South Africa may have guaranteed their place in the Rugby World Cup 2011 quarter-finals but coach Peter de Villiers had plenty of reasons for a restless night after the match against Samoa at North Harbour Stadium on Friday.
The Springboks battled hard for their 13-5 win against a bruising Samoan side with the physicality of the match taking its toll on de Villiers’ men.
“Frans Steyn is likely to go home,” he said. “His shoulder isn’t that good. The doctor will confirm it 100 per cent this morning, but it’s 95 per cent that he’s on his way home and that is a big blow for us.”
The South African coach said he was reluctant to mention the seriousness of the left-shoulder injury to his inside centre because he was unsure of who he would call on to fill the gap.
“I was lying awake on a replacement,” he said. “What do we need really? That is what we have to look at now.
“I still have to make a few calls and see.”
De Villiers acknowledged there were other players who looked worse for wear in the wake of the match, however the coach is confident there are no other serious injuries in his squad.
“Bryan (Habana), JP (Pietersen), all those kind of guys they’ve got battle scars and that’s all. Presuming they can recover quick enough to take their places this coming week.”
While the Springbok coach is confident Frans Steyn will be the only long-term casualty from South Africa’s final Pool D match, he rued his team’s misfortunes in collecting injuries in the same places.
“I don’t know what’s wrong with us,” he said. “When we get an injury in one position we get it in one position. We had a lock, and suddenly we lost three wings in one game.
“When Lady Luck turns her back on us, she turns it properly on us.”
Massive, massive loss to lose Fransie. Our chances at this wc cup has taking a almighty dip without him at inside centre. Where he was playing world class rugby.
None of our replacements centres are the same class as Fransie at 12.
Damn, why the heck did we have to play our key players yesterday and not the replacements?
Hope Hougaard is fine too. It looked like concussion to me. If so he won’t play against Oz either. How is Habs? Otherwise we will have to play Odway on at 14 with JPP going to 11 like we done against Fiji. Aplon to the bench then. Just have nightmares of the Aussies running around Aplon in the Durban test. Though I do rate Aplon. He never had a good game that day.
@ Puma:1 – Meant – Odwa
Please they must not bring WO for Frans Steyn. He is definitely not at this level at all.
Some were saying on keo to bring J. Goosen. He has a big boot and his defence is good. But he has never even played SuperRugby let alone in a world cup, so I personlly don’t think we can just shove the younster in. As we have no idea how he plays at this level. So who could come? Just can’t think of any back home that is the same quality as Fran Steyn. We sure have lost a massive weapon in him. Also with Fransie at inside centre Morne plays so much better at fh. Though yesterday Morne just kicked everything away again. Though think that was the game plan. Though his kicking was not great yesterday. So who to fill in at inside centre? Cause JdV and JdJ just not the same quality of player as Frans Steyn.
@ Puma:typo – youngster
Yip massive loss, Puma. But JdV can do the job well. Suddenly he has been written off by all and sundry. No, we’ll miss Fransie for his boot and versatility. Now we can’t safely play 5 forwards on the bench. How we miss Juan Smith now. I wonder how his recover has been going???
Agree about WO and Goosen. Think they should bring over another lock like Mostert or Flip.
It’s strange as PdV says, we seem to get all our injuries in one position.
@ The_Young_Turk:5 – JdV is okay but he is not Frans Steyn. He hogs the ball too. Hardly passes. Frans was off loading in the tackle was great. His defence was outstanding and also when getting tackled it takes a few players to bring him down. His boot was always a weapon.
Jeez, just can’t think who can play there as well as Fransie. Our bench won’t be as good now either. One player goes and the whole team looks different.
@ The_Young_Turk:7 – For the game against Samoa we should have rested key players. We would have beaten them with our other players. Even if we lost less by less than 8 we would still have topped our pool.
We never had to chance our key players yesterday.
@ The_Young_Turk:6 – We can’t now. Think we will be short of backline players.
Have to bring another utility player. Goosen had he had some SuperRugby experience would have been the first choice. He can play in a few positions. But we can’t bring him with only CC experience. Some excell at CC and once at this level they not the same.
Jeez, just thinking of Fransie when he got that try against Wales. He just went over them Lomu style…haha. Heck he will be missed. A powerful centre like that just not sure we have another in his class.
@ Puma:
you know Puma, a month ago everyone was talking of JdV as the best centre in the world and Fransie as no good. Overnight the opinion has swung the other way. That’s not reality. Fransie played well at centre, true, but JdV has not suddenly become useless. The big problem is that Morne’s channel is so vulnerable now.
