Deon Stegmann will make his Test debut in a much-changed Springbok line-up against Ireland in Dublin on Saturday. Uncapped Sharks utility back Patrick Lambie could also make his debut if Jean de Villiers fails a late fitness test. The bench will also include two uncapped players.
SA Rugby
The team shows eight changes (nine if De Villiers is unavailable) to the one which ended the Vodacom Tri-Nations against Australia in September. The six definite survivors are Bryan Habana, Morne Steyn, Pierre Spies, Juan Smith, captain Victor Matfield and Jannie du Plessis. A seventh, Francois Hougaard is on the bench, while an eighth in Frans Steyn will only join the squad after the Ireland match.
Stegmann, 24, comes in for Schalk Burger in the No 6 jersey. Burger suffered a broken rib in the Absa Currie Cup final and withdrew from the tour party.
The 20-year-old Lambie – man of the match in the Absa Currie Cup final after a two-try, 25-point haul on Saturday – is on standby to replace Jean de Villiers at inside centre if he fails to recover from his groin injury.
Lambie’s Sharks team-mates Willem Alberts or Keegan Daniel (looseforward) and Lwazi Mvovo (wing) could also make their debuts from the bench.
“It’s a new-look side but with 13 season-ending injuries it couldn’t be anything else,” said Peter de Villiers, when the Springbok coach announced the team in Dublin today. “But we’re looking on the positive side and this is a great opportunity to test some new players in the toughest conditions.
“We also have a number of senior players returning to the team after long lay-offs for one reason or another and they are keen to re-stake their claim to a starting place. We’ve not had much time to bed this new team together but the players have worked hard all week to be as well prepared as we possibly can be.”
Front rankers Tendai Mtawarira and Bismarck du Plessis make their first appearances of the season while Bakkies Botha returns after suspension. Ulster-based Ruan Pienaar returns to the No 9 jersey he last wore against the Wallabies in Australia in July while wing Bjorn Basson and centre Zane Kirchner make their first appearances since June.
De Villiers said injuries to experienced centres Jaque Fourie, Wynand Olivier and Jean de Villiers as well as exciting new talent Juan de Jongh and the unavailability of Frans Steyn for this Test had made the backline selection challenging.
“Our hand has been forced in our centre selection,” he said. “Hopefully Jean will recover in time but if not, Patrick Lambie has played at inside centre for The Sharks before he was moved to 10 and Zane is defensively strong and a strong ball runner.”
The pack is more settled with only debutant Stegmann having played fewer than 20 Tests.
“Deon is an openside in the traditional style and has been outstanding for his province,” said De Villiers. “He is used to playing with Pierre and we need an out and out specialist to counter Ireland at the breakdown.”
South Africa v Ireland – Aviva Stadium, Dublin, 6 November 2010
15 Gio Aplon – 9 caps
14 Bjorn Basson – 2
13 Zane Kirchner – 10
12 Jean de Villiers / * Patrick Lambie – 63/0
11 Bryan Habana – 66
10 Morne Steyn – 21
9 Ruan Pienaar – 43
8 Pierre Spies – 37
7 Juan Smith – 65
6 * Deon Stegmann – 0
5 Victor Matfield (captain) – 101
4 Bakkies Botha – 68
3 Jannie du Plessis – 20
2 Bismarck du Plessis – 32
1 Tendai Mtawarira – 22
Replacements:
16 Chiliboy Ralepelle – 17
17 CJ van der Linde – 65
18 Flip van der Merwe – 6
19 * Willem Alberts / * Keegan Daniel – 0/0
20 Francois Hougaard – 5
21 Adi Jacobs – 30
22 * Patrick Lambie / * Lwazi Mvovo – 0/0
Date: Saturday, November 6
Venue: Aviva Stadium, Dublin
Kick-off: 19.30 (17.30 GMT; 19.30 SA time)
Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)
Assistant referees: Bryce Lawrence (New Zealand), Keith Brown (New Zealand)
TMO: Hugh Watkins (Wales)
Wel, well, well… here’s SARU’s official Team…
Damn man, I am apprehensive, to say the least.
Tight 5 exactly as expected
Loosies… well if it comes off there is nice balance in the trio…
Why Hougie is not playing next to Morné is a mystery.
Centres, what a buggerup!!
Bjorn on right wing… damn it’s a gamble… but let’s see how the fella goes.
Gio Aplon at fullback, not too many worries about that….
Replacements…. I suppose good under the circumstances
The team is not bad at all except in the centers………..are Meyer Bosman and Stefan Terblanche injured? Why oh why play a 15 at 13 in a test?
@ grootblousmile: gbs, Not a bad team but why the heck Zane on at outside centre? Mistake I think.
Basson is a 11 not a 14. Have to wait and see how that goes.
Think Ireland going to beat us. Not very confident with this team really.
@ Loosehead:No Stefan and Bosman are not injured. NOR is STRAUSS!!! Why did they not select Strauss knowing they have injury problems at center.
Selection will cost us. Zane is a mistake at 13 and Basson is a 11.
Keegan too has been outstanding this CC and left out. Crazy.
Also would have had Hougaard start ahead of Ruan.
Anyhow that is our team and will support them.
GO BOKKE.
Cheers everyone.
Howzit Sharky, See you up there. What you think of the Bok team?
Feel for Keegan being left out. Stegmann should be fine though but Keegan has been outstanding.
zane op 13 en bjorn op 14 shoe ek weet darrem nie so mooi nie ruan op 9 hel hier kom kakka en dis ons wat gaan k@k daai agterlyn gaan nie werk nie want n buite senter moet kan pass en zane kan net skop en jaag hy gaan dood gemaak word teen die beste senters ter wereld,hier kom die einde van sy loopbaan
Should be an interesting Boots & All tonight….
