02 September 2009
It is good to hear Springbok captain John Smit saying his team is not thinking about the two points they need to clinch the Tri-Nations title on Saturday in Brisbane, but are rather aiming for five.
“I think it would be foolish to look at getting two points. There are five available and that’s what we want. Our attitude from day one has been to take care of the next game, and then at the end of the year we can sit back and smile,” Smit said.
Being his usual diplomatic self he came up for the Wallabies and said it would not be easy though and added the Australian side is having their hides unnecessarily tanned by the Australian media.
“They’re getting a real tough time in the media, but people forget that Australia are the only country, with South Africa, to have won the World Cup twice. They’ve been a phenomenal team in the past and now they are busy developing a young team.
“We lost five matches in a row in 2006 and a year later we won the World Cup, so we know that things can change in a short period of time. At the moment I think too much pressure is being put on the Wallabies, they have young players, a coach who is still finding his feet with them, and it takes time. Australia still have one of the best World Cup records of anyone,” Smit said.
Smit went further and complimented the Wallabies on their never-say-die attitude which he clearly expect to see on Saturday.
“Of all the teams we play against, Australia are the one side that will never stop playing, they’ll bring that same tough mental application for the full 80 minutes. We’ve had a big focus on defence this week, we don’t want to leak too many tries, we can’t have lapses in concentration. We saw that in Perth when Matt Giteau came back from a shaky start and gave his team some opportunity at the end,” Smit said.
This all sounds very positive from the man, lets hope this is not just lip service and we actually see them playing for a win or even better, the five points.
Springboks fear raids from NRL, Aussie rugby union poachers By Jim Tucker
September 03, 2009 12:00am
FORTHRIGHT World Cup winner John Smit has bluntly warned talent-hungry Australian scouts in the NRL and rugby union to keep their hands off South Africa’s budding ‘Boks.
The decorated Springboks captain yesterday admitted for the first time he regarded rugby league as a genuine threat through the poaching of South Africa’s top schoolboy talent.
“South Africa produces a huge amount of talent at the schools level and the boys are being seen as good assets for rugby league and now even Australian rugby,” Smit, 31, said.
“There’s been a lot of interest of late. Rugby league is becoming a real threat so we have to be wary of that to keep our very best.”Wallaby winger: Litmus test for Lachie Turner
One-off match: Reds return to Ballymore
In-depth: More news in our rugby section
The Sydney Roosters have been the most brazen. They signed muscular centre JP du Plessis, 18, to a three-year deal in June and it is believed the bottom-placed NRL club has swooped on three more South African teenagers to develop through the under-20 Toyota Cup.
Roosters recruitment chief Peter O’Sullivan made a scouting trip to South Africa this season.
A Melbourne Storm scout and player agent Greg Keenan ogled the eye-popping talent at the elite Craven Week schools tournament in East London last month.
“There was some amazing talent on display. I can tell you JP du Plessis won’t be the last South African joining the NRL ranks next year,” du Plessis’ manager Keenan said.
Smit said the talent-stripping alert was on two fronts as his world champion Springboks took aim at a win over the Wallabies at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday to clinch the Tri-Nations.
The NSW Waratahs this week became the first of Australia’s four Super 14 sides to zero in on emerging South African talent under the import rules.
The Waratahs swooped on 2m lock Hendrik Roodt, a former Emerging Springbok of 21.
Australian teams are able to contract a developing foreign player yet to represent his country because the bonus down the track is potential Wallabies eligibility.
Dan Vickerman, 1999 World Cup-winner Tiaan Strauss and Clyde Rathbone are all South African-born players who became Wallabies.
Koos, we have to win this one(or get the 2 bonus points), the Wallabies have many untried combinations this week, and I reckon the ABs are digging trenches back home for all out warfare with us.
Suppose Smit can warn as much as he likes, it is not going to stop them and all you want is one success and they will be back…
We should win but as I said yesterday, Brisbane is not a happy hunting ground for us. I also don’t think they have that many untested combinations, remember Barnes and Ginea played together, the hookers keep on swapping since day one so it is just the backrow which is new together.
Ismaail Dollie is also a Saffa born player, another one lost by WP….also lost by Oz as well đ
Bit nervous for the All Bland part of the tour. Those Polynesians can do some weird things on the field when it’s their own back yard.
