The Wallabies continue to be their own worst enemy. Clearly, they have learned nothing from the two rugby lessons provided by the All Blacks in the past three weeks.
The Springboks have also failed to heed the lessons of the Stormers’ flawed Super Rugby campaigns in 2011 and 2012.
After an error-riddled performance in Auckland, the Wallabies picked up where they had left off.
From the kick off and ensuing ruck on the Wallabies 22, just five metres from the right hand side line, the Wallabies threw two 15-metre passes deep in their own 22.
Samo drove straight and hard up the middle of the field. Quick ruck ball and a 12-metre Cooper pass to Barnes produced a three on one.
The inherent flaw in this first play of the game was that the play was now on the Wallabies’ 20-metre line and only five metres from the left touch line.
Seeing nothing on, and with his default still set to ‘kick’, Barnes fluffed the left-foot grubber. This gave possession to the Springboks, 27 metres from the Wallaby line. The closest forwards were Timani and Hooper, 15 and 20 metres away respectively.
This was low percentage rugby at best and brainless at worst.
Sadly, for the spectators, this was to be a portent of things to come. More frustratingly, it was a replay of many past individual performances and games.
Width for the sake of it and without forward metres is not attack. It’s the equivalent of the type of across-the-field running seen every week in the Under-9s across the country that sends coaches and parents crazy and allows the most timid defenders to halt their opponents.
Robbie Deans shares the same frustration.
In contrast, the Springboks replied with 10 phases of straight running up the middle of the field. They needed just one partially missed tackle from the Wallabies and they would have seven points. A ruck infringement would have netted them three points. The Wallaby defence stood strong and disciplined on this occasion.
From the 22 restart, Barnes again chose the highest-risk option, the ‘kick and regather’ drop-out. He surprised the Springboks. More crucially, he surprised his own team. Genia got to the ruck, passed it to Timani, but without the clean out, he was penalised for holding on. Steyn kicked the penalty.
In summary, two crucial and unnecessary errors by Barnes, and a 3-0 scoreline after just two minutes. Easy-peasy for the Springboks but generously dished up to them by the Wallabies.
Despite a new coach, The Springboks have not shown the diverse attacking game that is needed in international rugby, particularly when New Zealand is one of the opponents.
Where was Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer during the Super Rugby season and in particular the play-offs? Didn’t he see the Stormers campaign fall short for the second year in a row due to a lack of point-scoring capability?
The Springboks lack the modicum of flair that would complement their physical, confrontational game. Despite having just five Stormers in the 22, the Boks still play that attritional style.
These two teams have significant challenges ahead of them, if they truly aspire to be Number 1. The Wallabies need to remove the dumb plays from their repertoire and the Springboks need to boost their attack.
There is not much between these teams as they fight for second place in the world rankings. Last night, the statistics were very close. Both teams are under intense scrutiny from the fans and respective media.
I think that the Wallabies’ issues are more easily addressed. The Springboks’ issues are more fundamental.
There is a lot at stake. If they address these schoolboy errors and retain the good parts of their game, they can challenge the All Blacks for the position of Number 1 rugby team in the world. This sets them as a genuine chance to win the Rugby World Cup in 2015. Together, these things would bring a much-needed surge in revenue.
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kingplaymaker
Roar Guru
biltong but compare that injury count to the Wallabies: someone put together virtually a XV of injured players. I'm sure Goosen will improve things, but I'm not sure that simply putting a creative player in a team means the team plays creatively: for that you need a coach who coaches a creative gameplan.