@ grootblousmile:
Grootbluesmile, I still have not received the official Rugby Talk Press Pass for Saturday 13th November, I need it to interview the Boks Kicking Coach…..Please sort it as a matter of urgency!! 🙂
@ grootblousmile:It will be as boring as ever. The supersport okes just towing the party line. I haven’t watched it since the 3N.
Oor die span: wees dankbaar, as Januarie reg was, was dit hy en Zane op senter ! 😉
Dink enige van die volgende kombinasies kon beter gewees het (as JDV ook uit is):
– Strauss en Oupa
– Bosman en Habana
– Strauss en Habana
Selfs jong Watermeyer is ‘n natuurlike 12, en sal kon help.
Hoop maar JDV is reg, dan lyk dit baie beter. On de udder hant, Lambie kan dalk net verras op binnesenter. Jong mense het mos geen respekte vir ou ooms soos O’Driscoll nie, so hy kan hom dalk net verras.
Hoop maar vir die beste onder moeilike omstandighede.
kom ons hoop maar zane doen goed op senter.voorry lyk baie goed.
14: stem saam Piet, kom ons hoop dat dit goed gaan, hopelik is die Iere oorgerus … en ons uitgerus !
@ bdb:
Sal gehou het daarvan om Andries Strauss van die Sharks te sien teen B O’D, hy sal hom dood getekkel het, soos teen WP laaste week….
Ok, so dis die span wat hulle gekies het. Stem maar saam met meeste mense/almal.
Kichner op 13 gaan ons kos. Kichhner vs Brian Odriscall… ooo vrek. maar kom ons sien. Ek is nie TE geworry oor Basson nie. Om van links na regs te skuif is nie so groot aanpassing om van, kom ons se, skrumhalf na heelagter te skuif. Sal moet sien.
1-5: Baie goed
6-8: Onder omstandighede baie goed
9-15: wat kan meer gese word.
Sal maar die bal voorlangs moet hou dink ek.
Een “goeie” ding is dat, sover ek weet, Ruan nou al meeste van sy seisoen in die Noorde 9 speel, so dis darem nie asof hy net weer moet inkom en voel-voel nie.
rugbybal
November 4th, 2010 at 3:20 PM
@ grootblousmile:
With all the options available to him, I think Div should put the numbers 11-15 in a hat and let the guys draw for positions.
I THINK THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT HE DID
I cannot believe that we have a coach who is mismanaging the Boks like this!!
Selecting and preparing a Bok team is not about players who have been injured and have not played for a long time!!
It is not about “hoping” that Zane can stop the Irish centres and throwing young Lambie in there with him!!
It is not about “gambling that players out of position will come off on the day”
It is not about playing Ruan with Morne, when Hougaard is our in form scrum half and a team mate of Morne!!
So we are now saying our tight five will pull it off for us.
We have a front row that at best will compete with the Irish in those conditions.
We have Vic and Bakkies who have not played for a while!!
Plumtree says that he would rather not see Lambie go on an unhappy tour and would rather see him play S15 next year before he plays international rugby.
If Lambie does not perform he is on a hiding to nothing because people will then say “We told you that he is not that good”
Is this coach capable of building a young player like Lambie without throwing him to the wolves?
I am gatvol of PDV!!
He is single handedly destroying Springbok rugby!!
OK, now that we all have been very negative and taken out the canes to bliksem Snorre from every angle, let’s look at the realities.
In effect there is ONLY ONE real controvertial selection…. that of playing Zane Kirchner at No 13.
The rest of the selections is rather forced on him…. Stegmann in with Schalla injured, inside centre conundrum with injuries maybe making it necessary to play Lambie at No 12…. these 2 choices we HAVE TO live with, if faced with those options we would possibly also have chosen accordingly or made different selections which was subject to massive critisism.
Regarding the Ruan / Hougie scenario…. well Ruan is regularly playing in Ireland now and knows the conditions and type of rugby played there, so his inclusion is understandable and although I do not agree with the specific choice, I can live with it for now…. I understand the reasoning behind the issue.
The Root cause of our current problem in selection lies in the EXTRAORDINALLY BAD planning and selection of the actual initial squad choices… at Inside center, Right wing and Fullback.
They knew Wynand Meisiekind and Jaque was out injured, knew also that Fransie Steyn was only available after this game… and knew at the time of announcing the squad (Just after the Currie Cup Final) that Jean and Juan de Jongh had injury niggles. At worst they knew the next day, Sunday… and should have made proper provision for a specialist Inside centre and specialist Outside Center.
Not trusting Adi Jacobs for a starting position says 1 thing and one thing only and that is that he should not have toured, in his place another No 13 should have been taken….. but who? Same applies to a No 12, a specialist but who?
No 12… Strauss… based on 2 or 3 good defensive showings in total… NO, I would have taken Meyer Bosman rather… constant performer at the Staat.
No 13… The cupboard is rather bare, not much happening at the Bulls (Jaco Pretorius), Cheetahs (Robert Ebersohn), Sharks (Oupa Terblanche), WP (their 2 Bokke No 13’s are injured), Lions (Waylon Murray). Had I been the coach / selector this week you would surely have shouted at me too and ridiculed me for my choice of No 13… due to the lack of quality I would have played Lwazi Mvovo out of position at No 13… also a gamble.
What concerns me is the type of game plan we will have for Saturday, we cannot afford to go behing on the scoreboard to the Oirish , like we did time after time against the All Blacks and Wobblies… and expect to come back into the game… not in the Northern Hemisphere, not on their turf!!
We have to play possession rugby! We have to dominate the breakdown areas and have our loosies and hooker play TOWARDS and OVER the ball!
Our defence needs to be spot on!
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