on with what was coming and it didn’t take too long before the ball was back on his head.
“We were expecting it, but we’ve still got to be able to deal with it, so we weren’t as good as we would have liked to be as a unit, admittedly, but, like I said earlier, I think we might have taken one or two or enough [high balls] to win the test match in the end.”
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Much had been made in the lead-up to the heavyweight bout between the All Blacks and Springboks of South Africa’s incessant kicking strategy that continually looks to put the opposition back three under pressure.
What wasn’t mentioned, though, was the execution of de Klerk’s box kicks, which, according to Barrett in his post-match television interview, wreaked havoc with him, Bridge and fellow outside back Will Jordan.
Barrett told Stan Sport that the variation of spins that de Klerk was putting on the ball with each of his kicks made it difficult to read the ball’s trajectory.
That could, in part, explain Bridge’s mishap, especially as he was backtracking to field the ball, but Barrett said he and his teammates now have time to devise a plan to deal with those various types of kicks after being exposed to them two days ago.
“I have before, just in moderation, obviously,” Barrett said when asked if he had ever faced box kicks like de Klerk’s.
“I’ve never had that many contestable kicks to deal with in a game. It is pretty hard to combat, but it was a challenge I was kind of relishing last night. It was actually pretty exciting. Every time they’d set up for a box kick, I just knew it was a chance to go up and own the space in the air.
“I guess we’ve got to find some ways to combat that because they throw a lot of different scenarios at us. They’re doing it from their attacking 22 and putting it on the head of isolated guys with plenty of chasers, so it can be hard to deal with and, this week, we have plenty of time to come up with a plan.”
Comments on RugbyPass
Kok will become a fan favourite
1 Go to commentsI am really looking forward to Leigh Halfpenny playing his first Super rugby game for the Crusaders Playing a long side his former Welsh and Scarlets team mate Johnny McNicoll.Johnny has been playing great, back in a Crusaders jersey.The attack has strengthened big time. Also looking forward to David Havili at 10. David is a class act, it also allows Dallas McLeod to remain at 12. A good thing.
1 Go to commentsIf he had stopped insisting on playing in the backrow, instead of wing, where everyone told him he should, he would have been a Bok years ago….
11 Go to comments‘Salads don’t win scrums’ 😂 I love that.
19 Go to commentsCan’t wait for the article that talks about misogyny in Ireland. Somehow.
16 Go to commentsI would like to see a rule change, when the attacking team is held up over the try line, by allowing the defensive team to restart a goal line drop out releases the pressure for the defensive team, but what if the attacking team had to restart a tap 5m out from the defensive team it gives the attacking team to apply more pressure, there are endless options for the attacking side and it will keep the fans in suspence.
2 Go to commentsLess modern South African males predictably triggered.
16 Go to commentsMy heart is with Quins, but the head is convinced Toulouse have too much. Ntamack is back, his timing and wisdom has been missed.
1 Go to commentsWow, what a starting line up for the Sharks) Tasty up front,kremer vs Tshituka or venter …fiery ,,Lavannini ,,will he knobble etzebeth? Biggest game for belleau?
1 Go to commentsIt was rubbish to watch, Blues weren’t even present. Did what they had to do, nothing more. Should be better next week against canes.
1 Go to commentsI’ve just noticed that this match has an all-French refereeing team. Surely a game like this ought to have a neutral ref? Although looking at the BBC preview of the Saints game, Raynal is also down as reffing that - so there may be some confusion about who is reffing what.
1 Go to commentsIf Havili can play anywhere in the back line, why not first 5. #10.
11 Go to commentsThe dressing room had already left for their summer break before they ran out in Dublin that year, and that’s on the coach. Franco Smith has undoubtedly made progress, particularly their maul, developing squad players and increasing squad depth. And against a very tight budget too. That said they were too lightweight last year and got found out against both Toulon and Munster in consecutive games. Better this season so far but they’ve developed something of a slow start habit occasionally, most notably losing at home to Northampton who played them at their own game. Play offs will ultimately show whether there has been tangible progress on last year, or not…!
2 Go to commentsAustralian Rugby has been a disaster, by not incorporating learning from previous successful campaigns. QLD Reds 2011 - Waratahs 2014. Players, coaches and administrators appoint there representatives for scheduled meetings, organisation’s agreement’s assessments and correspondence. This why a unified Rugby Union under one entity works. Every Rugby nation has taken that path. Was most difficult in the Northern hemisphere with over 100 years of club rugby before the game become professional. Took a lot of humility for those unions to eventually work together.
7 Go to commentsThough Wilson’s sacking was pretty brutal, it wasn’t just down to that Leinster game; Glasgow had a lot of 2nd half collapses that season, in the URC and Europe, and only just scraped into the playoffs. Franco Smith has definitely been an improvement, some players are delivering far more than they did under Wilson.
2 Go to commentsjesus - that front 5!
1 Go to commentsShould be an absolute cracker of a game! Will be great to see DuPont & Ntamack in tandem once again🔥
1 Go to commentsBest team ever…. To have played? These guys are still pressure chokers. Came nowhere when it counted. What a joke
84 Go to commentsMusk defends anonymous terrorism, fascism, threats against individuals and children etc etc But a Rugby club account….lock ‘em up!!!
2 Go to commentsActually the era defining moment came a few years earlier. February 2002 to be precise, when Michael D Higgins as finance minister at the time introduced his sports persons tax relief bill to the dial. As the politicians of the day stated “It seems to be another daft K Club frolic born in Kildare amongst the well-paid professional jockeys with whom the Minister plays golf” and that the scheme represented “a savage uncaring vision of Ireland and one that should be condemned”. The irfu and Leinster would be nowhere near the position they are in today without this key component of the finances.
5 Go to comments