About Goosen, that’s not an option. Just because some fool throws it out there doesn’t mean it even deserves to be spoken about.
We have the players to replace Fransie at the moment at centre and fullback but we can’t replace his huge boot or versatility. His loss gives us a huge headache on the bench.
People are now suddenly looking for a clone of Fransie. It doesn’t exist. All the players bring something else to the table. Thing is Fransie could cover centre and fullback well and flyhalf and even wing in an emergency and then he has that huge boot. Ruan is the only other player that is equally versatile but has no BMT and could and usually does fall to pieces. Can we rely on him on the bench??
Knowing how PdV thinks I would guess that he will go for Kirchner. I don’t think Kirchner is Bok material, but then again PdV is not interested in my opinion.
@ The_Young_Turk:11 – I said just that on a thread on keo. Morne will become a liability again without Fransie at inside centre.
Think so many of us had said in the past that JdV is not great at inside centre. He hardly ever, every passes the ball. Always just bashes it up and goes to ground.
So many said bad things about Fransie. Hope they are feeling really bad right now, cause he proved them all wrong. He was and still is way, way better than JdV mate. Why did Fransie have to lose his place to JdV after wc 2007? WHY? He should have kept that position as his own. He was really good there with JF in 2007. I for one have always rated Fransie. Said when he left the Sharks we lost a brilliant player. And there we are battling like crazy to fill inside centre with a quality player like Fransie.
JdV and JdJ just not in the same class at inside centre as Frans Steyn. Never have been and doubt they will be. They are very good players but not outstanding. Fransie is world class.
Personally I’d bring over Juan Smith if he’s fit or Bekker. They are 2 of our best players to miss the WC. I don’t think we need another centre. We have JdJ and Lambie and Gio to play fullback. Remember that our next opponents are Oz and we will need a playmaker like Gio.
@ The_Young_Turk:14 – Think Ruan will be brought to the bench now.
@ The_Young_Turk:15 – If PdV brings Zane in. Then he has lost it totally. Doubt he will. Zane is really not at this level at all. Aplon is way, way better.
Lambie was superb yesterday whether some will admit it or not. He played very well. Solid as a rock at the back. That tackle he made was brilliant. The Samoan player only had to pass Lambie and he would have been over our line. Lambie nailed him. Good to see Spies and Bissie giving Lambs high fives there for that tackle. Pat is one cool customer. He looked the coolest in the team yesterday, no nerves at all. Everyone seemed angry with the Samoans. Tempers seemed to be flying everywhere. The ref was useless. Should have controlled off the ball stuff a lot better. He never. Barnes on the line was just as bad. Both useless.
You’re a Sharkie and have always been a Fransie supporter at centre, Puma. But you’ve been the exception all these years. Most people have been raving about JdV. Suddenly he’s become shyte. No, I like Fransie but I can’t say he would have been the Bok solution after seeing play against only Wales, where we barely won, Fiji, Namibia and Samoa. He’s never had a run at centre against Oz or NZ. I would have loved to have seen him there but it’s not to be.
@ Puma:
Agree with you about Lambie. Solid as a rock. Has great BMT and will never let the Boks down. He seldom makes mistakes because he is so calm under pressure.
I’m positive that PdV will put Ruan on the bench now and will bring over one of Kirchner or WO. Not that I agree, but I am sure that’s what he will do.
@ The_Young_Turk:17 – Gio also leaves his positin open sometimes and gaps come. Something they mentioned on ‘Plan NZ’ show last week. He done the same against the Aussies in Durban. So not so sure. He is a gutsy player and sure does find the gap with ball in hand. It is when he is going up on defence he sometimes goes out of postion. Then gaps appear and he puts pressure on the other players. Anyhow I do rate Aplon. But would have Lambie at fb before him and always. Lambie is solid. Won’t let the team down. That for now is all we want is a solid player there.
Go read DanRetiefs site. He tells you what we have in Lambie. He rates him too. Many will only know what they have in a player once they don’t have him anymore. Much like all the criticisim Fransie had to take. Now some only see just how brilliant he is.
Just hope we get over our bruised bodies and no more injuries from here on. Hope Hougaard is ready to play next week. Now I really rate him huge as well. Habs too was having a good game until he had to go off injured.
Another thing think John’s captaincy was missed yesterday. He would have calmed things down. Also how that idiot ref sent him off with a yellow as utter ridiculous. It was never a sin bin and not a penalty either. He was going for the intercept. Ag, some useless reffing yesterday for sure.
Cheers mate out of here now.
