The Springboks have clinched the Lions series now after narrowly beating The British and Irish Lions at Loftus on Saturday. Manny and Guru take a look back at Saturdays game:

Manny’s Take

The first Test between the Lions and the Boks was great.

The second test was even better and one wishes there were more Tests played with this sort of intensity and passion.

The Boks won it with a last minute kick and have taken the series, regardless of the outcome of the third test history will record that the Boks of 2009 beat the British and Irish Lions.

So how did the Boks do it?

In a nutshell it seems that injuries rather than superior Bok play won the second Test, and I know that statement will precipitate a flood of angry responses from the Bok fans.

But lets look at this objectively.

The Lions stormed into a 10-0 lead. Yes, Burger was off the field during this time and the one man advantage was clearly that, an advantage. But no one forced Burger to eye-gouge. And quite frankly the ten minutes he got off the field was a lucky break, but I shall return to this issue later. Nonetheless, the tone for the match was set 32 seconds in. It was going to be the Boks doing what they do best, roughing up the opposition so as to beat them into submission. And when the dust settled, the tactic worked.

25 minutes into the game the Lions were up 13-5 with 71% of the ball and they took a 16-8 lead into the break. Burger was on the field for 30 minutes of that second half. His presence was not influential. My point is this, even if he had been on for the whole 40 minutes of the second half the Lions would still have most probably taken a lead into the breather. The Lions had the better of the Boks in the scrum. Case in point the attacking scrum for the Boks five metres out from the Lions goalline that saw both Beast and Smit popping out and conceding a penalty. A critical moment in the game, and the Boks were put under pressure by the Lions scrum for the rest of time that the scrums were contested. Advantage Lions.

The Lions looked good in the lineout as well, with deserved man of the match Simon Shaw being mighty all afternoon. No doubt his presence in the scrum also contributed to the Lions advantage in this department. Not to say that the Boks were shoddy, but the advantage that the Boks had in this department in the first test was nullified. Similarly, the rolling maul that worked so magically in the first test was well defended by the Lions who managed to nullify this threat.

The Boks, without Brussow on the field, also did not look like the turnover threat they were last week. The Lions were able to protect the ball and retain it, which no doubt contributed to the huge possession advantage that the Lions enjoyed.

The Boks were admittedly looking more dangerous with ball in hand compared to last week and JP Pietersen’s try illustrated this point as he scythed through the Lions defence. A feat that the Boks repeated again in the second half with the well worked Habana try and with a third for Fourie. Nonetheless, the Lions, for all money, looked like a side that was going to win at Loftus for a good part of the game, having had a 19-8 lead with just 17 minutes to go.

Then the game strangely changed and the Boks took the ascendancy. Much like last week when PdV inexplicably took off his heroes and nearly conspired to help throw the game away, this game seems to have altered when the Lions set up was changed. Both props for the Lions were forced off which led to uncontested scrums. Given the Lions domination of this aspect of the game this had a telling effect. Not surprisingly, the Habana try that I mentioned came from a set move originating from a scrum. One wonders if this would have been possible had the scrums been contested and the ball was that fraction untidier coming out.

The Lions center pairing of O Driscoll and Roberts were also forced off due to injury, although O Driscoll effectively injured himself when he clattered into Danie Roussouw. However, one cannot help but wonder if the Boks would have been able to send Jaque Fourie over the line had either of O Driscoll or Roberts been on the field to make the initial tackle on Fourie rather than the hapless Ronan O Gara. Given the vital importance of the Lions center combination in both attack and defence, this double blow, much like the injuries to the props, had a big effect on the outcome of the game.

Ironically, maybe the biggest effect that an injury had on the game was that the ever lucky PdV was forced to bring on Brussow because of the injury to Danie Russouw. The Boks did not look like they could turnover Lions ball up until Brussow came on. What is surprising is that PdV had opted to bring on Danie Roussouw instead of Brussow and again one wonders exactly what the Bok coach was thinking when he made this change. Ofcourse we also cannot ignore the fact that Morne Steyn came on and kicked the winning goal and also a tough conversion from the corner after Ruan had proven what many of us have known for a long time; Ruan Pienaar is not the solution to the Bok fly half problem.

