Springboks need to be off their game for a Wallaby win

 
James Mortimer Roar Pro

By James Mortimer, 29 Aug 2009 James Mortimer is a Roar Pro

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Two very different sides comes into Perth: the Springboks making a deserved amount of noise, the Wallabies sneaking in trying to avoid any attention whatsoever.

Luckily for the home team, other events have taken some attention away from this clash.

For Australian rugby, there have been the final permutations of the Lote Tuqiri affair, and the early stirrings that the Victorian Rugby Union may be completely overlooked for the Melbourne Super 15 bid.

In Subiaco itself, many regard the flagship clash over the weekend to be Friday night’s AFL clash between the West Coast Eagles and Richmond.

While this may seem unfair, no local media like to give much attention when one of their teams is due to lose, and most parties, from the fans to the bookmakers to most experts, believe it a certainty that Australia will fall to their fourth consecutive loss, something that has not occurred since 2005.

It would also be Robbie Dean’s ninth defeat, making his winning percentage worse than any other Australian coach (John Connelly, Eddie Jones, Rod McQueen or Greg Smith) in the professional era.

For their opponents, one cannot help but feel that they are in a special place, as they look to win their third Tri Nations title and cement what has already been a vintage year.

Peter De Villiers has rolled into town with a confidence that would be infuriating, if it were not for the fact that he has the troops and the record to back it up.

While purists of the north will try to point out that the South Africans were not as impressive against their Lions as they have been against their Tri Nations opponents, history books remember only results.

The Springboks are full strength, with so much class that returning World Cup winner Schalk Burger cannot force his way into the team, and that outstanding full back Frans Steyn has made way for Ruan Pienaar.

While some believe that the son of Gysie is a contentious selection, Pienaar is highly regarded for his rugby nous and while he may not possess the thundering boot of Steyn, he brings far more balance to a solid, if not widely unused backline.

Steyn’s selection was always in doubt regardless, considering his move to Racing in France.

The South Africans have initiated that the All Blacks and Wallabies are playing catch up and are emulating the World Cup holders, and while this is a matter of opinion, their style – labelled by some as a detriment to the entertainment value of the game – is a winning one.

Most importantly, they are fresh and confident (too much so?)

While they may not know how to exactly win a match via an attacking approach, they have the fine art of preventing their opposition from doing so down to a tee.

Add to this the final touch of knowing that certain aspects of their game, such as their lineout, are untouchable, and it will take a titanic improvement across the board for the Wallabies to win.

One doesn’t want to usher consistent pessimism unto Australia, and there are some positives.

Their defence has been sound, and they still have class in key positions. They have also shown within the last 12 months that they can compete at the highest level.

They performed a clean sweep in their early season home tests (Barbarians, France and Italy back to back), and lest we forget evidenced a 2-1 record against South Africa last year. They also have beaten the All Blacks in four straight first halves, but unfortunately comprehensively lost the second stanzas.

This is the Wallabies’ problem.

They are lacking the mental fortitude to win against top class opposition, and unfortunately for them, the pedigree of South Africa is further than that of their traditional black clad foes.

The same black clad demons that inflicted a tremendous amount of physical and mental anguish on the Wallabies; that a mere week may not be enough to heal.

Add to this the loss of their most experienced lineout forward, Nathan Sharpe, and their best performed back of the 2009 Test series, Berrick Barnes, and it shows that this match may even be beyond the classic fighting Australian spirit.

All in all, the Springboks will need to be off their game for the Wallabies to win this one.

Or the key men for Australia, mainstays like George Smith, Rocky Elsom and Matt Giteau, will need to put in mammoth performances to record their first win in two months.

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