Tri Nations: Springboks - All Blacks @ Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium (20-8-2011, 15:05)

[InsaneAsylum]

Colin Slade and Adam Thomson lost the All Blacks that game. Slade is without doubt the worst flyhlaf to ever wear the All Black jersey. He is a laughing stock. du Preez showed us again how laughable his kicking game is. Why doesn't he stick to the running and setting up tries that made him so great in 2007? South Africa are the lamest team ever. Once again no tries, nothing but up-and-unders and penalties. I don't understand how anyone can support the Springboks. Maybe you'd be more suited to watching soccer? du Preez and Steyn should definitely rather take up soccer. The most uncreative half-back combo in world rugby

I think the only kiwi not complaining about Slade's performance is Stephen Donald haha

 

[ACT1NUP]

All i can do is dit and laugh at all of you non-saffas comments after this game ended.

We'll take the win off course, but as the papers said all week and PDV also said. this game will be purely experimental as it's the last game before the World Cup and they had to get the last things right before naming the WC squad on tuesday.

It was Rassie Erasmus's (the only proper coach in the management) first official game part of the WC squad. it was Gurthro Steenkamp's first start in over a year.

like the past World Cups was decided, it's won on defence and kicking, Not tries!!! the boks showed in this game they can do both! it's also amazing how much better Morne Steyn plays when he has some front-foot ball from the forwards and some better passing from FDP.

i thought the Ref was pretty good. and the TMO decision was a good call, just listen in the manner in which he asked the question. "is this a try, yes or no". the TMO asked if he wanted to know what happened before the grounding and before the line, and then the Ref said yes, he could've said no, so people giving the SA TMO crap about the call, grow up!!

also, was i the only one watching the game thinking, without Crockett in the Scrum, the All Blacks will have a very hard time in games?? the AB's were heavier in the pack, yet the bokke broke them almost every time in the scrums... and it was good quality scrummaging, only one collapsed scrum which resulted in a free kick for the boks... don't think there were more than 3 restarts.

it was test rugby at it's best! uncompromising rugby, and Brussouw, damn that guy is a machine!!

They proved that they have got exactly the same tactics as last world cup and that they will kick teams to death but their defence wasn't anything to write home about, holes and gaps all over the place. I think it was more the ABs butchering chances than SA shutting it down and I dare say our first choice backline would of had a field day. Kahuis try was a masterclass in a running set piece play, something the Boks can only dream about, hardly top defence I'd be worried as a Boks fan because as I've said take the kicking game away and theres nothing left. Sure kicking and defence orientated games have won world cups before but thats not to say the next 10 will be decided the same way.

 

[nickdnz]

it was test rugby at it's best! uncompromising rugby, and Brussouw, damn that guy is a machine!!

Haha, if that's the best, I'd hate to see test rugby at it's worst. The most boring match I've watched all year.

I did a massive thing on this game about 3-4 hours ago, but I lost it all because of a forum error. Regardless, here's my new review, shortened...

All Blacks player review.