This is where I return to Schalk Burger and I will have to include Bakkies Botha as well. Botha has been banned for two weeks for the charge he made on Jones. A charge that dislocated Jones’ shoulder and led to the uncontested scrums. The effect of this has been discussed above. As stated, Burger’s eye gouging clearly set the tone for the match, and I am astounded that Burger was not sent off for that. The last time I checked, eye gouging was a red card offence. It seems the Boks were there to physically assault the opposition first, and then play rugby later. The injury count of 4 Lions to 1 Bok clearly shows that the Boks won the battle of forcing players off the field by hurting them. 5 Lions players ended up in hospital. PdV’s comments after the game that such physicality is all part of the game was very disturbing to say the least. The Bok coach all but condoned the actions of his players, two of whom have been cited and banned by the IRB. It is that sort of attitude that makes many a rugby fan despise the Boks and their style of rugby. Ofcourse, for as many as there are who see such tactics as despicable, there are those who see such behaviour as “what the game is about” and I no doubt expect strong responses from those who agree with the latter viewpoint

In the end however, the debate becomes academic, and the if’s and but’s lead to nothing. The Boks won the game and the series. And for that the Boks must congratulated.

Nonetheless it seems the line between playing hard yet fair was crossed by the victors on Saturday, and for that, no congratulations can be extended.

The above featured video is hosted externally and property of the respective video sharing websites and not of iLoveRugby.co.za

Guru’s take

Well, what a test on Saturday and regardless of the outcome, a game like we saw on Saturday must be commended and both teams played with guts and gave us a good show.

Onto the game,

I have to start off by saying a few players that I have been backing proved me wrong and I accept that I was wrong about Schalk Burger and Ruan Pienaar. They both let me down and I think Ruan should be dropped while Schalk has been banned for 8 weeks.

The boks once again proved a few critics wrong and one key aspect was criticism that they do not have a good backline that can attack. Well, the try count on Saturday was 3-1 with the following SA players scoring tries, Brian Habana, JP Pieterson and Jacques Fourie, all backline players. 2 of the 3 tries came off 1st phase, pre-set moves that would have made the 2000 Brumbies team jealous. In the 1st test, the backline never tested the Lions’ backline and we heard many Lions pundits telling us how the SA backline would struggle.

Considering that Stephen Jones had 6 out of 6 kicks, the Lions had 55% possession, Ruan Pieaar missed 8 points worth of kicks, the boks scored more tries that the Lions and Frans Steyn missed 3 points, I cannot help but feel that the Lions must be flattered by a 3 point loss. If Morne had been on the field from the start, it could all be different.

The difference on the day was the fact that SA had a better bench. The Lions lost 2 props and 2 centres and all of a sudden, they looked average. Yet when the Boks brought in their replacements, they got better. I remember before the test series started arguing with some Lions supporters and I insisted that they do not have enough depth. I went on to predict that if O driscoll and O Connell were to get injured, they would lose and use the injuries excuse. Just over a month later, lo and behold, we are now hearing excuses. Truth is, the boks are a better team with more depth and they deserved it.

Finally, we may argue about the ref and all other specific incidences but the Lions honestly should not have ended up in a position where the boks needed a kick to win the game. The Lions had such a good first half that they should have sealed off the game by the 60min. The difference between the 2 teams is that when one team had an advantage they maximised on it and the other team was too shocked to be leading that they forgot to play out the game. In the first test, the boks had a good 1st half and clinically sealed the game, like a good test side should. The following weekend, the Lions had a good 1st half but were found wanting when their bench had to come on. They could not finish off the game and have no one but themselves to blame. Yes the boks were physical and players like Schalk took it too far but surely the Lions cannot use THAT as an excuse. From all the arguments I am hearing, the Lions are admitting that they needed to play vs. 14men to have any chance. Even Jamie Heaslip said after the game that they would have won if Burger had been red carded. I agree with all of you, yes, the Lions would have won vs. 14 men, but they could not win vs. 15 men.

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So The Geech has wrung the changes for the all important clash at Fortress Loftus Versveld.

Following the events in Durban, this does not come as much of a surprise, especially given the battering the Lions received at the hands of the Boks in the forwards.

