How much stil makes sense in South African Rugby? Is it maybe a way for Peter and his coaching team to confuse all? How serious is our challenge? Who is not laughing? Is it not the perfect chance to let the politicians get their way and pick that 60% black team? Who would care if we send a brand new politically correct team to the World Cup? Most serious rugby supporters gave up anyway on our chances to win this year.

Is there maybe a master plan of decievement by Peter de Villiers? Well the World and most of us are confused. To add to it you have pressure from people in political positions for a more demographic representative team. Nowhere to hide for Peter de Villiers.

Just take the statement by Makhaya Jack, a TV commentator and former player for SARU this week, that 60% or more players must be black. This after the revelations by Keo about the training camp in Rustenburg and one wonders if there is really anybody who does not try and derail our National coach. Do we deserve to win with so many selfish characters in South African rugby?

After the rumors that John Smit injured his arm, many were hoping that he would miss the World Cup. How low can we go, wishing an injury to one of the  most loyal servants of South African rugby? And don’t fool yourself, there were many who started celebrating his demise. How do you expect the Captain to motivate his team if more than half the country does not want him there. He played a decent game on Saturday and he was not the reason why the Springboks lost the game. His willingness to play out of position might be his biggest mistake in his career. He should have send the coaching staff to hell and insisted to always play his best position, namely hooker.

I am not one of the big Bismarck du Plessis believers. His dicipline and lineout throwing might be two of our biggest downfalls. We have the best lineout jumpers in the World but he misses those jumpers far too often, eliminating our strenght at the lineout. Yes, it is easy to shine amongst a tired lot of players. My feeling is that Bismarck should must play half the game, in the same way the Bulls used Gary Botha and Chiliboy Ralepelle in the 2011 Super Rugby Competition.

I just wish that Peter de Villiers does not chop and change too much for this Saturday, there is certainly no more time to fiddle around! What the Springboks need more than anything else, is for the team to gel, to build up cohesion and momentum. No one can be brought in now to make any significant changes in strenght. Falling around with the team will only mesmerize the team itself.

Well, the Australian public already can’t make up their mind if they were that good or not.

How to analyse such a scrappy game? Do you criticise the Wallabies for another week of poor handling and headless chook play? Or praise them for a great forward display and a well-executed field position plan to close out the match? I would probably side with the latter, but I am an eternal optimist regarding the world of Australian rugby.

Geez, what a mess. As an outsider looking in, where do you start?

Obviously giving Krusty and his travelling circus the chop, by perhaps getting them to take a one way swim to Argentina and use Smitty for a floatation device, would be a major catalyst, but sadly that is’nt going to happen, so where do you start?!

Let them laugh, let them wonder.

Surely in the back of their minds they must wonder if this is not a setup.

31 Responses to Mesmerized by Springbok Rugby World Cup campaign

  • 1

    Cape Town – Makhaya Jack, a TV commentator and former player for SARU (in the old segregated national union for coloured players), this week said the minister of sport should issue an ultimatum to provinces to transform.

    He believes the minister should also create structures separate from SARU to evaluate and monitor transformation.

    He said South African teams should be at least 60% black.

    “SARU is sitting on a transformation charter, but nothing is happening.

    “You see good black players in the Grant Khomo and Craven Week teams, but they disappear when it comes to the Vodacom and Super Rugby tournaments, as well as in the national teams,” said Jack.

  • 2

    Cape Town – The Springbok selectors have added Patrick Lambie, Lwazi Mvovo and Chiliboy Ralepelle to the training squad for Saturday’s Castle Tri-Nations Test against New Zealand in Port Elizabeth on Saturday.

  • 3

    A South African Rugby union (SARU) spokesperson has confirmed that Springbok captain John Smit will travel to the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand in September.

  • 4

    waar ons voorheen die harste rugby spelers en afrigters gehad het het ons nou seker die dik veligste (stuborn) mense in Rugby. Taai manne, kyk vir Dick Muir, hoeveel keer moet hy nog hoor hoe sleg hy is , hoeveel keer moet ons hom uitnooi om in sy swaard te val? Hy is nommer 1 by ver.

    Gary Gold vat nog 2de plek,
    John Smit 3de
    Peter de Villiers 4de
    Vier van die mees hardegatse ouens , rattels, volstruise wat mens kan kry.

  • 5

    Ek het niks meer te se nie.

    Dit val in elk geval op dowe ore.