mania
Guest
my 1st choice was jakeWhite. shoulda taken him 2 seasons ago when he offered his services during PDV's tenure
Oh I would wholly disagree with you on the injury count. Oosthuizen, Bismarck, Burger, Brussow (he only returned last weekend to the Currie Cup), Spies, Goosen, JP Pietersen, Basson. As far as his gameplan, I can't pass judgement over what he wants yet. Morne Steyn naturally stands to deep on attack, hence any play the backline makes is behind the gainline, he doesn't keep any defender guessing or hesitate, they simply need to drift across and guide the runner to the touchline, or tackle the forward pod in the 1st channel. Goosen will play flatter and completely change the dynamic of our attack, so unless Goosen is forced to only play the kicking game, it will be clear then. Meyer has huge belief in Goosen, why would he be if he isn't interested in a real playmaker? Having said all that, my first choice was Nick Mallet.
kingplaymaker
Roar Guru
Biltong it's curious to think that by being afraid to lose Meyer may lose everything (thinking of your remark on choosing Steyn over Lambie). My criticism of him wouldn't be exactly his selections, although they serve as in the case of Steyn a backwards gameplan, or his coaching of the gameplan he has chosen, but quite simply the gameplan itself. The injuries haven't been so bad, far fewer than Australia. I think the problem in the appointment of Meyer is that he was originally overlooked for De Villiers and so it was assumed that the backwards gameplan would work, if only it were done properly by the man who should have been doing it. In the meantime while De Villiers was in charge however this gameplan was outdated by changes in the law interpretations and so while Meyer might have been a good appointment in 2007, he was not in 2011. It also seems that the last person to be aware that he is outdated in the way he coaches is Meyer himself.
KPM, I am very confused by Meyer. The opinions on him in SA vary from the extreme where people just want to crucify him without much consideration regarding injuries etc. Then there are those who believe he needs time, and then there are those (me included) that don't know what to think. On the one hand you look at some of the selections he has made on youngsters, such as Coenie Oosthuizen, Eben Etzebeth, Marcell Coetzee and then Goosen as soon as he was available. This suggests he is keen to develop young players, but then by the same token he doesn't give Lambie any game time. Furthermore I can't argue too much with his selections and experimentations of players like Werner Kruger, Keegan Daniel etc. whereby he gives them opportunities but is also prepared to drop those he feels can't cope at international level. But then again by the same token he shows loyalty to specific players (all Bulls) such as Pierre Spies, Hougaard, Morne Steyn and Kirchner even when they don't perform. So from a selection point of view some of what he does make sense and then others are perplexing. Then his gameplan is in a sense contradictory to what he says. He believes in execution, check. He believes in a gameplan, (not sure what his plan is yet), he wants to win every game, check. He wants to see improvement and passion for the jersey (not happening) He defended his plans against all the criticism he recieved after Mendoza by saying that he analysed all the tests of last year and all teams play the same style 80% of the time. that in essence I don't disagree with, however it is that other 20% that I have a problem with. That is where you need innovation, vision, creativity and above all unpredictability. There are two things I believe is crucial on attack, make the opposition defence hesitate, and let the ball beat the defender. Without those two elements it is nigh on impossible to break defences. Now this is where I get most confused by Meyer, it seems he wants to follow that principle of unpredictability, hence his impatience to use Goosen, yet thus far he refused to use Lambie in place of Morne Steyn. The problem is we don't know what his vision is, we don't know whether he is buying time until his "chosen ones" are available and will then play more unpredictable, and therefor in the meantime he sticks rigidly to a plan he knows is the only one these guys currently can play
mania
Guest
we'll probably never nail it down biltongbek. but i think its just an oddity. boks are consistently the hardest team AB's play in any given season yet vs other sides they tend to go off the boil. i can understand this as when i played gridiron we were the team to beat over a 5 year period where in those first 2 seasons we went undefeated and won the chamionship 5 times in a row. when teams played us they always took it up a gear and played awesome, yet when playing each other they were average and softer. i thought this mentality was an amatuer response but i see this in the boks. if boks played everyone else like they played the AB's they would be #2 in rankings easily and knocking on the door of #1
kingplaymaker
Roar Guru
Biltong and Suzy there is only one problem with the Springboks now: the coach. By choosing slightly different players like Goosen and Brussow he can make some improvement, but it's hard to see beyond that how much more improvement he could make. He can make this team play pre-2009 rugby as well as possible, but he doesn't seem to be the man for a modern style. At least he is already under pressure from the Springbok press. The worst situation would be if it were denied that his strategy was ineffectual and he was allowed as much time as he wanted to persist in this way. Obviously he could beat the other contenders if they were having a bad day or were low on confidence, but it would just give an illusion of success. With his style, it's tough to imagine them beating good competitors playing well. There's only one solution to this as far as I can see.