British & Irish Lions – 15 Rob Kearney, 14 Tommy Bowe, 13 Brian O’Driscoll, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 Luke Fitzgerald, 10 Stephen Jones, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 David Wallace, 6 Tom Croft, 5 Paul O’Connell (c), 4 Simon Shaw, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Matthew Rees, 1 Gethin Jenkins
Subs: 16 Ross Ford, 17 Andrew Sheridan, 18 Alun-Wyn Jones, 19 Martyn Williams, 20 Harry Ellis, 21 Ronan O’Gara, 22 Shane Williams

Adam Jones and Matthew Rees come in for the ineffective Phil Vickery and the inconsistent Lee Mears. Given that the Lions starting front row for this second test finished off the first test, and managed to hold their own at scrum time, this makes sense. I would personally still have found room for Sheridan in there for the express purpose of upsetting John Smit, nonetheless, this front row will definitely pose the Boks some problems and should at least provide the platform from the offset that the Lions did not have for the first fifty minutes of the first test. Expect Sheridan to come on in the last twenty minutes when the Bok front rower’s legs are beginning to get weary and their breathing a lot heavier, just to press home the advantage the Lions hope to have in that department come the dying stages of the game.

Simon Shaw has stepped in for Alun-Wyn Jones, no doubt in an attempt to match the physicality of the Bok forwards and hopefully to add some defensive steel in the face of the driving maul that the Boks are no doubt going to employ. Whether or not he can actually do this will remain to be seen. It is no mean feat to stop the Bok pack should they opt to attack the Lions with a maul from the lineout. The Geech is no fool however. O’Connell, Shaw and the rest of the Lions will no doubt have been working all week on defending the driving maul. The Lions will have to sort this out or each maul will result in 7 points, or at least 3.

Wallace has retained his place in the starting XV as the openside flanker. This may have surprised some given his anonymity from the first test, but given that PdV, in his infinite wisdom, has left Brussouw on the bench and opted for Burger, this may mean that McGeechan thinks Wallace will have the better of Schalk when it comes to the battle on the ground. Only time will tell if this was the right call or if the Lions should have opted for Martyn Williams instead. Quite frankly the Lions have had a big problem in the number 7 position for the entire tour, so picking Williams or Wallace may not have a great impact on the performance of the Lions as both players have not set the tour alight.

Stephen Jones has also retained the fly-half berth with O’Gara having to watch the game from the sidelines. Assuming Jones arrives with his kicking boots on this probably means Jones is meant to, at the very least, keep the Lions in the game for the first two thirds and then O’Gara will come on in the last twenty or so to add a bit more pace and attacking venom to the Lions line. Again, this is probably based on the Boks’ questionable fitness levels in the dying stages of a game. A runner like O’Gara may just be able to open up a tired Bok defensive line.

Luke Fitzgerald has come in for Ugo Monye, whose schoolboy errors in missing out on two golden opportunities have been rewarded by him not even making the match day 22. The out of form Shane Williams gets a place on the bench and again, one can only think that the plan is to wait for the Boks to get tired and then to put them to the sword in the last 20 with attacking substitutions. A highly motivated and fresh Shane Williams coming onto the field against tired defenders may be the sort of magic that the Lions need to attain a victory that many seem as improbable.

The last change sees Rob Kearney come in for the injured Lee Byrne. A forced change that may also have pushed The Geech to select Williams as he can also act as cover in the fullback position.

Overall, a decent team that has been named so as to eliminate the problems so ruthlessly exploited by the Boks last weekend. The side has a much better look to it and the Boks need to beware, a wounded Lion is a vicious animal.

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The Springbok team for the second Lions Test has been named. As expected, Schalk Burger comes into the starting XV at the expense of Heinrich Brussow. Brussow however still finds a place on the bench when many had thought we would be dropped from the match day 22. The inclusive of Burger is the only change to the starting XV compared to the first test. Some had thought that Adi Jacobs should be dropped from the starting XV after his average display in the first test but coach PDV has stuck with the center. If PDV has made a mistake in the starting XV, I think the inclusion of Jacobs could be that mistake!

We saw how BOD and Roberts made light work of Jacobs when the Bok center was defending at Durban. I am sure the Lions will be happy to see Jacobs starting again on Saturday and they will just attack his channel again. But who knows, maybe Jacobs and de Villiers will work hard on their defence this week in training.

Another notable change in the match day 22 is the exclusion of scrumhalf Ricky Januarie. Januarie had come under a lot of fire after his poor display in the first test when he came onto the field to replace du Preez. PDV has decided not to include another specialist scrumhalf on the bench and has rather opted in having Ruan Pienaar as the scrumhlaf cover if needed. Yet another blunder I think PDV has made! We know du Preez has a dodgy shoulder so if du Preez gets injured in the first 5 minutes on Saturday that could mean the whole backline game plan may have to change as Ruan will now be 9 and Morne Steyn will be 10. I wonder how many times that combination has run together in training?

