Rugby Championship: South Africa - Australia (29/09/2012)

[Darwin]

Loftus Versfeld Stadium, Pretoria (29-09-2012, 15:00 GMT)

Referee: A Rolland

Assistants: R Poite & G Garner
Television match official: S Veldsman

​

 

[Gena_ZA]

Taking my 9 year old son for his first live game, cost me a nearly R1000, Boks better perform

 

[JG52Hummel]

I just wonder how long the IRB will continue putting that "(here should be the insult, so fill in with your favorite)" of a so called referee Rolland in charge of major international games. I, personally, would take him in the middle of a Cardiff rugby pub and leave him there to deal with the results of f*king up with an entire generation of Welsh rugby work...

 

[TRF_heineken]

Our Last 2 games at altitude... Always a bit of an advantage.

Heyneke coming home to where he had so much success with the Bulls. Hopefully this "Home Coming" is just the thing he and some under-performing players need to give us the boost we need to win.

The last time we played the Aussies there, I was at the game, and we won rather well.

 

[TRF_stormer2010]

Its time we beat the Wallabies. And we need to do it well to restore some pride. Anything less than a 15 point win just won't do especially as I think their injuries is a bigger handicap than our injury list is to us.

 

[TRF_Ezequiel]

Playing at Loftus, fat chance Lambie will play. We will see the same boring kicking game which the Bulls fans are so used to.

 

[Big Ewis]

Boks got this one for sure...
Australia is losing its next and last 2.

 

[TRF_stormer2010]

Boks got this one for sure...
Australia is losing its next and last 2.

We really should. I hate to say it but I'm not overly confident even with the venue and Aus' injuries taken into account they seem to know how to beat us sadly.

Playing at Loftus, fat chance Lambie will play. We will see the same boring kicking game which the Bulls fans are so used to.

A part of the problem for sure. That said I partly blame Plumtree for having Lambie play at 15 for the Sharks meaning HM had little to go on when comparing Steyn to Lambie and now it seems Goosen has leapfrogged Lambie for the 10 jersey. I agree with HM that Goosen needs to be eased into the test 10 role but Lambie was ready to have a go at starting 10 this year if it weren't for him being selected out of place IMO.

 

[TRF_Ezequiel]

Well, he did play fly-half as well this season. It's not like he only played full-back. HM is just looking for excuses not to play Lambie and Jantjies.

 

[Big Ewis]

We really should. I hate to say it but I'm not overly confident even with the venue and Aus' injuries taken into account they seem to know how to beat us sadly.

hey don't beat yourself up. A fine performance in Australia last week, it's just that Morne wasn't..."kicking it" that day (wow, what a pun...). And ppl can't just hate him based on that, it's not like he does THAT every test; he's had some ridiculous kicking sprees...
Anyways, Boks got this. I like the Aussies as well, but Boks take this one at home.

Haven't seen a lot of Pocock this tournament...btw.

 

[Darwin]

Its time we beat the Wallabies. And we need to do it well to restore some pride. Anything less than a 15 point win just won't do especially as I think their injuries is a bigger handicap than our injury list is to us.

I think a Bok win over Australia is well overdue, especially considering the last time South Africa beat Australia was over 2 years ago! I think you are spot on with regards to the injuries - while both teams have a similarly lengthy injury list, Australia are much more effected by their injuries, as they have nowhere near the depth of South Africa. The fact the game is at altitude is also a good advantage for the Boks - if they don't win this match I think some serious questions need to be asked....

Anyways, the Aussie touring squad is as follows:
Adam Ashley-Cooper (Waratahs), Kurtley Beale (Melbourne Rebels), Digby Ioane (Queensland Reds), Dominic Shipperley (Queensland Reds), Nick Cummins (Western Force), Ben Tapuai (Queensland Reds), Anthony Faingaa (Queensland Reds), Pat McCabe (Brumbies), Berrick Barnes (Waratahs), Mike Harris (Queensland Reds), Nick Phipps (Melbourne Rebels), Brett Sheehan (Western Force), Scott Higginbotham (Queensland Reds), Radike Samo (Queensland Reds), Michael Hooper (Brumbies), Liam Gill (Queensland Reds), Dave Dennis (Waratahs), Rob Simmons (Queensland Reds), Nathan Sharpe (Western Force), Kane Douglas (Waratahs), Sitaleki Timani (Waratahs), Ben Alexander (Brumbies), Paddy Ryan (Waratahs), James Slipper (Queensland Reds), Benn Robinson (Waratahs), Saia Faingaa (Queensland Reds), Stephen Moore (Brumbies), Tatafu Polota Nau (Waratahs).

The biggest question is who will play at 10 in Quade Coopers absence. While the obvious solution would be to put Barnes at 10, and Beale at 15, I just have a suspicion that we may see Beale named at 10, and Barnes staying at 15. I would predict the following 22:

Robinson, Moore, Alexander, Timani, Sharpe, Dennnis, Hooper, Samo, Phipps, Beale, Ioane, McCabe, Ashley-Cooper, Shipperly, Barnes.
Bench: Polota-Nau, Slipper, Douglas/Gill, Higginbotham, Sheehan, A Faingaa, Cummins

However they may well opt for a 5/2 split on the bench, with both Douglas and Gill included, and perhaps Cummins dropping out.

hey don't beat yourself up. A fine performance in Australia last week, it's just that Morne wasn't..."kicking it" that day (wow, what a pun...). And ppl can't just hate him based on that, it's not like he does THAT every test; he's had some ridiculous kicking sprees...
Anyways, Boks got this. I like the Aussies as well, but Boks take this one at home.

Haven't seen a lot of Pocock this tournament...btw.