  • 6

    biltong ou maat dinge lyk wragtag erg deurmekaar. Niemand luister meer na mekaar nie. Kyk dit sal moer intresant wees om in n team meeting die 3 stooges te hoor.

    DM het ons agterlyn totaal opgedonner
    Ons het nie iemand in SA wat n clue het oor skrums nie, dat Australia van alle plekke ons opdons in die skrums is een te veel vir my ook. Wonder of ek nie GG self moet kom uitboender nie.

  • 7

    Bok coach Peter de Villiers said afterwards he expected the players to tire late in the second half, as most of them had not played any competitive rugby in the last month or longer.

    “Yes, we expected the players to lose steam, but I was very happy with our good start. Unfortunately we did not convert all our efforts into points

    Hell waarheen gaan ons, hoe kan n Springbokspan moeg word, waar is oom Buurman van Zyl as mens hom nodig het. Hulle sou more gehardloop het todat hulle gekots het onder hom. Geen coach kan tog se die manne is moeg na 50 minute nie, n man moet fiks genoeg wees vir 100 minute as jy 80 wil speel.

    Die eerste ding wat lui raak as jy moeg word is jou brein. Enigeen tot ek, n amateur gholf speler weet dit, ek het baie kompetisies verloor in die laaste paar gate, todat ek myself gedril het om 27 gate te kan speel. Ek het in die Provinsiale opes wat oor 36 gate gegaan het soms nog 9 gespeel, toe was my brein fiks genoeg om die 18 gat toernooie te speel sonder n verskonning.

  • 8

    Kitch Christie het in een ding geglo bo enige ander.

    Fiksheid.

    Waar de hel is ons fiksheid.

    As jy begin kyk na al die probleem areas dan begin n’ ou te wonder of dit enigsins die moeite werd is om nog enige hoop te he.

  • 9

    I am not mezmerised, surprised or confused about the Bokke and their chances at the World Cup!

    It is heading one way and one way fast… we can forget about sucessfully defending our crown.

    I’m starting to wonder whether we’ll end first in our Pool, or whether we could beat a team like Ireland in the Quarters… Wales beat England yesterday, 19 / 9… and they’re in our Pool at the World Cup.

    Hell, even if we do, the Springbokke stand no chance whatsoever in a semi… not against the All Blacks or the Wallabies and not even against France!

    Arghhh, let me not get my blood pressure up…. Twakkie, Tricky Dickie, Gary Glitter and John Barney Smit is not worth the agony.

  • 10

    Imagine the Springboks losing to the All Blacks dirt tracker side this weekend in Port Elizabeth…. just imagine the shame!

    The thing is… it’s oh so real a possibility!

  • 11

    …. I wanted to type a looong piece now…. but what the fark, it’ll be just me climbing into some of our esteemed Bokke players… so I’ll rather leave it, go watch the Sunday night freegin Movie in the house, and go to sleep early for a change…

  • 12

    Well after watching the game again today I feel a lot more positive than I did last night.

    Our handling errors cost us two difinite tries and if Beast passed there was another try. So just basics like that we need to work on.

    We played well in the first half. With John at hooker we our scrum was very good, we got the better of Oz there. Once Peter moved John to TH we struggled. Also taking Brussow off instead of taking Danie off and bringing Deysel on at 7. My feeling Deysel and Brussow together would have been in their faces more. Steenkamp probably needed game time but it was wrong to bring him on when Beast was playing so well. BUT where must he get game time? That is a problem cause we need to have a TH on our bench to cover Jannie could got tired and John had to relace JdP which was a mistake. If Bissie has to come on then John has to be replaced unfortunately but never move him to TH. If John plays hooker I am perfectly happy with his game. His line out throws has always been far, far better than Bissies and John scrums better. Like the article says above our Lineouts are one of our huge strengths. John just about never misses the his jumpers. Bissie missed with his first throw yesterday. Though he played superb.

    For a very long time have not seen Spies play so well. For me he was our best Bok on the field yesterday. Well done Spies you proved me wrong. Keep it up, that is the kinda play we need from Spies every week.

    We were rusty for sure. Boks will get better and fitter the more they play. We only have next weeks game to get it right and I feel we will. Just don’t make replacements just for the need to allow players to get game time. Let us see what our starting team can do and for how long? Yip bring in the fresh sometime later but not just cause they there for game time. Not now. We should have had at least another warm up game. Probably should do what Kitch done and play our top Boks against some that have not got selected. That would be a big warm up game.

    Not sure who is all injured but know that Fransie seems to have picked up a injury and Danie as well.