Cilliboy also comes into the match day 22 as PDV has opted to go with a specialist hooker on the bench this time and not rely on John Smit. I am not sure why Danie Rossouw is still on the bench as they have Bekker to cover the locks and Brussow to cover the loosies.

The team in full is: 15 Frans Steyn, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Adi Jacobs, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Ruan Pienaar, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Juan Smith, 6 Schalk Burger, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 John Smit (c), 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Beast Mtawarira.
Subs: 16 Chilliboy Ralepelle, 17 Deon Carstens, 18 Andries Bekker, 19 Danie Rossouw, 20 Heinrich Brussow, 21 Jaque Fourie, 22 Morne Steyn.

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All roads led to the Shark Tank on Saturday as the Boks took on the Lions in the first test. The Boks edged past the Lions 26 - 21. Below are Guru and Manny’s take on the game:

Guru’s Take

Well what can I say about this, other than the fact that I feel for Phil Vickery who was taken to the cleaners by the one and only BEAST, the Springboks have definitely calmed the nerves of their supporters and dished a good serving of humble pie to their critics. I will start off by addressing 3 points that the critics had been raving on about regarding the weaknesses in the bok squad.

1) Not only did John Smit hold his own in the scrum but the Bok captain was colossal in open play, scoring a try that any forward would dream of. John certainly was solid in all facets of play and led from the front. My conclusion, test passed with flying colours and Smit will not be troubled for the rest of the series.
2) Ruan Pienaar is 50% of the reason why the boks built a 12point lead by halftime. His tactical kicking and awareness were so good that he almost put in a flawless display of fly half play on Saturday. He missed 1 kick at goal, giving him an A Grade accuracy percentage. He was never found wanting in defence and he certainly kept the Lions back three back peddling with his intelligent play. My conclusion, test passed with flying colours, the critics are 0-2 down.
3) Frans Steyn showed that his huge boot is exactly what the doctor ordered as he sent the Lions back deep into their own half every time they kicked the ball. Steyn produced at least 2 sixty metre efforts and contributed to the momentum that the forwards were building on. His positional play was also very good and he played a very mature and educated game. My conclusion, test passed comfortably and critics were proven wrong yet again.

The Lions themselves were simply outclassed. Vickery had the worst game I have seen him play but in all fairness he did not do much wrong, he just came up against a bigger, stronger and better scrummager. I was impressed by Tom Croft, Mike Phillips, Jamie Roberts and Brian Odriscoll (BOD). I felt that the Lions forwards were shown up and their physicality was not half as visible as it has been vs the Provinces. As I have been arguing since the beginning of the tour, players are as good as they are allowed to play. I heard the likes of Ron and Manny telling us how devastating Roberts and BOD are and how they would rip the boks apart, well, they did show signs of potential sparks but the Boks are not that dumb. The Boks starved the Lions of ball in the 1st 55min and rendered this centre paring useless. If truth be told, the Lions were saved by Peter De Villiers’s shocking substitutions between the 55th and 65th minutes. Had it not been for this tactical error by the bok coach, the Lions would have been dished a 30point drubbing at least.

The 2nd test will not be any different, the boks will play test rugby, i.e. look for territory with intelligent kicking, chase the kicks well and run the ball of Lions mistakes. I honestly do not see the Lions being able to match that and even if Sheridan replaces Vickery, the boks are just a much better team all round.

For those of you that missed the game or for those who just want to see it again, below is a video of the highlights from the First Test:

The above featured video is hosted externally and property of the respective video sharing websites and not of iLoveRugby.co.za

Manny’s Take

The first test has come and gone and the Boks take a one nil lead into the second test at Loftus on Saturday. The Boks must be commended for showing up the fragilities of the Lions team and for exploiting some key weaknesses in the Lions set up. The Boks won the game by destroying the Lions at scrum-time, making the Lions jittery at the lineout, forcing a high number of turnovers at the breakdown and exposing the Lions inability to defend the driving maul.

I don’t know if this win would have calmed the nerves of the more analytical Bok supporters however; certainly not the players. In winning the game the Boks must not forget that some weaknesses of their own were exposed.

Firstly, the Boks were dominated in terms of possession. This is a worry if the Lions start turning all that ball into points. Combined with the high turnover count, this would suggest that the Lions were the team playing the rugby, and the Boks were content to simply feed off of Lions errors. A dangerous tactic to use if the opposition get better at securing the ball and starve the Boks of what little ball they did get in the first test.