Mania, I can only think it is our mentality. The South African mindset is one where the All Blacks are the traditional arch rival , their nemesis, however you want to put it. Whilst growing up, we dream about beating the All Blacks. We simply don't consider the other teams. I gues it is ingrained in every schoolboy's mind that the ultimate test is the All Blacks, hence that same focus, mindset, goal is not there when we play other teams. That's my opinion anyway.
mania
Guest
nicksa, suzy, biltongbek - why is it that when the boks play the AB's at the end of the game the AB's know they've been in a test match against one of the toughest sides in the world. but when boks play the wb's they take it easy and subsequently end up losing. boks go hard vs the AB's but are totally soft vs aus. wtf is up with that? its like its 2 totally different teams. dont get me wrong i enjoy the boks games. boks keep AB's honest and on their toes looking over their shoulders, but if boks play aus like they played the AB's then SA wouldnt have such an abysmal recent record vs the wallabies
mania
Guest
suzy - i'm real keen to see goosen in the test environment and with support either side of him its the perfect time to get him in. playing the AB's in the deepsouth will test him and i'm almost positive he can step up and take this challenge.on your points 1) yes no carter but we have cruden and barrett. these guys are the future and need the game time. carter is the master but these 2 will repalce him one day. 2) i'm a nonu fan tbh 3) i agree that puma's are alot better than media give them credit for. based on their efforts so far i cant see aus beating them.
Nicksa
Guest
suzy maybe it is time to actually time for bok supporters to stop being so damn arrogant and just admit that maybe the players in the team are not as good as we think they are. HM is a good coach and he knows his rugby very well! PDV had an ok coaching record but he should have had an amazing 1 with the stock that he had, The current bok stock has got potential but they are very green and to be honest not as good as their counterparts! let HM actually mould the team and from there we can judge! the is getting better. Lets stop being so negative and stop with this mentality of chopping and changing because i can tell you now we need continuity if we are going to build a solid team otherwise we will just be going backwards.
Suzypoison, I think it is more wishful thinking that the Argentina result indicates comparative strength between SA and NZ. We are going backwards at a rate of knots. We can write this year off and pray things work out over the next year. Pretorius and Goosen will have a whole season of Super XV next year and barring injuries will be a very settled combination if Meyer selects them both. Lambie, Jordaan and JP Pietersen will have a full season of Super XV and as combinations will do well. Taute is back in the Lions team after his injury and will be in the picture. The new U20 star from the Boks, Raymond Rhule is perfroming and sttling at the Cheetahs, Willie Le Roux is looking absolute star quality for Griquas in the Currie Cup and almost singlehandedly (there were 14 other payers as well) beat the sharks, our new talent is making statements and looking at the talent of Pretorius, Goosen, Hougaard, Lambie, Le Roux, Taute, JP Pietersen Rhule, Jordaan etc, there might not even be a place for Habana and Frans Steyn, let alone Morne Steyn. Considering Bismarck, Coenie Oosthuizen, Pierre Spies and praytell Smith might all be back, things will look different. I was listening to Kobus Wiese interview Johan Ackerman, caretaker coach of the Lions last night and Kobus specifically asked Ackerman about how strict the Lions players had to follow his gameplan after succesfully beating the Bulls away from home this weekend, and Ackerman clearly stated that once the set piece is over, his players don't follow a set move, they play what they see. Absolutely refreshing from a South African coach, and lo and behold it works. Not sure if you have seen the Currie Cup matches this weekend, but the sublime handling skills and eaventurous offloads etc made in the currie Cup is a sight to behold.
