Now for some better news after the desperately close shave in Salta, Springbok fans: even Australians seem to believe South Africa will beat the Wallabies in Perth on Saturday 6 September.
The Sydney Morning Herald website has a poll up asking the simple question of the Castle Rugby Championship clash: “Who will win between the Wallabies and Springboks in Perth?”
Sport24 & Sydney Morning Herald
No doubt influenced by the Aussies’ unexpectedly heavy, 51-20 defeat to rampant defending champions the All Blacks on Saturday – suggesting the prior 12-12 outcome between the two was a bit of a false dawn for the Wallabies – respondents back the Boks by a fairly clear-cut margin.
At the time of writing, 11 346 votes had been registered, with 64% favouring a visiting win and only 34% leaning toward the Australians (2% envisage a draw).
So if public sentiment toward the Boks in South Africa has dipped pretty significantly following their near-miraculous 33-31 escape in Argentina at the weekend, it is some consolation that a fresh wave of depression has engulfed Wallabies enthusiasts.
That said, the same newspaper finds room for a miserly one player, between the Boks and Wallabies, in its Rugby Championship team of the week after round two – that “honour” going to SA’s Cornal Hendricks who sneaks in at right wing.
It lists as many as 11 All Blacks, while finding room for three players from the plucky Pumas… unsurprisingly including both props in Marcos Ayerza and Ramiro Herrera after the home team’s butchery of the Boks at scrum-time.
I guess the Aussie public are more angry at their team than what the South africans are with the Springboks!
@ grootblousmile:
Maybe it was all the expats that voted? 😆
2 @ nortierd:
Arghh, I just think that the Ozzmob are not positive about their side after the pasting they took against the All Blacks.
Same as we lot here in SA who are lamenting the Bok results this past weekend.
If you had to have the same type of Poll here in SA, the public would probably tip the Wallas to win… because we are unsatisfied with the performance given by the Bokke and expected much more.
Whatever the case, both the Bokke and Wallabies have lots of things to fix in the next 2 weeks, before they clash.
@ grootblousmile:
We are mad as hell
Absolutely devastated that night
4 @ Labuschagne:
It is very understandable!
It was the absolute worst Bokke scrumming performance I have seen in my entire life… and I’m 2 weeks short of 50 now!
Scrumming is not about the front row only though, it is about the tight 5 primarily but of course all 8 forwards need to have combined technique, combined momentum and combined purpose… which needs to be trained in to become 2nd nature and very slick.
That said, 2 things stand out:
Firstly the Bok front row of the Sharks (Beast, Bismarck & Doc Jannie) are a big part of the problem, whereas a very underrated front row like those of the Lions (Super Rugby) and now the Xerox Golden Lions (Currie Cup), have been bloody strong all year, with nobody shunting them around at all. Pity a chap like Redelinghuys was not chosen in the Bok Group for Australasia. Adriaan Strauss also had much greater impact than Bismarck du Plessis, who seems to have lost all focus at hooker.
Secondly the inexperienced locks (Eben Etzebeth & Lood de Jager) both did not seem to pitch up properly or add value to the scrums on the weekend, which leaves me believing that a lock pairing of Bakkies Botha and Victor Matfield will be better, no matter how old they are… with Lood on the bench.
So, nagging questions revolve around scrum coaching and player selection at the Bokke!
Let me take it further, Juan Smith was absent, missing in action… call it what you will. Therefore the balance in the looseforwards was also severely hampered, so I hope Willem Alberts is raring to go, full out!
At scrumhalf I am livid that they continue with Ruan Pienaar, who is plain and uber kak!
The Handré Pollard experiment also seems to have failed miserably and the same with that of Damain de Allende!
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