Boks seek stylish exit for White
Brad Morgan
23 November 2007
The Springboks take on Wales in Cardiff on Saturday in their first match since winning the World Cup. It will also be the last test for coach Jake White after 54 games in charge and the players want to send the man who masterminded the winning of the Webb Ellis Trophy out on a high.
White has forged a strong bond with them, many of whom have played under him since he replaced Rudolf Straeuli after the 2003 World Cup, and it is clear there is a lot of mutual respect.
IRB Player of the Year Bryan Habana says White has taken the team on "an unbelievable journey" and says he has restored important traditions to the team, while captain John Smit hopes Saturday's showdown proves to be a "celebration" of the coach's achievements.
Lock Bakkies Botha says White is the reason he is playing in Cardiff, which means he has had to leave his two-week old son to play one last test for him.
Responsibility
The
Springboks have seldom been at their best on their end of year tours of the northern hemisphere in recent times but, with South Africa having won the World Cup, captain John Smit says his team has a responsibility to live up to the title of world champions and the side ranked number one in the world.
Unfortunately for the Boks, they will have to make do without six men who started the final in Paris, and some of the World Cup winners that must be replaced were massive contributors to South Africa's success, and featured in important positions that require good decision making.
Loosehead prop Os du Randt wasn't considered for selection after he retired at the top, ending his career with a superb display in the World Cup final to become the only South African to lift the Webb Ellis trophy twice.
Percy Montgomery, the most capped Springbok of all time and the highest points' scorer at the World Cup, is out of the match because of an injury.
Halfbacks out
The half-back pairing of Fourie du Preez and Butch James that served South Africa so well in France won't be in action either. Du Preez, rated by many as the best scrumhalf in the world, has a shoulder injury, while flyhalf James has joined English club Bath, who have refused to release him for the test.
James enjoyed a very good World Cup and was a largely unsung hero, who played a pivotal role in the Springboks’ success.
Up front, eighthman Danie Rossouw, who pulled off a brilliant try-saving tackle on Mark Cueto in the World Cup final, in one of the defining moments of the contest, is also sidelined. He is suffering from a neck injury.
His Blue Bulls' teammate, Victor Matfield, who won the man of the match award in the final, pulled out for personal reasons.
Between them those six players account for 338 caps, but their value goes beyond that impressive number.
An all-time
great
Montgomery, who White regards as one of the all-time greats of Springbok rugby, is a calm presence at fullback, a player his teammates trust and believe in, a very accurate kicker, and a man with a very sharp rugby brain.
Many people would regard a 33-year-old as over-the-hill, no longer able to compete at international level at that age, but Montgomery was brilliant at the World Cup and was without a doubt one of the best fullbacks in the tournament.
He will be very difficult to replace, but Ruan Pienaar, who has been selected at number-15 for the Wales game is an exciting player who has a good boot and is excellent on the counter-attack. The son of former Springbok fullback Gysie Pienaar, he has silky-smooth skills and a good eye for the gap.
The 23-year-old Pienaar plays scrumhalf for the Sharks, but is such a good all-round player that he is able to play in any position in the backline, which in the past has allowed coach White to select
only two backs among his seven replacements on the bench.
Lineout king
At the World Cup, Victor Matfield silenced any doubters who might have thought there is a better lineout forward in world rugby. He was clearly the best on show and his ability to secure good ball on Springbok throw-ins, to steal opposition throw-ins, or to disrupt them, put a lot of pressure on the opposition.
He calls the signals in the South African lineout and replacing the athletic second rower will be very difficult. There is no way the selectors could have called upon another lock with similar lineout skills, but in Johan Muller they have an industrious hard-working replacement.
The Sharks' second-rower played a huge role in helping his team top the Super 14 standings with his whole-hearted performances and has already won 21 caps, 13 of them off the bench. Earlier this year, he also captained the Springboks against New Zealand in the
Tri-Nations.
He'll team up with Bakkies Botha at lock, which means South Africa will have two big men with plenty of physical presence, both at scrum time and in the rucks and mauls.
Decision-making
Scrumhalf Fourie du Preez and flyhalf Butch James controlled matches at the World Cup with good tactical kicking, good distribution, and excellent defence. With good decision-making, they were often able to force the opposition to play from deep in their half which, time after time, led to the other team kicking for touch, where SA ruled the lineouts.
The big boots of Du Preez, James, Montgomery and inside centre Francois Steyn went unmatched in France, but three of those players will miss the Cardiff test, meaning South Africa will be without some very educated and big kickers.
Ricky Januarie and Andre Pretorius will play in place of Du Preez and James, and it is probably the area of the game that has Springbok supporters most
worried.
Januarie was relegated to the third choice scrumhalf at the World Cup, behind Du Preez and Pienaar, but Pienaar's versatility meant he was selected at fullback, with Januarie getting the start at number-nine.