Tony Woodcock: In my opinion he was rushed back too early. He'd shown some average form prior to injury at test level, so I don't think he was ever going to be brilliant for this game. His work around the park wasn't the best compared to some of the other props in previous games and this is the first time the All Blacks scrum has looked average. I still think the best move would have been to have Crockett on the bench to replace Woodcock at half time - 5.5/10
Kevin Mealamu: I think he did pretty well as captain, but I do think that some of the strategy was wrong. They often kicked too much when they were breaking the line with ball in hand. I think his lineout throwing was good and he was one of the better players around the park, making some hard yard and important tackles - 7.5/10
John Afoa: Pretty quiet game from Afoa, don't know how much the scrums were his fault with Woodocock on they but didn't seem to improve much when he went off. His work rate around the park didn't seem to be quite high enough either- 6/10
Ali Williams: In my mind he's been a consistent liability. Clearly Henry wants him rushed back, but other than being a very good lineout jumper, he offers very little. He stands too much in the backline, often hitting it up with options wide. His error rate is still quite high with knocks ons, and he never seems to hit rucks - 4.5/10
Sam Whitelock: We haven't seen the form he has been capable of. He is pretty much invisible on the park. He still hits quite a few rucks, but he hasn't really been effective this game - 5.5/10
Jerome Kaino: Very solid game from him in my opinion. Made the big hits and was a force at the ruck. Probably New Zealand's best performing forward this game - 8/10
Adam Thompson: I think he lived up to much of his criticism. His biggest contribution was the six points he gave away. When running with the ball he takes it too high in the contact, meaning he gets driven back from the advantage line or gets turned over. He also consistently detached early from the scrum, leaving the props with even less power. I can't see Henry justifying leaving out either Todd, Braid, Braid or Waldrom after the so apparent need for a specialist openside - 5.5/10
Liam Messam: I think he did pretty well in this game. Seemed to hit quite a few rucks. I don't think he should have been taken off for Vito but rather moved to openside. Still don't think he's playing as well as he did in the S15, but overall did pretty well in an unbalenced forward pack - 7.5/10
Jimmy Cowan: I think some of the criticism of him is a little unwarrented. I thought he linked pretty well in the backline. He should have finished off the first linebreak with a try. His delivery wasn't the beast, and he seemed to put himself and Slade under a bit of pressure - 6/10
Colin Slade: Was shocking. Sorry Darwin, but he really was. Much of the time he looked like a headless chicked, often taking a second to weight up the options, realized he doesn't have enough time, so he'd kick or hit it up himself. His kicking from hand was some of the wost I've seen with his bombs finding no distance and in one case actually going backwards. His first kick off he messed up, and then every other kick off he'd kick the ball streight to Matfield. His goal kicking also put the AB's under pressure, as the second half could have been 10-18 rather than 5-18. I think Cruden may have been the better option in hindsight, but it's probably too late for that - 5/10
Hosea Gear: Disagree that he was a passenger, but I don't think he's done enough to get a spot in the RWC. In this game he was safe under the high ball, linked several times to set up other players (got the last pass off for the Kahui try) and was solid in defense. His issue was that he didn't take the oppertunities that he needed. There were only two times when he seemed to hit the gas, once from a tap and go. Other than that he would get the kick and give it to Dagg to counter attack and hope to get the pass. I think the difference between Gear's game and Dagg/Toeava's, is that Gear didn't make many mistakes, but he didn't chance his arm either, whereas both Dagg and Toeava made quite a few mistakes, but were also more effective on attack - 6.5/10
Sonny Bill Williams: In the last five minutes of the game he played like he needed to play in the rest of the game. Too often he hit the line softly looking for an offload, and Jaque Fourie was ready for it. He needed to hit the line like he did in the last five minutes to break tackles and get past the advantage line before he looked to offload, as without getting past the advantage line he put his team under pressure. I though a positive was his defense which was generally pretty good - 6.5/10
Richard Kahui: Probably the best player on the field today. His defense was strong and his running game made oppertunities. What he did that I was impressed with, is he fought to gain metres to get past the advantage line, which meant that less numbers had to be at the breakdown to secure the ball. He also finished off his try very nicely - 8/10
Isaia Toeava: I think there were times in the game that the pressure got to him, and I think you can see his disappointment in himself every time he does something wrong. He made a couple of errors in this game that were a tad telling, but it was great to see him actually have a go and I'd say he was probably the All Blacks best attacking weapon. His scrambling defense was very good, especially on players that are probably a bit quicker like Habana and Pietersen. I still would much prefer to see him play at fullback, but overall I think he did well - 7.5/10
Israel Dagg: I think he played pretty well. I hoped he would keep the ball in hand a bit more because while his kicking was good, he could have set up a few more counter attacking options. He did seem dangerous with ball in hand, but I would have liked to have seen him involve the back three a bit more, as you can see him set them up and then take a different option. What I did like was his play from first receiver when Slade was not avalible. He seemed pretty comfortable there - 7.5/10