Secondly, once Jones came on and stabilized the scrum so as to give the Lions a platform to play, the Lions scored two tries; and could’ve scored two more had Phillips been half a centimeter taller or had Monye kept the ball in the outside hand instead of the inside hand when he was desperately close to the whitewash.

Linked to this is the third Bok weakness; the Boks were outscored three tries to two. If one considers the Phillips and Monye efforts in the second half, and the two denied tries in the first half (the Monye effort and the Tommy Bowe “try” that was ruled out for obstruction), this means that the Bok try line was breached 3 times legitimately and a further four times illegitimately. That’s a total of seven clear cut try scoring opportunities for the Lions compared to just two for the Boks. The Lions, once given a platform to play are more than capable of breaching the Bok defence, particularly down the middle where Roberts and BOD gave JdV and Adi Jacobs a torrid time.

Fourthly, the Boks lack of fitness in the last twenty was plain for all to see when they nearly conspired to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Ironically, the advantage of playing in the highveld with the hard grounds and thin air may actually work against the Boks in that they may once again find themselves unable to cope with the pace of the game in that last quarter. This could prove critical if the game is tight heading into those dying stages. If one considers that the Boks may once again find themselves without possession of the ball for two thirds of the game then the constant defending will definitely tire out the Boks.

Now, to address the three points raised by Guru.

1. Smit didn’t pass the scrum time test because he did not take it. Remember, all along the critics had feared what SHERIDAN was going to do to Smit at scrum time. To the surprise of many Ian McGeechan opted for the mobility of Jenkins at loosehead rather than the brute strength of Sheridan. A mistake that he will no doubt not repeat in the second test. All the pressure in the Bok scrum came from The Beast. Smit merely held his own, aided by the fact that the Lions scrum was constantly back-pedalling due to Vickery’s pummeling at the hands of the Beast, Smit can hardly be said to have passed the scrumming test with flying colours. The second test will be the barometer given that Sheridan is likely to start and yes, when he scrums against the English powerhouse he will be troubled.
2. Ruan Pienaar kicked very well into space and was accurate kicking at goal. Credit for that. But that’s all he did. Given the domination of the Boks at scrum time it was nigh impossible for Ruan to be pressurized when he had the ball, and when Ruan was in defence, Stephen Jones had to stand a lot deeper to cater for the bad ball he was sure to receive from the back-pedalling Lions scrum. This meant the Lions pivot could not attack Ruan’s channel and the Bok fly-half was spared from exercising his defensive duties. Again, once the Lions scrum is sorted out and stabilized expect Ruan to be tested a lot more. What’s interesting is that despite the Bok domination at scrum time, Ruan failed to get his line going. One struggles to think of an instance where the back three, or even Adi, were set off or put into space by their fly-half. Ruan passed the first test but much credit must go to the Beast for that.
3. Frans was indeed kicking the ball a fair distance, but that was expected. The critics were unsure about his positional play, which to his credit, he did decently. But like Ruan one wonders whether this was due to Frans ability or rather just a spillover effect from the Lions pack being under so much pressure.

Can the Lions win in Loftus?

The answer is simple; they must, they can and they will.

How?

The front row needs to be changed. Sheridan, Rees and Jones will provide a much better challenge to the Bok front row and stabilize the scrum giving the Lions the platform from which they can play. Jones held his own against the Beast, and this will enable Sheridan to put Smit under the sort of pressure Vickery was under. Rees’ inclusion should also help to shore up the shaky Lions lineouts.

Alun Wyn Jones may have to be dropped for a more physical lock partner for O’Connell, the Bok physicality and driving maul has to be countered.

Martyn Williams in for Wallace who was shown up by Broussouw all afternoon. Lions must get better at the breakdown by getting more numbers there. Winning the battle on the ground should be made easier by the fact that PdV is likely to make a huge error in picking Schalk ahead of Broussouw which may nullify the Bok advantage in this area of the game.

Jones must arrive at Loftus with his kicking boots on, the six points he missed ended up being the difference between the two sides.

BOD and Roberts must continue being BOD and Roberts. They definitely have the numbers of Adi and JdV.

Monye, if he plays, will no doubt get try scoring opportunities. He has to put these away.