Pretorius started one match at the World Cup, against Tonga in a pool game, and delivered a poor performance. He had been sidelined by injury for a long time before the tournament, and was declared fit for it not long before it took place, and his lack of match practice showed.
Form
A talented and skilful player, his form is, at times, up and down. During last year's end of year tour, he showed just how dominant he can be, scoring 20 points in the Springboks' 25-14 win over England, including four drop goals. The Boks hope to see Pretorius produce that kind of form in Cardiff.
How well Januarie and Pretorius perform as a combination will play a vital role in the Wales test.
If they struggle, the approach
will surely be to keep matters tight and use the big forward pack to subdue the Welsh. If they are up to scratch, the backline, which showed a cutting edge on the counter-attack at the World Cup, will be able to play with more freedom.
Danie Rossouw was very effective on the heavy fields of Ireland and England during the Boks' 2006 tour of those countries. He also did sterling work at the World Cup, carrying the ball with powerful, bullocking runs, and defending with meaning.
A man who has also played a lot of his rugby at lock, Rossouw's bulk helped give South Africa one of the tallest and heaviest packs in France.
New cap
He is replaced by the only man in the starting fifteen who didn't take part in World Cup in France, Sharks' number-eight Ryan Kankowski. He isn't quite as big as Rossouw, but he offers some things the man he replaces doesn't.
A wing in school, the 22-year-old Kankowski has plenty of pace and that enables him
to attack very effectively off the back of the scrum. At 1.93 metres tall and weighing 106 kilograms, he takes some stopping.
He was outstanding for the Sharks during their run to the Super 14 final, playing under the man who will captain South Africa in Cardiff, John Smit.
Smit reckons Kankowski's selection is just reward for the good form shown by the eighthman in the Super 14 and Currie Cup and believes Saturday's test will be the first of many for him. He also expects Kankowski will combine well with the Boks' world class flanks, Schalk Burger and Juan Smith.
With Os du Randt having retired, CJ van der Linde moves from tighthead to loosehead prop. With 47 caps to his name, Van der Linde is a very experienced replacement for the Springbok great.
Jannie du Plessis, who was called up to the World Cup after BJ Botha was injured, gets the start in the number-three jersey.
Opportunity for Wales
Wales disappointed at the World
Cup, crashing out of the tournament during the group stages. They are a proud rugby nation and know a win over the world champions would go along way towards restoring their damaged reputation.
Their side shows some changes from the team that failed to live up to expectations in France, most notably with the selection of Gavin Henson at inside centre. It is his first call-up in more than a year.
With James Hook at flyhalf and Henson outside of him, coach White is expecting Wales to try to play a more expansive game.
Henson will form a midfield partnership with his Ospreys' teammate Sonny Parker, with Tom Shanklin moving to the left wing.
Behind them, Morgan Stoddart wins his first cap at the expense of the injured Lee Byrne.
Front row
The Welsh have made two changes in the front row, bringing in Rhys Thomas at loosehead prop and Huw Bennett at hooker.
White knows Thomas pretty well because he did his schooling in
South Africa, attending King Edward VII in Johannesburg, where he played in the school's first team with Bryan Habana.
The selection of Bennett at hooker gives Wales a familiar combination at lineout time because he and locks Alun Wyn Jones and Ian Evans all play for the Ospreys.
Robin Sowden-Taylor starts at flank in place of Martyn Williams who retired from the international game after the World Cup.
SA prepared
Since South Africa had expected to meet Wales in the quarterfinals of the World Cup and not Fiji, White has studied their game and their players extensively, so preparing for them has not been a problem at all.
He is expecting a furious challenge from the Welsh; when number-one ranked teams face up to other sides, the underdogs invariably raise their games, but the Springbok coach is confident he will be able to exit with a win.
Wales are expected to be passionate and committed, but the fact that it is White's
last test in charge of the men in green and gold means it is likely that the Dragons will find their fire met with an equally searing fire from a group of players that want to show their appreciation for the contribution Jake White has made to their rugby careers.
TEAMS
Springboks
Ruan Pienaar, JP Pietersen, Jaque Fourie, Francois Steyn, Bryan Habana, Andre Pretorius, Ricky Januarie, Ryan Kankowski, Juan Smith, Schalk Burger, Johann Muller, Bakkies Botha, Jannie du Plessis, John Smit (c), and CJ van der Linde
Substitutes: Bismarck du Plessis, Heinke van der Merwe, Albert van den Berg, Hilton Lobberts, Wynand Olivier, Akona Ndungane, and Conrad Jantjes
Wales
Morgan Stoddart, Mark Jones, Sonny Parker, Gavin Henson, Tom Shanklin, James Hook, Dwayne Peel, Jonathan Thomas, Robin Sowden-Taylor, Colin Charvis, Alun Wyn Jones, Ian Evans, Rhys Thomas, Huw Bennett, and Gethin Jenkins (c)
Substitutes: T Rhys Thomas, Duncan Jones, Luke
Charteris, Alix Popham, Mike Phillips, Stephen Jones, and Tom James
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