[2017 Rugby Championship] Round 4: New Zealand v South Africa (16/09/2017)

[The Jones Boy]

If the Boks bring it, and to be fair they almost always do, it's gonna be tough and no mistake.
Our players need the pressure cooker.
SBW needs a good solid game. Having Crotty alongside him will help.
Sam Whitelock is back on deck, that is going to help matters.
Sam Cane is also returning and while he's not as quick as Ardie, he hits harder in the tackle and doesn't get bounced often. Ardie makes the tackles which is imperative, however he doesn't put on the hurt from legal tackles that Cane seems to get.
Cane seems to have more of a killer instinct. Ardie has an unstoppable work rate.

 

[TRF_heineken]

Ross Cronje has been ruled out for this game. Francois Hougaard will start and Rudy Paige is on the bench.

 

[unrated]

Ross Cronje is a blow. But it has happened nothing anyone can do. Let's back Hougaard and hopes he has one of his best games in a while.

 

[SomeOke]

Pretty bad blow, I think I'd rather have any other back injured just because there are better replacement options in other positions. Hopefully Hougard pull's it out from somewhere.

 

[TRF_stormer2010]

SA bookies have NZ by 19. Sadly can't argue with that. Not sure what to expect though. My own thoughts; NZ by 14 with a 5 point margin in either direction.

 

[JohnKA]

Sorry I'm hitting a blank here. Who is AM?

Lukhanyo Am Sharks centre

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lukhanyo_Am

 

[JohnKA]

Quite a few Sharks you've got their .

It's hard to say what South Africa's best possible back line is at the moment but Leyds is the form back in South Africa I'm sorry to say, 80% tackle rate and the best attacking stats for a South African in Super Rugby.
I also wouldn't drop Serf as he's great defensively and has added good line-running game to his play.

9. Cronje
10. Jantjies
11. Combrink
12. RJVR
13. Serfontein
14. Leyds
15. Gelant

For me is the best we could put out at this stage.

Lukhanyo_Am on the bench atleast ? XD

 

[Durbanite]

A real pity, but Hougie will be ready to take his second chance at the 9 berth. His play is already making me nervous though I suppose it's a good thing we have a guy like Hougaard to take the reigns at all, and that Ross is sick rather than injured. Rudy has disappointed me, was so optimistic when he was called up to the bok camp in 2015 but since then has been rather underwhelming. It's a pity we can't have a guy like Faf on the bench, would back him to get the job done against the Kiwis with EJ

Sorry I'm hitting a blank here. Who is AM?

http://www.sanzarrugby.com/superrugby/news/am-try-seals-sharkse28099-win/
You may remember this, not the best showcase of his skills I'll admit, but it's probably his most well known try for the Sharks thus far.

He was loaned to the Kings in SR for a season or so. He played against the touring English Saxons for SA "A" but was injured and Mapoe took his place IIRC. He's a good player, does a lot of unsung work on the field and has a bit of a knack for being in the right place at the right time.

Edit to add: That inside chip from Bosch is still so sweet to watch

 

[SomeOke]

Lukhanyo_Am on the bench atleast ? XD

I think we're all biased towards our own team just because we watch them more, I watched 3-4 SR games a weekend, but the one game I wouldn't miss was the Stormers. Meaning I didn't watch every single Sharks game (maybe half) so my opinion isn't that valid.
All this to qualify that while I do think Am is a quality player, I don't know if he has the ability to make line-breaks on a fairly consistent basis which is what I would like from a thirteen. He looks great on the ball, with good feat and good strength but he reminds me of Kriel a little in that they tend to waste time dancing rather than attacking gaps with pace.

Would I have him over Kriel? They are pretty close in my estimation, both are 23 and have plenty of time to force their way into the starting Jersey. I do think AM is on the coaches radar, but you can't carry very many centres in a squad.

Edit: I will say if it's a matter of having enough black players in the team, I'd have Am + Leyds/Combrink over Kriel + Rhule any day.

 

[galumay]

I think this game has the potential to really blow out, AB's must be ready for an 80 minute performance, Wobblies rattled them, Pumas got ahead for a half, they will be ready for a complete performance and that could be nasty for the Boks.

I can see it being a 20 point + win.

 

[SomeOke]

There will come a day when we can challenge the AB's but it is not this day.
Probably not this coach cycle says the cynic in me.

South Africa as a rugby playing nation has just started to crawl out of the biggest slump in our history, we need time.

I'd say we actually have a non-zero chance of winning but it would rely on a shocking performance from the ABs and a great one from us. Like 95/5 for me.

 

[The Jones Boy]

I dunno, the AB's have been up and down and I'm always fretful playing the Boks....

 

[Nubiwan]

the biggest problem with DMac kicking is that face he makes when lining up...... (this is the official DMac emoji)

I feel like smashing his face when he does it. Silly barstool.

 

[The Jones Boy]

I feel like smashing his face when he does it. Silly barstool.

 

[The Jones Boy]

Sam Whitelock has spoken about tomorrows fixture and he's talking up the Boks, pointing out they have been a much improved team this year and they are back playing traditional Bok rugby.
Big aggression in the forwards and pace out wide.
He is expecting a close match.

 

[Penne Rara]

OKAY BOYS LAST PREDICTION BEFORE THE TEST BEGINS:



ABs: 29-7 :Springboks

Mckenzie doesn't touch the ball much except at restarts. One of his passes goes astray and is being intercepted in the 22 meters for a boks try. Nepo, Sam, Rieko (x2) and Billy Son to score.
Sorry for the quality and the knock ons. I hate it when my fps goes below 20.

PS: This is not the real Springbok team, next time I'll do a video with the real squads.

 

[Bruce_ma gooshvili]

Cronje is no loss at all to me. Some attacking intention by the Boks. If they can kick intelligently rather than automatically as the first option, then I think the ABs will win by less than a score, and the Boks may even nick this.

 

[BobbyM]

That is seriously cheeky from BB and NMS

 

[JohnKA]

Boks beating themself no need for the AB on the field

 

[GoTheNaki]

That winger is fast.... He makes other wingers look... Not fast...