Andrew Hore: Seemed to slot in fairly seemlessly when he came on. He was busy around the park disrupting ball - 7/10
Ben Franks: Didn't have the same work rate as he usually does and his scrummaging was below par. No big hits on defense either 6/10
Jarrad Hoeata: Was a good change from Ali Williams, but he still didn't make any real impact. I don't know how likely he'll be to get a spot at the RWC, but if they do take a specialist openside, they may just want him in there for cover. I'd still love to see Chris Jack get a shot - 6.5/10
Victor Vito: Looked good for the few minutes he came on, but was not given enough time from the bench to really impress or push for a RWC spot. 6.5/10
Andy Ellis: Listening to Justin Marshall talk about how Ellis delivers the quickest ball in New Zealand annoyed me. Every ruck touches the ball, looks around, picks it up, makes a decision as to whom he'll pass to, takes two steps and then finally passes. He played alright a part from that, but I don't think he made any real impact. I'd still much rather see Mathewson brought in for him - 6/10
Piri Weepu: Looked very comfortable at 1st 5/8th. More so than Slade. His delivery was good and he seemed to get the backline moving smoothly. The problem was that he was receiving ball on a backwards foot and the Springbok defense was pretty good, but I woudin't be too concerned with starting him at 1st 5/8th in a tight game if need be - 8/10
Cory Jane: I think he touched the ball once, which was to field a kick and then pass the ball to Dagg. Didn't get any time to make a difference. It looked like it would be pretty hard to do much from the left wing. 6/10

My thoughts on the game on the whole: The All Blacks just weren't competitive enough at the breakdown. They clearly were missing a good openside and the other forwards all seemed pretty lazy in getting to the breakdown, with a couple of times the Springboks would just take the ball away from an isolated player without any contest. The scrum was underperforming but the lineout went pretty well. When the backline got moving it looked lethal, but the scrambling defense from the Boks was very good and little errors consistantly cost the All Blacks. As for the TMO call, I'm not too fussed. Yes the TMO had no right to make any comment on whether or not the ball went forward, and the referee had no right in asking, but in the end of the day the right call was made. I guess the frustration from some Kiwi's, is that things like forward passes have costed them a WC QF, so all they want is consistency. Either way though, it wasn't a try, so it shouldn't be a try.

 

[Black Heart]

Andy Ellis: Listening to Justin Marshall talk about how Ellis delivers the quickest ball in New Zealand annoyed me. Every ruck touches the ball, looks around, picks it up, makes a decision as to whom he'll pass to, takes two steps and then finally passes. He played alright a part from that, but I don't think he made any real impact. I'd still much rather see Mathewson brought in for him - 6/10

Haha, I was wondering if anyone else picked that up. It was just another cherry on top of Justin's enormous cream cake of pointless rants. In saying that I was actually quite impressed with Ellis.

 

[donmcdazzle]

A few things i took out of the game:

Weepu is the second best 10 in that squad. Before the game I said i was worried about how Slade would go, which was justified now as he had a shocker. Was rushed in everything he did, kicking round the park was poor as was goal kicking. Didn't really deserve his spot in the squad on form in the first place.

Messam can't make the step up to test level. He was better in this one, but the gap between him and Read is enormous at test level.

The 'boks are as boring and predictable as ever, but they are damn good at it. I predicted a SA win on the back of defence and kicking, and that's what we got. They didn't play any rugby, but they didn;t have to. It's a shame that a team can be rewarded for not doing anything other than tackling and pressuring rucks, but that's all SA do and are so bloody good at it. They will be pretty hard to beat in high pressure games, Steyn is such a good kicker to build pressure on teams and keep ticking points over. The way to beat them is to get out to a lead and make them chase the game. Pretty hard to beat them when you give them a lead to defend.

Gear played himself out of the squad. Say what you will about Guildford's lack of ability to beat a man one on one but his support play is miles better than Gear or any other winger in the squad, have to think he would have found himself on the end of one or two of those line breaks we didn't finish.

Dagg is unreal, half a game for HB and he turns out a performance like that. Some guys thrive in big games, he is one of them.

 

[nickdnz]

Haha, I was wondering if anyone else picked that up. It was just another cherry on top of Justin's enormous cream cake of pointless rants. In saying that I was actually quite impressed with Ellis.

