Northward bound: Still the right move for South African rugby?
So the dust has settled on the inaugural United Rugby Championship tournament, with the Stormers celebrating a deserved first championship win over the Bulls…
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Solid Irish/Leinster squad that
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My issues/concers with the Bok squad
Front row height – there is a reason Malherbe (1.9m) is paired with Marx (1.88) and Kitshoff (1.83m) . Its going to be a bit lopsided with Bongi (1.75m) and the squat form of Ox (1.73). I think Jacques is looking to his bench to come and turn on the power carry.
Starting locks are world class. Will be interesting when we see a Mostert and Moerat pair later on, again gone for pace but we may miss the heft and Mostert has a big engine but 80min is still a big ask.
Backrow – Kolisi better be ready to bring his trademark international form into play. Was very average throughout the URC – way down on his standards of last year. Wiese is in form but with Roos’s shadow looming now is the time to transfer it to the Boks. Mostert is a great player but a poor mans PSDT. I would have preferred him as super sub with Louw starting and if not Kwagga as per the back end of last year.
Faf. Good.
Elton – interesting choice and a bit of a signal that we are going to play more up tempo which aligns with how the balance of the team screams heavy and relentless carry. Hope his Japan form has been good because it gets very thin and flaky if he goes down.
Centres are as expected and its great to see Cheslin back with Mapimps
Fullback is an interesting choice – good to see someone in for Willie but not sure that should be Damian. He has had an electric season for the Stormers but at 12. So this speaks to the coach looking for as versatile players as possible to enable the ongoing 6:2 split. He even mentions Kwagga as potential backline cover if needed!
Bench follows the same theme – to cover any holes where needed and maintain what I expect to be a 2H onslaught
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😂
the only good thing was that it accelerated Coetzees departure… sounds like you need a dose of the same
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Im looking forward to the draw tomorrow
Northward bound: Still the right move for South African rugby?
Bit of a brain dump lacking the eloquence of the other articles on this site but wanted to keep the SH brethren in the loop
Northward bound: Still the right move for South African rugby?
Awesome and quality response mate.
I have really enjoyed the URC this year – definitely some work ons around refereeing and broadcast quality but when a rusted on South African like myself, brought up on a diet of Super Rugby – tunes into watch Scarlets play Zebre then it cant all be wrong!
Northward bound: Still the right move for South African rugby?
Ulster, I think are my favourite non SA team in the comp – long association with SA players like Pienaar, Coetzee, Johan Muller etc
A tough team up front with Herring, Henderson, Timoney and DvM and serious strike power in the backs like Baloucoune, Hume and McCloskey. Did a complete number on Munster, beat Leinster twice(?) and should have won in CT the first time. Great team – will definitely be supporting them in other games. As I have recently switched hemispheres myself – I might even try get out to the Kingspan for next seasons Stormers game.
Northward bound: Still the right move for South African rugby?
Great comment
Up until this point, good management and SA rugby would not typically be used in the same sentence. But in this case it seems a very astute choice with as you say some long term risk mitigation requirements
Northward bound: Still the right move for South African rugby?
It would be nice if the Cheetahs get brought back from exile – the invite to the Challenge cup is good but from all sounds its a once off.
Would be great if we could secure a more permanent slot there for say the winner of the Currie cup or highest placed non URC side etc. This would keep the cup relevant and provide a pathway for the Cheetahs/Pumas/Griquas etc to higher competion.
Imagine Toulon playing the Kwasse in Kimberley lol
Northward bound: Still the right move for South African rugby?
I doubt we will leave the RC – it may not have the grandeur or the financial largesse of the six nations but it does have the highest level of competition on the planet with its own history.
I do like that they have moved this to a mini tour style – would be even better if there was a mid week game for the A sides. Similar to the Ireland vs Maori fixtures where its not so FIFO
Northward bound: Still the right move for South African rugby?
As far as I understand we only missed out on the slice of the CVC investment but everything else is subject to normal attribution
Northward bound: Still the right move for South African rugby?
I think next year is going to be tough and it may take a bit longer for the teams to get the structures in place to be able to compete on multiple fronts. It honestly wouldn’t surprise me if there was a big drop off with teams struggling to make the 8 – but this is a long term project and they will have to evolve to survive
Northward bound: Still the right move for South African rugby?
It’s hard to gauge but I’m guessing it’s a bit mixed at the moment – great to have the extra cash but the competition has gone up a few notches which for some teams means the ceiling has moved and they may struggle further if they don’t adapt
Northward bound: Still the right move for South African rugby?
Agree and apologies for lumping NI and Ireland together- as you say it’s because there is only one international side.
Agree with everything else – URC is moving forward at a rapid rate of knots and I think will legitimately surpass the Premiership in a few years time. Which sort of makes the Welsh keening for another shot at English league entry a bit amusing.
I’m also looking forward to next season. Competition with the Irish sides is going to be very fierce and a great challenge. Leinster are also the bar and if we can get SA sides to that level of professionalism then the future is gold.
Northward bound: Still the right move for South African rugby?
you mustard ketchup with them immediately and find out what
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fairly certain its not the the peanuts on the bar
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yeah I noticed it had been awhile between drinks but thats just how life rolls – cracking return to form though.
Looking forward to the series – been a lot of good hype on it
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So while Wiese isnt a bad player by any stretch ,the issue here is that we are looking to replace DvM – its a pretty high bar and probably not achievable by trying to play like DvM. You need a point of difference and thats probably more in Louw and Roos’s wheelhouse
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Man is it just me or has the overall quality of the roar writing gone up several notches! Cracking article Peter – really enjoyed the central theme woven into a very relevant piece!
Im also pretty sure that you arent wrong on Rennies perspective and the probably 15 for the first test
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Love a bit of data analysis blended in with my favourite sport – looking forward to more in the future!
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Very solid and capable squad with a Harlequins combo at key decision areas and a Saracens spine through the pack. So despite injuries and Covid the cattle are there.. now lets see what the game plan looks like
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