    We need to be consisent and play the team again this week.

    Only changes would be where there are injured players.

    Lambie in for Fransie
    Deysel in for Danie.

    The rest of the team the same as Saturday.

    Players are under cooked and need game time not less.

    WE must learn once again how to catch a ball this week and the whole damn week. Also pass pleased damn pass when there is support next to you. WE do those simple basics right we can beat this under strength AB side. They are a very good side. So it won’t be easy but we can.

    Almost gave up supporting them after yesterday……hahaha. NEVER in my life would I have thought that. BUT we HAVE to support our boys no matter what. Win our lose they OUR team.

    GO BOKKE. Just play Jinx’s ‘Go Bokke Go’ song and it brings back the good feelings and the pride. We can and let us get behind our team and our players.

  • 13

    @ Puma:typo – definite

    also meant in 2nd last paragraph – Win or

  • 14

    @ Puma:12 – Typed that quick, so sorry for the English up there. Should check my posts before submitting.

    Okay out of here now.

    GO BOKKE GO.

  • 15

    Before I go, as much as I HATE our game plan, there is nothing we can do about it now. We just have to play it to perfection.

  • 16

    @ Puma:
    Puma i can see you read a lot on the net today and chose all the positives. Well i tell you the team needs millions like you, the nation must stand behind them, just for another 2 months. Then we can pick new staff. But for now i see 50% absolute negative , hensoppers and supporters who should be ashamed for various reasons. The other 50% will not let the Springbok jersey down , never. I chose to be one of these. We never had a great win result in New Zealand and the more they dismiss us the bigger the chance to upset them. To that i will cling. There wont be a better win ever if we can beat the All Blacks in New Zealand in a World Cup playoff. I want to be one who celebrate without egg on my face.

    Like i said the odds were stacked against us from the start. If PdeV can get his 3rd win in New Zealand out of what would then be our fourth since 1994, i want to be there enjoying it. If we do fall out of the bus like the other 50% of SA supporters wish or predict i hope the lessons will for ever be remembered by SARU and they make sure that no coach ever gets another 4 year contract without set parameters and escape clauses for SARU.

    Positive i stay.
    Go Bokke.

    I would have picked the following players if i had a chance to select a Springbok squad for the WC anyway.
    John Smit
    Bismarck du Plessis
    Jannie du Plessis
    Chillieboy Ralepele
    Gurthro Steenkamp
    Bakkies Botha
    Victor Matfield
    Danie Roussouw
    Schalk Burger
    Juan Smith
    Heinrich Brussow
    Pierre Spies
    Fourie du Preez
    Francios Hougaart
    Morne Steyn
    Jean de Villiers
    Jaque Fourie
    Bryan Habana
    JP Pieterson
    Gio Aplon
    Juan de Jongh
    Odwa Ndungane

    and be happy with whoever is picked to fill the other 8 places. Of the 22 i picked i am almost certain that nearly 100% of them will be picked by Peter de Villiers, with this in mind i must support the (MY) Springbok team till the end.

    GO Springboks
    the ball is in your court now.

  • 17

    May i add to the post above.
    With this team we must get the following things right and our chances will soar.
    1. fitness ( not peaking next week but by the semi final time, that wil leave us spot on for the crunch time 1/4 final 95%, s/f 100% , final 95%+
    2. Play the same team every match accept vs Namibia (that will give our top team just a little break during the tournament)
    3. Get a scrum specialist , even just for a specific game it will be great
    4. get someone new to motivate the team (a kop doctor) to get new thinking in them.
    5. Forgett all the hype about great, nice, beautiful rugby, play to OUR STRENGHTS
    6. and kick your points
    7. part of #2 keep combinations together

  • 18

    Corné Krige, the Springbok captain at the Rugby World Cup in 2003 says there are more than enough highlights for Bok coach Peter de Villiers to take out of Saturday’s loss with the World Cup in mind.

    “The were so many positives, the difference between the teams was very small,” Krige told the Rapport newspaper.

    Krige says fetcher flank Heinrich Brüssow was “unbelievable”.

    “To play like that in your first game back, takes a man,” said Krige.

    He was also impressed with replacement hooker Bismarck du Plessis and believes De Villiers should consider taking Smit off the field after 60 minutes.

    Krige believes Victor Matfield is a “good enough” captain to take charge until the end of the game.

  • 19

    Former Springbok wing and 1995 World Cup winner, Chester Williams also feels there’s no need to panic ahead of the Word Cup.