@ The_Young_Turk:20 – I just hope the does not bring over WO or Zane. None are up to this level.
Who is at inside centre for the Lions? He is doing a fine job there.
For now I think he will definitely play JdV there. Cause he and Fourie have played plenty together. But he is no Fransie. But to bring a player from home just not sure who should go.
If only Goosen had played some SuperRugby this year, we would know how he could play at this level. Lethal kicker as well. Good on defence. But not as big and strong as Frans Steyn.
Not sure if Juan will go over. Thing Burger is filling in very well there. But we are also a Lock short with all our injuries.
Just hope they think wisely who they bring and not just any.
Okay now really out of here. Being trying to logg off for a while now……..hahaha.
Cheers mate. Catch up during the week. As you said you would be out tomorrow.
Just remembered before I go. If Butch James is over his injury he will be on the bench for sure. No doubt about it. His defence is brilliant. He can play inside centre and fh. So he will be there for sure.
Okay now gone…….lol.
@ The_Young_Turk:19 – Fransie was superb for us at 12. The reason my confidence was up and thinking we could go all the way. Our weakness has been at fh but with Fransie there instead of JdV, Morne’s game was far better.
Fransie played FB against Wales not inside centre. Butch took over there when JdV came off. Think you may have forgot that. Fransie played a full game at 12 against Fiji, Namibia and Samoa. He was our man for that positon. No question.
Now really gone. Catch up later for the Sharks game.
Damn just can’t log off keep wanting to say another thing…….haha.
Also when Fransie went to inside centre against Fiji, Morne’s game was far, far better. When he Butch played at inside centre against Wales, Morne was not that great at fh. His kicking at poles was though.
So we lose Fransie and we may have a problem with Morne again at fh. So we have to think careful who plays at 12. Fransie passes and also his off loading in the tackle was superb. JdV never passes. Our wings will never see the ball again.
Now really out of here.
Okay just got the Star Newspaper. This is how our players were rated for yesterday:
Lambie: 9 (Lambie got the highest rate)
Had a execptional game. The smallest player on thee field made some of the biggest tackles. Was brave under the high ball and took the ball up strongly.
Rated with 8 was:
Frans Steyn
Schalk Burger
Heinrick Brussow
Danie Rossouw
Bismarck du Plessis
Rated with 7 was:
JPP
J. Fourie
B. Habana
M. Steyn
F. du Preez
P. Spies
V. Matfield
J. du Plessis
T. Mtawarira.
They writer also said that Danie Rossouw is the Boks’Player of the Tournament so far.
I agree. He is playing some sublime rugby.
Puma your fragmented article about Fransie is a bit overboard, hel this guy was not the reason why we were great against the minnows. The blinders that Danie Roussouw played took the team into overdrive. Everyone in the backline looked good in those games.
One player who came of age was Lambie against Samoa, he did match saving things.
Frans missed his long/long penalty and kicked one that is in Morne Steyns range. His game gives us variation but he is most definitely not irreplaceble in the Bok team, If we go into the play offs with the attitude that one or 2 players will cost us the game we can pack up now and come home.
At this stage we have 5 frontrow players in peak form, we have a bit of worries at lock , but the old war horses are fighting and is in good form.
Schalk, Bruss and Spies is a great combo, with great back up in that department.
FduP and Morne will click in NOW, they were good but build up steam and they are accomplished finals players with a lot of experience in those type of games.
JdeV was never my favorite and the success FS had in that position made me happy too. But the man who was destined to play there is still there, go Jean show them, you worked hard for this chance. JF makes me worry the most, he is too involved with the refs and organising play and forgett his own responsibility at times. Get focussed JF.
JPP is in great form, Habs might be right and Lambie is there, so this team is great they must just come out and play a GREAT GAME.
It worries me that one player can be so crucial, and maybe FS will play again anyway, or is he really out
@ superBul:Well how about this. They are flying out Zane to replace Fransie. Zane is at best CC level. I feel soooooooooooooooooooo bloody mad about that.
Here we replace a world class player in Fransie with a CC level player. Bloody stupid.
If we wanted another fb to cover it should have been Taute or Viljoen not Zane. Zane is just NOT up to this level.
Sure Super you never supported or rated Fransie. I have and will. He was a revelation at inside centre. WE have lost our trump card in him. Fransie getting injured is a massive blow. Now we sit with Zane a mediocre player taking his place. Whoever decided on this was damn stupid.
If anything we should have sent for another lock. Or the very least another utility player.
Where can Zane play? fb? He is not great there at all. Unless they thinking of him at centre. Heck hope not.
Think we are in trouble.
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