Cautious optimism after Bok win
Brad Morgan
14 June 2004
A bright new beginning for South African rugby has been heralded too many times in recent years. However, the Springboks' first Test under new coach Jake White, a 31-17 victory over Ireland, has certainly left South African fans feeling optimistic.
It was certainly a tough challenge for White to start his Bok career with; after all, heading into the first Test, Ireland were ranked one place ahead of the Boks in the world rankings. They also claimed the Triple Crown in the Six Nations Championships, including defeating world champions England at Twickenham.
However, playing in front of a packed stadium at Bloemfontein's Vodacom Park, the Springboks, under captain John Smit, demonstrated plenty of heart and willingness to run the ball, which was a nice contrast to the cocoon of conservatism that the national team had crept into under former coach Rudolf Straeuli.
Sense of adventure
There was a sense of
adventure about the South African display, a willingness to move the ball through the hands, and it was rewarded as early as the third minute of the game when Bakkies Botha crashed over for a nicely worked try.
One of the aspects of the victory that stood out is what allowed the Boks to swing the ball. It was the fact that they protected it much better than has been the case in a long time. One cannot score without possession of the ball, and Smit and company seemed to have taken that fact to heart.
Too often in recent years South African attacks have been stymied by possession being turned over with the tryline in sight. The Boks were much improved in Bloemfontein.
When they were not in possession they hunted ball and ball carrier like men possessed. Ireland were, time after time, driven back in the tackle, conceding ground as they tried to attack.
It reminded one of the Springbok class of 1995 and how they won the World Cup. It was the kind of ferocious
defence that South African supporters want to see, tough tackling that for so many years was synonymous with the green and gold.
Forwards shine
Every bit as heartening for long-time supporters of the Boks was the display of the forwards. They had Ireland's number in the tight phases, a fact that was underlined by a pushover try scored near the end of the contest.
Looshead prop Os du Randt shone on his return to the Springboks and proved a huge force in the set pieces. Tighthead Eddie Andrews, on his debut, proved very solid, and between them captain Smit led the side with distinction.
Behind the front row, Bakkies Botha and Victor Matfield were superb. Botha was the easy choice as man of the match after a superb all-round performance punctuated by two tries.
His second was probably the decisive moment of the match: Ireland were pinned back five metres from their tryline after a superb touch-finder from Breyton Paulse. When
hooker Shane Byrne failed to find his jumper, Botha latched on to the loose ball and burst over for the Springboks' third try, which gave them breathing space.
The superb showing by the tight five gave the loose forwards space to play, and it was the blonde head of Schalk Burger that seemed to be everywhere the ball was. He enjoyed a great game, tackling brilliantly, while he was also affective in bashing the ball up. Unfortunately he spoiled his great effort a little by being yellow-carded near the end of the game for an unnecessary swinging-arm tackle.
Commanding on the drive
As a unit, the forwards were also commanding on the drive, mauling the ball up with excellent control, and control was a key feature of the South African victory.
Fourie du Preez was steady and solid on his debut at scrumhalf. He didn't try to do too much, which was what was required of him.
His halfback partner, Jaco van der Westhuysen, enjoyed a smooth
game at flyhalf. He has fantastic hands and got the backline moving nicely. That is something that the Springbok team struggled to do in 2003.
Outside of Van der Westhuysen there was some concern about the centre pairing after De Wet Barry was sidelined shortly before the game. However, Wayne Julies and Marius Joubert worked well together. Early on, Brian O'Driscoll rounded Julies easily to set up Ireland's only try, but after that Julies came on stronger and stronger, impressing with his strength on defence. He also scored South Africa's second try, which was their best of the Test.
Booming touch kicking
Breyton Paulse showed some nice touches on the right wing, while Henno Mentz didn't have much in the way of attacking opportunities on the left wing. At fullback, Gaffie du Toit excelled with his booming touch kicking, but his goal kicking was a little shaky.
Strong scrummaging, solid lineout play, powerful defence: those elements
for so long a part of Springbok rugby, but AWOL far too often in recent seasons, will have warmed the hearts of South African supporters, while the four tries scored by the Springboks attest to a decent edge to the attacking play.
It is a great start for Jake White and his Springbok squad, but it is only a start. Hopefully he will continue to make strides with them. The second Test against the Irish in Cape Town is likely to give a far clearer picture of just how much progress has been made.
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