The fact he was injured in week one may have a lot to do with that

 

[Feicarsinn]

I just wonder how long the IRB will continue putting that "(here should be the insult, so fill in with your favorite)" of a so called referee Rolland in charge of major international games. I, personally, would take him in the middle of a Cardiff rugby pub and leave him there to deal with the results of f*king up with an entire generation of Welsh rugby work...

Interesting. Especially considering it was definitely definitely the right call.

 

[Draggs]

Oh ****, not this gem again.
Set your time machines back 11 months, gentlemen.

 

[Shaggy]

got to back the Boks at home, and at altitude, despite the winning streak the Wallabies currently have over them

 

[Colombia]

got to back the Boks at home, and at altitude, despite the winning streak the Wallabies currently have over them

Yeah, this Australian side is injury-depleted too. Boks will be hungrier. Home side to win again next weekend.

 

[Big Ewis]

The fact he was injured in week one may have a lot to do with that

I just remembered I read an entire article about it like a few weeks back...I can't believe I just erased it from my mind temporarily, tooooootally forgot...yeah that sucks, he can be so exciting to watch, especially on D !....
Oh well, I hope this one will at least be a nice big score...full of tries and stuff.

 

[Draggs]

Squad:
Willem Alberts (The Sharks) - 15 Test caps
Andries Bekker (DHL Western Province) - 27
Craig Burden (The Sharks) - 0
Pat Cilliers (MTN Golden Lions) - 3
Marcell Coetzee (The Sharks) - 7
Juan de Jongh (DHL Western Province) - 10
Jean de Villiers (captain, DHL Western Province) - 79
Jannie du Plessis (The Sharks) - 37
Eben Etzebeth (DHL Western Province) - 6
Johan Goosen (Toyota FS Cheetahs) - 2
Bryan Habana (DHL Western Province) - 81
Francois Hougaard (Vodacom Blue Bulls) - 22
Elton Jantjies (MTN Golden Lions) - 0
Zane Kirchner (Vodacom Blue Bulls) - 19
Juandré Kruger (Vodacom Blue Bulls) - 5
Pat Lambie (The Sharks) - 15
Tiaan Liebenberg (DHL Western Province) - 3
Francois Louw (Bath, England) - 12
Tendai Mtawarira (The Sharks) - 39
Lwazi Mvovo (The Sharks) - 7
Coenie Oosthuizen (Toyota FS Cheetahs) - 1
Ruan Pienaar (Ulster, N Ireland) - 58
Jacques Potgieter (Vodacom Blue Bulls) - 3
Frans Steyn (The Sharks) - 53
Morné Steyn (Vodacom Blue Bulls) - 41
Adriaan Strauss (Toyota FS Cheetahs) - 16
Jaco Taute (MTN Golden Lions) - 0
CJ van der Linde (MTN Golden Lions) - 73
Flip van der Merwe (Vodacom Blue Bulls) - 18
Duane Vermeulen (DHL Western Province) - 2

Couldn't they have called up Jantjies earlier?

 

[TRF_heineken]

Squad:
Willem Alberts (The Sharks) - 15 Test caps
Andries Bekker (DHL Western Province) - 27
Craig Burden (The Sharks) - 0
Pat Cilliers (MTN Golden Lions) - 3
Marcell Coetzee (The Sharks) - 7
Juan de Jongh (DHL Western Province) - 10
Jean de Villiers (captain, DHL Western Province) - 79
Jannie du Plessis (The Sharks) - 37
Eben Etzebeth (DHL Western Province) - 6
Johan Goosen (Toyota FS Cheetahs) - 2
Bryan Habana (DHL Western Province) - 81
Francois Hougaard (Vodacom Blue Bulls) - 22
Elton Jantjies (MTN Golden Lions) - 0
Zane Kirchner (Vodacom Blue Bulls) - 19
Juandré Kruger (Vodacom Blue Bulls) - 5
Pat Lambie (The Sharks) - 15
Tiaan Liebenberg (DHL Western Province) - 3
Francois Louw (Bath, England) - 12
Tendai Mtawarira (The Sharks) - 39
Lwazi Mvovo (The Sharks) - 7
Coenie Oosthuizen (Toyota FS Cheetahs) - 1
Ruan Pienaar (Ulster, N Ireland) - 58
Jacques Potgieter (Vodacom Blue Bulls) - 3
Frans Steyn (The Sharks) - 53
Morné Steyn (Vodacom Blue Bulls) - 41
Adriaan Strauss (Toyota FS Cheetahs) - 16
Jaco Taute (MTN Golden Lions) - 0
CJ van der Linde (MTN Golden Lions) - 73
Flip van der Merwe (Vodacom Blue Bulls) - 18
Duane Vermeulen (DHL Western Province) - 2

Couldn't they have called up Jantjies earlier?

Based on his inclusion, I think it's clear that Heyneke has no interest whatsoever of playing Lambie at Flyhalf. And rather have him as a back-up centre/fullback.

Good to see Taute there too... Less game time for Lambie??

 

[TRF_Ezequiel]

I am very worried about the inclusion of van der Linde. Don't we have anyone better than him? Why not give a young lad a chance like Kitshoff or Malherbe?

We have 4 fly-halves now, pushing Lambie back even further. Just send him back please!!! Why Ludik is not included, I will never understand.

 

[Darwin]

A couple of good inclusions there in the Boks squad. Jantjies inclusion is interesting - it certainly points to the fact that Lambie is not considered a 10 by this coaching panel (as heineken has already mentioned). Good to see Taute included after recovering from injury. I like him at fullback, but it will be interesting to see in what position Meyer sees him fitting into the current Boks setup (maybe at centre?). Great to see Oosthuizen back, and I imagine they will want to get him involved in the match-day 22 for the Aussie match (assuming he is fully fit).