Duane Vermeulen played 1221 minutes of Super Rugby this year, or 76.3 minutes a match. He may play 14 Tests for the Boks this year and will play all 80:00 due to Willem Alberts’ propensity to run out of petrol.
If he averages the same workload for the Springboks as he does for the Stormers, he’ll play 2289 minute of elite rugby.
Vermeulen averaged 7.375 tackles per game, so he’ll make over 220 tackles this season if he stays healthy. He’ll carry the ball 270 times or so, and almost all of those will end in a tackle or gang tackle.
He seldom protects his body in those hits. He tries to deliver a more jarring blow as carrier than the tackler does to him. He almost always succeeds.
For both club and country, Vermeulen often fields box kicks or line kicks. In Super Rugby, he caught a punt 2.43 times a game. That translates to about 70 a season.
When he returns those kicks, he almost never punts.
Almost always he roars into contact like a clattering Viking who is seeking Valhalla as a reward. His tacklers are usually at full speed when they meet him.
Vermeulen is an underrated jumper at the tail of the lineout. He stole nine opposition throw-ins in Super Rugby and is active in almost all 30 or so lineouts that occur in the modern game, whether as a lifter or a decoy jumper.
When a hooker overthrows his target, the loose ball results in huge collisions which usually involve Vermeulen.
When mauls form, Vermeulen is often the carrier. He steers the scrum in the 15-20 scrums that form, a game.
There are 190-210 phase transitions (set pieces and rucks and breakdowns) in a game, or 5,700 in a Vermeulen season. He can choose how many rucks to join, of course, but he won 13 breakdown turnovers in Super Rugby, and had to endure many cleaners (about 6:1 ratio of success).
He carried the ball 120 times in Super Rugby; but his workload as a Bok is even higher. He often makes 9-10 runs. He will run between 7-8 kilometres a game, which amounts to 240 kilometres a year.
Sure, much of that is at a canter, and the ball is in play only 44 per cent of the time.
But Vermeulen will put his 110-kilogram body at a dead sprint for 9,390 metres a year, at a 95 per cent high speed sprint for 10,260 metres a year. These will often terminate in severe impacts.
Vermeulen will experience a staggering 1274 impacts a game, or almost 40,000 a year. Now, many of these will be very light, as in being at the tail of the lineout and being shoved by his opposite number, or pushing in a balanced scrum.
But about 390 of them will be severe and 1,680 will be very heavy. Being Duane Vermeulen ain’t no picnic.
Armand van Zyl
Roar Guru
Harry you should watch "Best of Duane Vermeulen" on YouTube. It's just insane.
Harry Jones
Expert
Lions won 7 matches. I could see them winning only 3 next season. Stormers will be better, and so will the Bulls. I think the Bulls, Stormers, and Sharks will be back at it, a real battle for the top spot. Cheetahs just lost their talismanic captain Strauss and super-tackler Labuschagne and mobile prop Nyakane...to the Bulls.
Harry Jones
Expert
Read is phenomenal. He "reads" the game so well. Sorry! :) Lots of great 8s right now (Parisse, Picamoles, Faletau, to name a few). Vermeulen's ruggedness is a big plus; he can save a dying scrum really well, and his fend is ridiculous (see YouTube of Aaron Smith being lifted in air by one Vermeulen paw).
Armand van Zyl
Roar Guru
I rate Vermeulen as the best 8 in the world after Read, but he's my favorite player of all time so I might be biased.
Harry Jones
Guest
Like a Probable v Possible w free substitution? Yes, I'd like to see that
I like Carr, I wonder if there is a way we can have all our best loose forwards play a game of rugby against one another. It seems Meyer has realised we need the balance of having a specialist pilferer but with other abilities as well, and overall there must be a balance in the trio. I am beginning to wonder whether Alberts is still necessary. You have Vermeulen who is very physical, then Louw/Coetzee and possibly Carr at 6, with Burger/Arno/Mohoje at 7. To find the best combination there is a tough thing to do I would like to see Coetzee at 6, with Botha at 7 and Vermeulen at 8. Would be interesting.
RobC
Roar Guru
yup, also I thought he's Nizaam is a bit light for an 8.
Harry Jones
Expert
BB, I think Coetzee has the body frame like Pocock--built to withstand cleanouts. Very happy he learned the dark arts. Kolisi tried, but didn't have the pain tolerance. I think Nizaam Carr could; he's a bit short for a 7 or 8, so he should learn 6.
Armand van Zyl
Roar Guru
Oh you mean Andre Esterhuizen? He matriculated with me in 2012, currently plays for the Sharks.
Agree, Coetzee had a great season and even learned to pilfer, Esterhuizen is correct, a monster of a kid.
Yep, Bulls have been shopping again.
AGree with you, the impact of Etzebeth with any of Lewies, Ps du Toit or Lood will be potent.
RobC
Roar Guru
Im really looking forward to the next season for all the SA teams. Im hoping for some visible improvements for Capetonians, Cheetahs especially. Well Lions too
Cj
Guest
Yep Vermuelen is an animal, always going full boer!! :D Love watching him play,actually i really like most of the SA forwards. My fave of this season has been Coetzee . Also, when i was watching the jrwc the SA had a bloke called Esterthuizen (spelling?) just wondering who he plays for, havent caught him in any SR team, ta
Harry Jones
Guest
BB, did you see that the Bulls have Strauss, Labuschagne, and Nyakane? This might help Labuschagne get capped!
Harry Jones
Guest
Also, Vermeulen played for the BaaBaas; and did have a run that ended in a try w/o a tackle.
Harry Jones
Guest
He is one of those quieter guys who end up being respected for his work on the field.
Harry Jones
Guest
Potgieter was really wild when he was selected. He posed an imminent threat to all his teammates at ruck time.
Harry Jones
Guest
Good list (of Bulls!) I think of those, the continued selection of J Kruger was the most irritating. Purely a lineout guy. Loafing around. Sulking. Never putting anyone on they arse. Meyer has an issue w lineouts. It's his reason not to play Eben and PSDT at the same time. He is locked into a 4 versus 5 view. Specialists. Victor is a (much much better) example of a lineout specialist who joins very few rucks with any impact. Please know I respect Vic. But I'm talking ab Meyer. He thinks too specialized ab locks. Vermeulen could call lineouts. Or Alberts. Why does he have to have a 5-lock do it? It drives me crazy. I would rather have 2 rampaging hard men on the park who like to tackle. Etzebeth is such a good leaper anyway, and PSDT too--we don't have to have an Einstein and a Bakkies combo. We can have Lood-Eben or Eben-Alberts or Eben-Lewies and be fine.
Mike, this is no slight on Potgieter, I have admitted I am no fan of him, but he has changed my opinion on him, he has certainly improved. BUT, at the time of his selection he was like a headless chicken, one dimensional and reckless with little effect. When he was originally selected most South Africans were at a loss as to his selection.