Suzy Poison
Guest
Mania, you are correct, Bakkies won't be in Test shape. I also agree about Goosen. I would love him to start. Morne offers absolutely nothing. Playing the All Blacks in Dunedin, is being thrown into the cauldron. It's a tough first starting game, especially as most of the old heads are gone or injured. He will have the two Ex Grey College, and Ex Sharks boys, Ruan Pienaar and Frans Steyn on either side of him. Both these youngsters are now veterans. Goosen is also from Grey College, Bloemfontein, so maybe that will help. I expect the All Blacks to win comfortably. There are only three tiny things that will help the Boks. 1. No Dan Carter (But let’s be honest, Cruden is pretty good too, and much better than Morne, and more experienced than Goosen) 2. No Sonny Bill (I think the AB’s missed SBW last week, the backline don’t look as dangerous without him) 3. Boks were chastised for only scoring three tries and not getting a bonus point when they played Argentina at home. But the defence held out the Pumas. Then the All Blacks could only manage two tries against the Pumas and had one scored against them. Meyer has said a few times the Pumas are a much better team than they get credit for. (They beat France at home) I really expect the Pumas to take on the Wallabies without Genia. This result indicates that perhaps there isn’t such a huge gap between the Boks and AB’s. But as a long term Bok fan, I know I am clutching at straws.
mania
Guest
suzy - doesnt matter. bakkies will come back with a fitness level so below super let alone test level. of course he could slip straight in based on his experience but without matfield there what does bakkies offer? bakkies and matfield were yin and yang and complemented each other. botha on his own will jus be a thug. that maybe what the boks need but not sure that its enough without matfield there. not to mention its going backwards selecting a retired player when u have the depth of SA goosen imo needs to be rushed in asap. not for the boks sake but goosens. he needs to be blooded and exposed to test rugby asap to see if he has the goods. if he crumbles then he'll have this summer/offSeason to get himself mentally correct. great players are thrown in at an early age (jonah, cullen, jeffWilson, mccaw, pocock) and cope. goosen has the goods i reckon to be great.
Suzy Poison
Guest
Mania, Bakkies Botha was one the stars of the 42-12 Toulon's bonus-point win over Bordeaux, last weekend. I think with his experience he could slip straight in. However he will most probably be on the bench. Flip Van De Merwe will start. I can see Meyer's thinking, it's a very young forward pack, especially now since Jannie Du Plessis may be injured. Alberts is probably the player with the most caps in the forwards, around 10. I have this weird feeling that Meyer may start with Goosen, this weekend? Even though I would ease Goosen in, with twenty minutes from the bench.
Suzy Poison
Guest
And I am expecting the Boks will slip out of the top four too. England, Wales and France are simply better.
Suzy Poison
Guest
LAS, the rankings are a bit of a myth. It's the All Blacks, daylight and then one big chasing pack. Serious can you see the Wallabies or Boks beating any Northern Hemisphere teams on the end of year tour, with the current cattle, coaching and the way they are playing. Boks scraped aginst England at home, they will be well beaten up North. Same for the Wallabies without Genia and Pocock, they will struggle.
Lloyd
Guest
The Boks had a far superior kicking game yet they still lost - just shows that the mindless kick and chase "gameplan" is outdated and is never going to win any game against even a half decent team.
LeftArmSpinner
Roar Guru
I am critical or Barnes and Im a waratahs fan......He had some good games again the taffies but either side of that, either for the tahs or the Wallabies, he has been mindlessly kicking way too much
LeftArmSpinner
Roar Guru
Wal, congrats on the nuptials. yep, the argies brought some bargie............Now, with Genia out of the picture, we have real problems as who is going to lead them???? not as captain but as play caller?