Ugh, Just Marshall is terrible.

As a person who hopes to have a career in broadcasting, it pains me to listen to him. He just talks (not with an especially plesent voice), and hopes that people buy what he's saying. I just wish there were a few more people like Grant Nisbett, Tony Johnson and Scotty Stevenson rather that a host of has-beens who are rubbish at commentating. Justin Marshall is the worst by far but Karl Te Nana, Ian Jones, Aaron Mager, Willie Lose etc, I find pretty unbareable. The only two former players who do an alright job is Grant Fox, JP Preston and Murray Mexted, and the former only because he is occasionally funny.

 

[donmcdazzle]

Ugh, Just Marshall is terrible.

As a person who hopes to have a career in broadcasting, it pains me to listen to him. He just talks (not with an especially plesent voice), and hopes that people buy what he's saying. I just wish there were a few more people like Grant Nisbett, Tony Johnson and Scotty Stevenson rather that a host of has-beens who are rubbish at commentating. Justin Marshall is the worst by far but Karl Te Nana, Ian Jones, Aaron Mager, Willie Lose etc, I find pretty unbareable. The only two former players who do an alright job is Grant Fox, JP Preston and Murray Mexted, and the former only because he is occasionally funny.

To be fair, TJ is one of the most biased, one sided commentators when he does the AB's, it's as embarrassingly one sided as the aussie guys. Marshall is awful though. Should be Nisbett, Fox as the second in the booth guy with Preston/Ian Smith on the sideline.

 

[TRF Mr Fish]

Scotty Stevenson is my favourite commentator...

 

[RoosTah]

This was a strange game for me... After finally watching it I have to say that it's troubling from the perspective of an Australian supporter. The Boks won the game, but to me it felt that it was only because the All Blacks lost it. That is, they were the better team by a fair stretch, but just had an off night with their finishing. Had they been on song, the score could have been 18-40 in favour of the ABs

 

[ozmanoshe]

All i can do is dit and laugh at all of you non-saffas comments after this game ended.

We'll take the win off course, but as the papers said all week and PDV also said. this game will be purely experimental as it's the last game before the World Cup and they had to get the last things right before naming the WC squad on tuesday.

It was Rassie Erasmus's (the only proper coach in the management) first official game part of the WC squad. it was Gurthro Steenkamp's first start in over a year.

like the past World Cups was decided, it's won on defence and kicking, Not tries!!! the boks showed in this game they can do both! it's also amazing how much better Morne Steyn plays when he has some front-foot ball from the forwards and some better passing from FDP.

i thought the Ref was pretty good. and the TMO decision was a good call, just listen in the manner in which he asked the question. "is this a try, yes or no". the TMO asked if he wanted to know what happened before the grounding and before the line, and then the Ref said yes, he could've said no, so people giving the SA TMO crap about the call, grow up!!

also, was i the only one watching the game thinking, without Crockett in the Scrum, the All Blacks will have a very hard time in games?? the AB's were heavier in the pack, yet the bokke broke them almost every time in the scrums... and it was good quality scrummaging, only one collapsed scrum which resulted in a free kick for the boks... don't think there were more than 3 restarts.

it was test rugby at it's best! uncompromising rugby, and Brussouw, damn that guy is a machine!!

The referees boss has already acknowledged that what the TMO and ref did was illegal. Not sure what sort of discipline will be meted out. This isn't to say it was the wrong decision, simply that the laws must be adhered to for all teams otherwise as I have mentioned before France may not have beaten NZ in the previous WC if they had had a TMO who had bent the rules. IMO the TMO should be able to rule on more than just the grounding of the tries to prevent controversial game breakers where the rugby ends up taking a backseat to the ref.

As for the scrum a lot of it is mental, but the bigger part is the locks, I have a feeling that Ali Williams achilles issues has seriously compromised him as a scrummaging lock and Thorn is the most powerful lock in the scrums, his return will make a world of difference as will the return of first choice prop Owen Franks. I think at the moment Crockett is about as good as Woodcock in the scrums and has much more of an impact in the loose where TOny way totally anonymous.