It can be done, and what better place to prove one’s supremacy over the Boks than by winning at Loftus.

Expect a major Lions backlash.

2-1 to the Lions!

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Finally, the British and Irish Lions have named their team for the game on Saturday against the Boks in Durban and there are a few surprises! The biggest shock is the omission of IRB Player of the Year Shane Williams. The Irish winger does not even make the match day 22. Instead the Lions have opted for Ugo Monye and Tommy Bowe on the wings. Monye in my opinion is not a bad winger at all and based on current form he is better than Williams. But I believe that Williams just has that x-factor that could unlock the Boks…just ask Brian Habana.

Head Coach Ian McGeechan has also decided to go with Alun-Wyn Jones to partner captain Paul O’Connell in the locks when many had expected Donncha O’Callaghan to partner O’Connell. I am also a bit surprised about the choice of flyhalf. The Lions have opted to start with Stephen Jones and left Ronan O’Gara on the bench. There is also no place for Andrew Sheridan in the front row so John Smit will not have as tough a time.

I am a tad disappointed with this Lions team as I do not think they are the right XV to beat the Boks but nonetheless lets see what happens.

The Lions team in full is: 15 Lee Byrne, 14 Tommy Bowe, 13 Brian O’Driscoll, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 Ugo Monye, 10 Stephen Jones, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 David Wallace, 6 Tom Croft, 5 Paul O’Connell (capt), 4 Alun-Wyn Jones, 3 Phil Vickery, 2 Lee Mears, 1 Gethin Jenkins.

Replacements: 16 Matthew Rees, 17 Adam Jones, 18 Donncha O’Callaghan, 19 Martyn Williams, 20 Harry Ellis, 21 Ronan O’Gara, 22 Rob Kearney.

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We are just a few days away now from the much anticipated first test between the Springboks and the Lions. Bok coach, PDV has named hist starting XV for the game and there are not many surprises. The one notable change is forced due to the injury of Burger which sees Brussow come in for him on the flank. Guru had earlier on predicted his starting XV and he had suggested that Danie Rossouw would come in for Burger.

The team in full is: 15 Frans Steyn, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Adi Jacobs, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Ruan Pienaar, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Juan Smith, 6 Heinrich Brussow, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 John Smit (c), 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Beast Mtawarira.
Subs: 16 Gurthro Steenkamp, 17 Deon Carstens, 18 Andries Bekker, 19 Danie Rossouw, 20 Ricky Januarie, 21 Jaque Fourie, 22 Morne Steyn.

We now await the Lions to name their XV.

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After watching the All Blacks fall to their voodoo team, France yet again, I cannot help but empathise with their supporters, especially those who have been regulars on this website. These poor supporters have been ranting and raving about how many problems the Springboks have with no fetcher, make shift flyhalf, no recognised fullback and the list goes on and on. Saturday proved to be a classic example of the biblical parable of an individual pointing out a spec in another’s eye, not realising that they themselves have a log on theirs. While the All Black supporters have been pointing out all the issues the SA Squad has, their house has been burning in the back yard without them realising it. 

With a pack that was reportedly 80kgs heavier than the french speaking men and having had 3 teams in the semi-finals of the S14, the All Blacks went into the game as clear “favourites”. While their teamlist did not reflect the best ever assembled team in black, the average rugby follower (myself included) would have expected them to win this one comfortably in their backyard. But how the mighty crumble!!!!! 

The All Blacks were outfetched, outsmarted and more importantly,France defended like their lives depended on it. I was surprised by how much quicker Thierry Dusautoir was in getting to the ball than both Adam Thompson and Liam Messam. However, this is not the only area where the French dominated. The rush defence that the French used seemed to trouble the men in black to a point where Ma’a Nonu looked like a dear in headlights as he made silly mistakes time and again in the face of the rush defence. The tactical kicking by France was also much better and more educated. The French may have feasted off turn over ball but it must be mentioned that they forced a lot of these turnovers and they put in their first time tackles. At the tackle point, they were quick to get to their feet and contest at the breakdown.

Many may argue that the All Blacks did not have their best players available due to injury but may I remind you all that the French did not have all their players available due to their Top 14 Domestic final. This was a simple case of a David vs Goliath story in which David proved to us all that the bigger they are, the harder they fall.