    “We are definitely on the right track. You could see in the last 10 minutes of the first half and the last 20 minutes of the match that the guys haven’t played for a while,” said Williams.

    “We haven’t played enough yet, but we will be ready for the World Cup.”

    Williams believes next week’s Test against the All Blacks in Port Elizabeth and the first four group matches at the World Cup will be enough to prepare the Boks for the crunch knockout-games.

    Williams was also highly impressed with Brüssow’s performance, while Du Plessis, Bakkies Botha, Jaque Fourie and Beast Mtawarira also caught the eye of the former Bok flyer.

  • 20

    Bob Dwyer said this today-

    The Springboks were, as I have said, rusty, but we would be foolish to discount them. Their second-half substitutions severely restricted their performance. They have a difficult pool for the World Cup, with matches against Wales, Samoa and Fiji (who gave them an almighty scare in 2007), but this could be the very ‘preparation’ which they need to bring out their best. Quality players do not evaporate overnight!

  • 21

    http://www.rugbystats.com.au/matches/rugby/match10596.html

    Never realised Genia kicks so much 10 kicks to FduP 6

  • 22

    Folks let be honest, the Aussie had just come off a big hiding to the All Blacks. They were exposed as not quite as good as what they are thought to be. They beat an almost full strength Bok team at home. While the players mostly played well, the management killed any chance that they had of winning. This will not change, the Bokwagter and his buddies are clueless and will keep making panic substitutions.

  • 23

    Loosehead wrote:

    This will not change, the Bokwagter and his buddies are clueless and will keep making panic substitutions.

    must hope this sly fox are playing the fool with them and surprize us all when it really matters. :GRIN:
    Manne ek stem dit maak seer om SO te verloor, hel ons kon wen man. Maar die vieslike knocks op crucial tye het ons driee gekos. As ek moet kies waneer om aan te slaan is dit virseker nou en nie in die uitspeel wedstryde nie. Maar soos Gary Player se the more you practice the better you get , netsou gaan ons aanslane dalk net beter wees.

    Wie het daardie bal soos n glip veldwerker met een hand gevang tydens die wedstryd? Was dit Rocky Elsom? Dit was skitterent, kan Cherrel Calder nie dalk weer n dag of wat by die Bokke kom kuier nie?

    As ons net Saterdag op die vertoning verbeter teen die All Blacks sal my Springbok kans rating van 25% na 40% styg. As ons teen die uitspeel wedstryde by 50/50 staan sal ek heel gelukkig na daardie wedstryde kyk.

  • 24

    Brussouw, Gurthro, Juan Smith et al have no place finding match fitness or form playing for the Boks. They should all be playing Club, then Currie Cup then Boks. But wtf do I know compared to the Bok ‘coaches’?

  • 25

    It is all too late for Bok rugby.
    The end started 4 years ago when they made PDV the coach.
    We have had zero rugby intelligence or planning in 4 years.
    We are headed for a disaster, based on only the above.
    We cannot blame the players.
    They are professional rugby players playing for a contract.
    The tri nations is the preparation for the 3 top teams in world rugby to get ready for WC.
    We are played 3 and lost 3.
    We may be played 4 and lost 4 after Saturday.
    That is no preparation for the WC.
    If the weather had been dry against the Aussies we would have been seriously klapped.
    The Aussies played badly and still won.
    We can all talk about poor selection, poor conditioning, poor tactics, poor technical, poor form and so on, but this is all the result of a poor coach.
    I find it tragic that people will continue to bluff themselves and tell us that we are on the right track.
    I expect to hear a lot of excuses in the weeks ahead.

  • 26

    @ tight head:
    I have to agree with you.

  • 27

    Having been negative enough for one day I do expect PDV’s Springboks to beat the All Blacks quite convincingly this weekend. [Just not on the scoreboard]

  • 28

    GBS, What the heck is wrong with your site boeta? Man feel sooooo frustrated. Just typed a long post to Tighthead asking him some questions. Saw him online.

    Now sumbitted it and it is no where to be seen. Probably away in cyberspace?????????????

    Took me forever to type too.

    Now busy, so will have to come back and type it again. Damn frusting that.

    Back later.

  • 29

    @ Puma:Now make all the typing errors in the world up there again too……..hehehe.

    meant = Submitted
    menat = frustating

  • 30

    @ Puma:Now make all the typing errors in the world up there again too……..hehehe.

    meant = Submitted
    meant = frustating

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