The main difference with returning players for SAF vs. the new AB lineup that was fielded in this game is that SAF was using established combinations, the core of the SAF team had played together a lot and that means a lot particularly on defense where you can trust the player next to you to make the tackle. 9 through 15 for the ABs is a relatively new combination in the backs and it showed.

Finally I think the majority of comments from non-saffas has been pretty measured in this instance, usually it's a lot more heated with blame going on the ref and one-eyedness being the rule of the day.

 

[kusta]

Look at the stats. 2009 was the All Blacks' worst season in over a decade. The names you've mentioned are collective over the course of the year, it doesn't mean that we had them all avaliable at any one point and guys like Cory Jane, Zac Guildford, Hosea Gear, Owen Franks and Kieran Read were all rookies anyway.We lost the first game of the season (at home) to France and very nearly lost the 2nd, where, Muliaina of all people was captaining. We never had McCaw for the first part of the year and you've already mentioned that we never had Carter. Instead we had Stephen Donald to cover 10 and it should go without saying that the backline was rubbish as a result. The two games we played against Italy (one at home and abroad) were consecutively the worst results the All Blacks have ever featured and from a technical perspective the only worthwhile result in the NH tour was the Dave Gallaher redemption match against France in Marseille. We also lost the final match of the year to the Barbarians.It was the first time in over a decade the Boks had beaten the All Blacks twice in a season so yeah, it was a poor year for us as it was a good year for you.

We actually thrashed your'll 3 times that year not twice and we beat the British & Irish Lions......and at 1st u said you have a new loose forward combo,whch is the same as in 2009 when I look at it(Kaino,Mccaw and Reid) and u said a new midfield combo whch was(Nonu and Smith) in 2009 also and the back three included Muliaina and Sivivatu...with those new guys that u mentioning now being the new to come up since then.

 

[kusta]

Funny when your team is on the losing side "rules have to be adhered to" when Mccaw doesn't do that all the time!!! #Enoughsaid (Regarding the TMO decision)

 

[Sam Owen]

i thought the Ref was pretty good. and the TMO decision was a good call, just listen in the manner in which he asked the question. "is this a try, yes or no". the TMO asked if he wanted to know what happened before the grounding and before the line, and then the Ref said yes, he could've said no, so people giving the SA TMO crap about the call, grow up!!

Justice was served on an injustice platter, if you get my drift. The important thing here is the call was right, if anything the TMO who sounded like a South African, was probably fearful of what might happen to him if he didnt do anything. TMO should just get a warning IMO and perhaps 1 game suspension or something like that, whatever disciplinary measures reffs get, slap on the wrist so to speak.

Colin Slade and Adam Thomson lost the All Blacks that game. Slade is without doubt the worst flyhlaf to ever wear the All Black jersey. He is a laughing stock. du Preez showed us again how laughable his kicking game is. Why doesn't he stick to the running and setting up tries that made him so great in 2007? South Africa are the lamest team ever. Once again no tries, nothing but up-and-unders and penalties. I don't understand how anyone can support the Springboks. Maybe you'd be more suited to watching soccer? du Preez and Steyn should definitely rather take up soccer. The most uncreative half-back combo in world rugby

I thought you said the 'Boks were going to get ripped to pieces in this years tri-nations lol.

Slade is not the worst 1st five the All Blacks have had. He's a better player than what we saw. Up and unders were part of the All Black game plan, Henry and co. are responsible for that not Slade. I think even Dagg put one up as well, getting there and contesting those bombs were what the ABs wernt doing so well, implementation of the game plan was hard but they knew that, perhaps shouldve stopped after awhile lol. Its funny 'cos Slade is usually good at retrieving up and unders.

Ugh, Just Marshall is terrible.

As a person who hopes to have a career in broadcasting, it pains me to listen to him. He just talks (not with an especially plesent voice), and hopes that people buy what he's saying. I just wish there were a few more people like Grant Nisbett, Tony Johnson and Scotty Stevenson rather that a host of has-beens who are rubbish at commentating. Justin Marshall is the worst by far but Karl Te Nana, Ian Jones, Aaron Mager, Willie Lose etc, I find pretty unbareable. The only two former players who do an alright job is Grant Fox, JP Preston and Murray Mexted, and the former only because he is occasionally funny.