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Based on reports surfacing in some media circles, PDV may have revealed his probable team for the first test. It appears that the team looks like this :

1)Beast 2)Bismarck 3)Smit 4)Bakkies 5)Big Vic 6)Juan 7)Dannie 8)Pierre 9)Fourie 10)Ruan 11)Habana 12)Jean 13)Adi 14)JP Pieterson 15)Frans

I would have liked to see Heinrich at 7 to give the boks the edge at the breakdown especially because the Lions have struggled in this area in their warm up matches. This would have given the boks a chance to get more turnover ball and we all know what the men in green and gold can do with turnover ball. Just ask the Aus and the Poms about how quickly the score board can tick if you give the boks too much turnover ball.

Secondly, I would have also liked to see Morne Steyn at 10 because he is the best drop goal and place kicker that SA has at the moment. These are 2 aspects that will also determine which team wins the series. Having said that, I still trust the bok coach to have a plan to counter these perceived weaknesses. In my opinion, this team is 87% accurate and should do well enough to take the first test.

What is your take on it?

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Guru’s take on the game:
The B&I Lions in summation, had a terrible first half. They ended up pulling it together from the 46th Minute onwards. They looked very rusty, uncoordinated and got easily frustrated at the breakdown where only in the second half, did they manage to clean out their opponents effectively.

All I can say is, IF the Lions are to beat the Boks, they will need to get to the breakdown quicker and clean out more effectively. I also felt that they rushed to pass the ball out to their backs so much so that they ended up being predictable. The Sharks were not committing men to the ruck or maul and would just shut down the Lions backs. The most disturbing thing for me was the fact that the Lions camped in the Lions 22 for the 1st 20mins of the game and yet came out with naaathing. If that had been against the Boks, the Lions would have gone to the break at least 15 points down coz their first half performance was bad.

And to cap it off, my favourite moment of the match was when the great BOD intercepted a pass from just inside his own 22 and against the run of play, he set off on a “try scoring mission under the posts” and by the way Ron, the Sharks players were running towards the Lions tryline and were in a good position to score so you can imagine how focused they would have been on shipping it wide. Anyway, BOD gets the ball and sets off, and the unknown, unheard of Sharks academy youngster Mvuvo (don’t even know his first name) who is easily the 5th or 6th choice winger at the Sharks stops in his tracks, turns around and starts chasing BOD. Ron, I am not exaggerating, this boy literally REELED IN BOD and this was 10 metres from the tryline. So in other words, BOD was given at least a 10metre head start in a 70metre dash (i.e from 22 to 10m from try-line) and he still lost the race. This is meant to be one of the best centres around? A centre being caught by a 6th choice winger in a 70m dash WITH A 10M headstart???????????????????????

Ah gents, the boks are ready for you Lions……………………..

Manny’s response:
Lions saw flames again at the breakdown in the first half. That’s why they couldn’t turn all that pressure into points. Each time they got into the red zone the Sharks would turn the ball over and clear it. I don’t agree about them looking rusty and uncoordinated Guru, the problem would be that the Lions would get frustrated at breakdown which would k.o their attack.

And yes Guru, BOD was reeled in! But his game has never been based on blistering pace. And whether or not he is 6th choice wing has no bearing on how quick the lad will be. Kash played thugs rugby but was quick enuff to push Charlton for 80/85 metres! Speed and rugby ability do not go hand in hand! And what did Phillips do to the Sharks right winger?? Left him for DEAD..a scrum half leaving a winger in his dust…the same way Byrne left Tier-blanche for dead!

Once the Lions sorted out the issue at the breakdown in the second half they annihilated the Sharks and if they bring that second half performance against the Boks then Boks are in trouble Guru! Turnover/breakdown is Lions Achilles heel but they are ironing out that issue! What are Boks gonna do to iron out the scrum,fly-half and fullback problems?

Notice how O’Gara used the kick option into space quite often. This was against Terblanche and how many times did those kicks cause problems? Imagine now with sumone who isn’t familiar with positioning at full-back i.e. Steyn/Rose? It could be a party.

Guru, the Lions are ready for the Boks. Wallace’s second half performance was quite encouraging. The match against WP will be a very good warm up for the Boks cos of Watson.

Ron….lets get ready to Rest these Boks!

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love him, or hate him, you cannot deny the influence Richie has as both a player and a captain. i have found this article in the NZ Herald that seems to have found some stats to show how much of a influence he does have. recall, that the only 2 tests the ABs lost last year were when he was out injured.  now while we can all say that stats can tell a thousand stories, these ones however, are undeniable.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=10577627

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