Koos
Sy is hier vir 5 laaaaaaaaaaang weke.
Mark my words this weekend we are going to bomb them with the up and unders
From an Aussie rugby site:
Van een van die aussie rugby sites af:
Wallabies form through the mouths of babes
At home on a Saturday night with my dear wife, remote in one hand, and glass of red in the other. Does it get any better than this?
Well, yeah it does, if you are a Wallaby fan. Like, around 1998 to 2001 got a fair bit better, or 1990 to 1993 was much better, as well.
Now, Mrs Emu is no huge rugby fan, although she has always enthusiastically supported me in my playing days and provides that same support to me now in my days as a coach.
She knows enough of the game to make the most basic and obvious of observations and they are nuggets of gold. Iâll roll some of them for you about Saturday nightâs Wallabies Vs Springboks Test match.
1. âThe South Africans are big arenât theyâ.
There are some big men in there, but we have some big guys, too. But we have some small guys, as well: Giteau, Turner, Robinson.
And letâs face it, our big guys are scary tough looking big guys: Botha Vs Chisolm, Fourie Vs Cross, and so on. The Springboks have a tough, menacing, âbigâ look about them.
2. âThe South Africans look so relaxedâ.
âWhat are they doing now? It looks like they are praying!â
Correct, my dear, they were praying in a huddle before the game. Not the usual preparation for an Australian sporting team, but it seems to work for the Springboks.
And the Africans appeared to be totally focused yet calm and collected in the dressing room pre-game, with not a hint of nerves.
This is a team that knows itself well, with high levels of trust and confidence. They can be calm and collected going into battle because they know that the man on the left and right is going to do the business.
3. âWhereâs Morty?â
Not playing, Iâm afraid.
Now, Stirling Mortlock is certainly a lot closer to the end of his career than the beginning, but he has been around champion teams, and he knows what it is like to win.
One cannot help but feel that if he was on the field in the Bledisloe last week, he would have insisted that the team set up for field goal in the dying seconds.
He stays calm and composed in crucial moments. His leadership was missed on Saturday night in a team that sorely lacks on-field leaders at present.
4.âThat bloke wasnât even watching the Springbok and he just ran straight past him. How dumb.â
Indeed. Adam Ashley Cooper was not watching as Fourie Du Preez took a quick tap and scooted past several absolute passengers to score the simplest of tries.
The first lesson that any decent coach drills into his young charges is to âface upâ. You would not catch an elite rugby league player turning his back at a free kick/penalty situation.
The most simple of errors lead to an embarrassing farce of a try. Aaaarghh.
4. âGosh we are giving away a lot of penaltiesâ.
Yes, darling, we did. âNuff said.
5. âRocky just dropped the ball. He never makes mistakes.â
Correct. When your best player starts making simple handling errors, you know that confidence is well down.
6. âLuke Burgess is so good looking.â
This followed my umpteenth hurl of abuse at the number 9 for poor, slow and ill-timed delivery from the phase play. Yes, he is a handsome young man, and from all reports a lovely bloke as well. But if there is not a better halfback in the country, we should give up. Du Preez made him look second rate.
7. âOur kicks are going straight to their players.â
Almost every kick in general play on Saturday night was a shocker. Some serious work is needed in this area.
The absence of Berrick Barnes highlighted this glaring deficiency in the Wallabies game.
8. âWhy canât they get it out to the fast guys like when Roffy and Burkey were playing?â
I donât know, darling. I am sure there is a whole lot of hooey and complicated nonsense that could be offered to explain this, but I canât understand it.
9. âFor Godâs sake stop switching over to the Swans game. You donât even like AFL!â
10. âOur scrum is good isnât it?â
It is. It is a very good scrum, in fact.
It is the jewel in what is otherwise a very tinny crown. Surely, if this aspect of the Wallabies game can be improved so markedly, it is not too much to ask for quantum improvement in other areas such as general play kicking.
11. âWhy didnât they play like this in the first half?â
Clearly enough, the Springboks took the pedal off the metal with twenty to go and permitted the Wallabies to score some points in the last quarter.
It was almost as if the mercy rule had been invoked. The Springboks did not seem overly disappointed with themselves neither. Not a good sign for the Wallabies.
The âBoks donât have any respect for this current Wallaby side.