Murray Mexted is a crack up and would probably only confuse younger generations watching.

All the rest of the commentators are ok including Justin Marshall.

I like the Aussie commentators, they can sneak in some bias comments but thats Australians, they ooze of confidence. You take away that, then you'll have Ustralians (hmmm actually thats quite fitting lol). Their commentators are good though, they're laidback and can bring a highlight of the game alive (usually when one of their own score). They're my type to watch a game with at a pub.

The 'Bok commentators are real nice guys. I like Joel Stransky and that guy that said..'this is the kind of Rugby that stops kids from going to the movies'.

Commentators are commentators, at the end of the day you turn them up when your watching the Rugby lol.

 

[TRF_Ezequiel]

Well, my 2 cents on the game:


- New Zealand was better on attack but failed to convert on their linebreaks. Luck of the draw? Who knows
- South Africa chose to convert penalties into points, keeping the scoreboard ticking. This is what wins matches

The Cowan-try that was disallowed... Oh well, in the end it was an unfair try, if granted. I've seen Ryan Kankowski have a try disallowed against the Cheetahs 2 years ago because he tackled Lionel Mapoe early before picking up the ball and scoring a try. This was also disallowed AFTER the TMO spoke about an early tackle. Also inside the 22.

From a country full of people who keep on bragging about how massively talented the NZ team is and how they only want to win fair, it's weird there's such a huge upset about a disallowed try because of a forward pass. Luckily on TRF, things are normal, but when you look elsewhere (TJ and Nisbo to start the fuss) people keep on telling the world how they've been treated unfairly. The food-poisoning story from 1995 even comes up again. Quite sad. Oh well, you win some, you lose some.

The penalty given to the All Blacks after the Jean de Villiers-Israel Dagg collision raised some questions to say the least. Both went for the ball, and in the end, nobody actually did anything wrong. The 5-2 split by the Springboks is something that really ****** me off. Apart from the fact that Johnson doesn't add anything significant, you need to realise that with the All Blacks taking on the Springboks by running the ball, you need at least 3 backs on the bench. Furthermore, the substitution of Bismarck du Plessis was by far the most embarrassing act by Peter de Villiers since he started as a Springbok coach.

One more thing I need to get off my chest: I haven't been the biggest Jaque Fourie fan, but what he has shown last week against the Wallabies and especially this weekend against the All Blacks was amazing! Massive on defence and in my opinion the best outside center in the world at the moment. While he was always pretty damn good on offence, his defensive abilities where just poor. The number of times he actually forced a turn-over, is what wins matches.

The missed tackles worried me a bit but also the lack of inspiration seen by Fourie du Preez made me frown.

The referee was utterly poor, to say the least and I truly hope he won't be officiating any All Blacks or Springbok matches in the near future.


Pro's:
- Bismarck du Plessis
- Jaque Fourie
- Patrick Lambie (up to his injury)
- Jean de Villiers
- Pierre Spies

Con's:
- Danie Rossouw
- Willem Alberts
- John Smit

 

[kusta]

Con's:- Danie Rossouw
- Willem Alberts
- John Smit

Hahaha just had to,I'm a big Willem Alberts fan as you can see by my avatar but I think he did alright to keep the No.7 jersey his during the World Cup since Juan is out...bear in mind he hasn't played since the SupeRugby quaterfinal against the Crusaders! His defence was Top notch once again,one that springs to mind was the one on Jerome Kaino in da 2nd half and a few others also.....But I agree with you on the other two

 

[TRF_Ezequiel]

Guess when you have a weak spot for a player, you have trouble seeing his flaws. I have that with Kankowski and Riaan Viljoen for instance.

Willem Alberts wasn't as horrible as Smit, but he didn't have any significant ball-carries, had trouble arriving at the breakdown on time. He is just off form. I prefer Deysel over Alberts at the moment

 

[JW.]

Good to see Brussouw getting back to his old form. Carter would've won NZ the game.

