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'Boks will need strong heads'
15/06/2007 14:32 - (SA)
Cape Town - Let the games begin.
That, more or less, is what Tri-Nations fans can look forward to when the series kicks off at Newlands in Cape Town on Saturday, with the Springboks taking on Australia.
Best forgotten are the mis-matches which marred the start of the international season on both sides of the Indian Ocean which now moves towards the real thing.
The first indication of where the three super powers find themselves in preparation for the looming Rugby World Cup.
Riding the crest of the Super 14 wave, the Springbok game is on a plateau it has not occupied in many a year. On the opposite end of the scale, the Australians find themselves with their backs to the wall.
A terrible Super 14 where they failed to reach the semi-finals, provided the wooden spoonist and encountered coaching problems, all contributed to the doom and gloom hanging over the side.
Lacking the structures which exist in New Zealand and SA, the Aussies do not - and will not in the foreseeable future - have the player numbers their archrivals can boast. That weakness, however, can also be a strength.
Injury time
Only 22 quality players are needed to win a Test and 30 or so to win a Tri-Nations or World Cup. As the only country to have won the World Cup twice, that message should be driven home to anyone who is writing them off for the looming Tri-Nations, and later this year in the World Cup.
Which brings one to the question: Do they have the 22 quality players to beat the Boks on SA soil for the first time since 2000 when a Stirling Mortlock penalty in injury time sunk the home side?
You had better believe it. Regardless the indifferent form shown in the Super 14 by stalwarts such as George Gregan, Mortlock, Stephen Larkham, Rocky Elsom and George Smith, they crave the international spotlight and expect them to be at their best.
Add to that experience and expertise the youthful flair and daringness of Adam Ashley-Cooper, Matt Giteau and Drew Mitchell, and you know you have a challenge on hand.
With this background in mind, one has to assess the Boks and their preparation. Yes, they have experienced a wonderful Super 14, a reasonable entry into the international season - but also left in their wake a seemingly endless load of rubbish, distractions and politicking.
Former All Blacks have waxed lyrical about the "new" Boks and the threat they are going to pose in the Tri-Nations and World Cup. Then a bolt of lightning struck when another former All Black said: "The least of my worries are the Boks. They may look threatening now, but come World Cup time they will have found a way to shoot themselves in the foot".
Pinnacle
That SA have the talent to rule the roost in world rugby is a fact. The question though, and it's one you hear being asked more and more on the international scene, is if they have the backing of administrators and support structures to be the best they can be.
This week when the Boks were preparing for the start of what can only be described as the pinnacle of four years of hard work and planning, coach Jake White probably spent more time worrying about having to answer to off-the-field incidents and shenanigans, than the actual coaching of the side.
Where does that leave this very talented side?
Their heads will have to be strong and the pressure is on leaders such as captain John Smit, Victor Matfield, Bakkies Botha, Schalk Burger and Juan Smith to show the way and not allow the off-field antics to influence the performance on the field.
Should they manage that, Newlands fans can expect a humdinger. The Wallabies should know to take the Bok forwards on might not be a very good idea. They will have to run the locals off the park if they are to record that sought after win.
By doing that they will leave themselves open for counter attacks and when that happens, the likes of Ruan Pienaar, Jaque Fourie, JP Pietersen and Ashwin Willemse will have a field day.
Had situations around the Bok camp been normal, it would have been easy to predict a comfortable win. It is not and if ever strong heads were needed to win a test match, this is it.
Teams:
Springboks:
Percy Montgomery, Ashwin Willemse, Jaque Fourie, Jean de Villiers, JP Pietersen, Butch James, Ruan Pienaar, Pierre Spies, Juan Smith, Schalk Burger, Victor Matfield, Bakkies Botha, BJ Botha, John Smit (captain), Gurthro Steenkamp.
Reserves: Gary Botha, CJ van der Linde, Johan Muller, Danie Rossouw, Michael Claasesens, Wynand Olivier, Francois Steyn.
Australia:
Julian Huxley, Drew Mitchell, Stirling Mortlock (captain), Matt Giteau, Lote Tuqiri, Stephen Larkham, George Gregan, Wycliff Palu, George Smith, Rocky Elsom; Dan Vickerman, Nathan Sharpe, Guy Shepherdson, Stephen Moore, Matt Dunning.
Replacements: Adam Freier, Al Baxter, Mark Chisholm, Stephen Hoiles, Phil Waugh, Adam Ashley-Cooper, Mark Gerrard
Kick-off: 15:00 SA time
Referee: Wayne Barnes (England)
- SAPA
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