12. âThe Springbok coach looks like Isaac the barman off The Love Boat.â
Iâll pay that. And I cannot help but think that he is no fool, neither. I think if Mrs Emu could listen to some of his press conference coach speak, she would say âWhat is he talking about?â
But I think PDV might have us all fooled.
6 @Disa Sterkte swaer! Myne weier om te kom kuier so ek het haar jare laas gesien…
They may well do that, the beauty of being on the winning side and not playing catch-up.
7 @Disa đ I think Deans should call Mrs Emu, she is an astute observer…
Koos
Het maar besluit om die Brisbane trip die naweek n miss te gee. Ek en twee pelle vlieg volgende week uit vir 5 dae Auckland toe en gaan bietjie die Noord Eiland toer met n campervan en dan die ruggas kyk die Saterdag in Hamilton.
Weet jy dit is die eerste keer dat ons in Hamilton speel nadat hulle ons met meelbomme in 81 gegooi het? Gaan soos n pilgrimage voel
10 @Disa Nice trip!Hopelik het julle ok weer.
Nou ja toe, vat vir jou ‘n stok saam en as jy enige lefties sien klop hulle!
Disa,
Mrs Emu almost had me on the floor(laughing that is)
Hoop maar vir die bokke se part ook ons het nice weer maar ek dink moet ons pak is dit eindelik voordelig om in reen te speel.
Ek worry bietjie oor die Brisbane game die naweek, hulle backline lyk stukke beter en ons gaan weer sukkel in die skrums. Gaan jy game toe?
@Manlybok – Hehe she made my morning!
13 @Disa Ons behoort steeds te sterk te wees…as die manne nie te gerus is nie.
Nee jong, toe ek kaartjies soek is al wat oor is ‘restricted view’ en platinum kaartjies so behalwe as daar iewers uit die lug uit val sal ek nie gaan nie.
@Koos – Ek het nou net stront gepraat, die 1981 toets in Hamilton is gekanseleer.
At Rugby Park, Hamilton (the site of today’s Waikato Stadium), on July 25 [9], about 350 rioting protesters invaded the pitch after pulling down a fence using sheer force. The police arrested about 50 of them over a period of an hour, but were concerned that they could not control the rugby crowd, who were throwing bottles and other objects at the protesters.[8] Following reports that a light plane (piloted by war-veteran Pat McQuarrie)[9] was approaching the stadium, police cancelled the match.[8] The protesters were ushered from the ground and advised by protest marshals to remove any anti-tour insignia from their attire, with enraged rugby spectators lashing out at them. Gangs of rugby supporters waited outside the Hamilton police station for arrested protesters to be processed and released, and assaulted some protesters making their way into Victoria Street
16 @Disa Hahaha ek dink jy praat steeds stront, was nie ‘n toets wat gecancel was nie…
Of ek praat stront of Wiki!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1981_South_Africa_rugby_union_tour_of_New_Zealand
@Disa –
Was nie die 1 ste toets nie, maar was die eerste wedstryd van die toer teen Waikato.
Al drie toetse het voortgegegaan soos beplan.
@Pietman – Hoop hulle vries jou brein die dag as jy peg
@Disa –
đ
Ek onthou daai dag soos gister, om verskeie redes!
Sal jou nog vertel as daar n kansie is.
More manne!!!!
More al die mense…en daai WP ondersteuners…
Well the Boks had better think about 5 points and sealing it this weekend.
Who would have thought.
4 games into the 3N the Boks are not only unbeaten, but in addition to the Unity Cup (B&I Lions tour) they also have the Mandela Plate (against Aus) and Freedom Cup (against NZ) but they can clinch the 3N title with still a game in hand!!!
We are witnessing something special here.
@MornĂ© – 24 – Yip, who whould have thought…
TonyM, you have registered and been APPROVED
Start Blogging
(PS! I’ve followed the E-Mail Exchange with Pietman, will contact you soon….)
Helloooooooo boys and gals…
Going a bit rough here at the office…. will chat properly later !
24@MornĂ© – Hello Pissmier…. jy my mail gekry gisteraand, na aanleiding van ons geselsie op die foon?
@grootblousmile –
Fokkols nie hoor.
Waarnatoe het jy dit gestuur? Watse adres?
29@MornĂ© – Na die RW adres… ek forward dit gou na die ander adres…
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