 

[cardassian]

Good game S.A. and congrats on the win.
Brussouw had a monster of a game, really very impressive.
Also what's with subbing off Bismarck du Plessis and bringing on Smit? Terrible decision imo.
Think the Boks can take some confidence from this win and have shown that they can win ugly if they need to.
As far as the Blacks go it's definitely not panic time, in fact it should clear up a decisions for the selectors.
Personally I think Gear will struggle to make the cut as he's the least in form of our wingers atm.
Dagg looked good for first game back which is encouraging, Weepu was good at 5/8, SBW was solid on D but needs to run harder at the line as his attack looks rather limited at this level.
Ali Williams is another who I think is struggling at this level atm, not really doing enough work around the field and I think Whitelock is the better choice at lock at this stage.
Slade had a pretty average game, really was a welcome to test level game for him, I'd probably stick with him and Weepu as the backup 5/8s.

 

[TRF_stormer2010]

I'm very glad for the win. I think Nz might have missed a chance to get a big psycological hit in by sending this squad. I definately believe the addition of Carter, Thorne and Owen Franks would have made a huge difference. We'll take the win but there was as much to be concerned about as glad about from an SA perspective IMO;


The good:
- Steenkamp picked up where Beast left off last week and looked solid in the scrums along with Jannie du Plessis and Bissie
- so it looks like PdV has FINALLy learned his lesson RE John SMit at tighthead; guess going backwards aginst the Aussies will do that LOL
- Bakkies has been keeping his head on straight!
- Brussow is back
- Some of the guys off form are looking like coming back in time; Habana, Spies. Steyn looks more comfortable and is doing what he does well as well.
- Lambie looked good at 15. Hope he gets his chances in the RWC
- the desperate defense was good enough for this game at least and there is an upwards curve
- Another win for Matfield as captain... (good decision making..?)

the bad:
- Lambie's injury keeps us in the grey about our options at 15. I hope the selector(s) saw enough
- FdP was awful; worse than against Aus. If he doesn't turn it around we might not be able to go the distance. Too much distance on the up-and-unders (and one time not enough distance), and a lethargy to his game that I havn't seen before. Also, dropped off 2 tackles that put us under big pressure.
- with Juan Smith out our depth at flank doesn't look overly good. Sure there's Burger but he hasn't had any gametime while Rossouw looked just too much off of the pace and Johnson again showed his lack of effectiveness on defense; 1 minute in and he drops off a tackle in DRAMATIC fashion LOL. Alberts our best bet as the bench cover but... probably had a solid enough showing I guess but that was a bit of a patch-work AB loose trio.
- lack of attack and no tries; 4 main issues here IMO; 1) lack of impetus in attack from 9/10 as Steyn just isn't the man for that job and FdP isn't his godly self yet, 2) too many forwards in the backline when its ON, slowing down the ball or turning it over otherwise and 3) a kind of unwillingness to support/create play showed on many occasions where the space was there or the opportunity. The only time anyone really looked to keep it alive/create something/ was when Lambie was on and 4) handling skills. If we could just sort out the basics we should be good for a shot at the big price but we're nowhere near there yet.
- John Smit; not so much John Smit as not enough Bismarck; we lost a lot of presence at the collision/breakdown when he came on
- I wanted to say unforced handling errors but i guess I already mentioned that
- 50% of the kicking from hand this time round was good but we still need to get the accuracy right or we end up puting the pressure on ourselves rather than the opposition.

 

[SavageLez]

The Matfield-debate and Lezbian's so called statistic way of pointing out how great Matfield is as a captain is getting funnier by the second

Still Funny, lol?!

They proved that they have got exactly the same tactics as last world cup and that they will kick teams to death but their defence wasn't anything to write home about, holes and gaps all over the place. I think it was more the ABs butchering chances than SA shutting it down and I dare say our first choice backline would of had a field day. Kahuis try was a masterclass in a running set piece play, something the Boks can only dream about, hardly top defence I'd be worried as a Boks fan because as I've said take the kicking game away and theres nothing left. Sure kicking and defence orientated games have won world cups before but thats not to say the next 10 will be decided the same way.

Some valid comments but NZ are also in trouble come WC if Carter gets inured coz he DIRECTS the NZ game!

The stats pretty much tell their own story


[TABLE="align: center"]
<TBODY>[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]South Africa
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextBlk, width: 150"][/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]New Zealand
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowGry"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"][/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Tries
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]1
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]0 from 0
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Conversion goals
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]0 from 1
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowGry"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]5 from 5
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Penalty goals
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]0 from 1
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]100.0%
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Kick at goal success
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]0.0%
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowGry"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]1 (1 missed)
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Dropped goals
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"][/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="colspan: 3"]

[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="class: liveTblTextBlk, colspan: 3"]Kick/pass/run
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowGry"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]39
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Kicks from hand
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]28
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]110
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Passes
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]151
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowGry"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]81
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Runs
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]110
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]223

[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Metres run with ball
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]680
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="colspan: 3"]

[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="class: liveTblTextBlk, colspan: 3"]Attacking
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowGry"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]1

[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Clean breaks
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]6
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]9
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Defenders beaten
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]14
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowGry"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]3
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Offloads
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]10
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]69 from 75 (92.00%)
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Rucks won
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]76 from 83 (91.57%)
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowGry"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]9
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Turnovers conceded
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]23
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="colspan: 3"]

[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="class: liveTblTextBlk, colspan: 3"]Defensive
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowGry"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]105
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Tackles
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]81
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]14
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Missed tackles
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]9
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowGry"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]88.24%
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Tackling success rate
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]90.00%
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="colspan: 3"]

[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="class: liveTblTextBlk, colspan: 3"]Set pieces
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowGry"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]9 won, 0 lost
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Scrums on own feed
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]7 won, 1 lost
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]100.0%
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Scrum success rate
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]87.5%
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowGry"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]7 won, 1 lost
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Lineouts on own throw
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]14 won, 1 lost
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]87.5%
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Lineout success rate
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]93.3%
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="colspan: 3"]

[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="class: liveTblTextBlk, colspan: 3"]Discipline
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowGry"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]7
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Penalties conceded
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]12
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR="class: liveTblRowWht"]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]0/0
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblTextGrn"]Yellow/red cards
[/TD]
[TD="class: liveTblColCtr"]0/0
[/TD]
[/TR]
</TBODY>[/TABLE]

Those stats on the SA column is what you want if you want to win a world cup. Does not help if you have huge running metres but no points on the board! The more the All Blacks run with the ball the easier it will be for Heinrich Brussouw to steal the ball from an isolated player out wide.

JMO

The Boks are in **** land...but once again 1 diminutional Bok fans will take the win at any cost.... an A strength Bok team vs a B AB team...yet the bold struggled to get through...they won the game on goal kicks... But the SA fans are happy???? If I was a SA supported I would have been fcken ashamed.... Cuz if the NZ A team failed to score a try 2 weeks ago vs a SA b-team, I would have been ******...but nothing was read into that game... why is every Bok supporter reading into this game??? SA struggled!!!

Coz this game proved that NZ are great and glitzy but without Carter NZ are rather fragile and can be beaten!

No disrespect towards the Springboks, but the ABs played all the rugby in that game.

And lost! Everyone knows that running the ball in the RWC will not win you the CUP!

I don't agree at all with the idea that the referees did the right thing calling that forward pass. If the rules are changed in favour of being able to call a forward pass with the TMO, I can guarantee you we will end up with a grey area on how clear cut it has to be, it's the referees job to make those calls.

Funny how NZ supporters were ******, and rightly so when Michalak's forward pass which resulted in a try and NZ demise at the RWC 2007. Now that the right call has been made NZ supporters are still ******.

The correct RESULT is what is important here and no try on this occasion is the correct result!

I was at the game and it was amazing to see the HAKA live! Colin Slade was terrible, kicked with no distance or accuracy. Springbok scrum with Guthro and Alberts was huge! Israel Dagg is "SPECIAL", pops up in spaces from knowhere. Having said that I could not believe how Francois Hougaard caught him from behind. Dagg is no slouch, the man (Hougaard) has gas.