Bok Rugby’s winners

There are some players who want the ball….the key characteristic of the great Michael Jordan. When the game was on the line he wanted the ball, nicely shown in the new movie Air. The recruiter points out the play-off winning play was planned, Jordan knew he was going to get the ball and his body language was totally relaxed.

So who do we have with that tendency?

I would say, firstly, the great Morne Steyn. If you had to make a 40 yard kick to save the universe, would you give it to any other player.

Next I would say Cheslin Kolbe. Again if you could give the ball to one player to beat three defenders and score a match winning try, Cheslin is the obvious pick. He just refuses to be tackled in space.

Then there’s Etzebeth. If you simply had to take a lineout to set up a winning ruck, I’d give it to Eben. His timing is impeccable and his hands are gold.

Finally there is the open field tackle….bringing down an opposing back when he is free to score. Aplon would be my man for that task, I don’t remember ever watching him miss a key open field tackle…guts and technique.

Going beyond South Africa, Du Pont, Kerevi, Sexton, Barrett are players who want the ball when the chips are down.

These are the kind of players who make the difference between winning and losing tests.

"I would say, firstly, the great Morne Steyn. If you had to make a 40 yard kick to save the universe, would you give it to any other player."

Is that a Tokvis?

 The worst SA FH  ever in the game - Morne Steyn won that by the proverbial mile bcuase his only ability was to kick at goal.

Not a good day for you Clever, better post your excuses in the tennis section.

The epitome of Steyn was the test in Perth in 2014.   He buggered up badly and that was what he normally did.      Alcaraz got injured in the first game in the third set and  that was the end of his ability to play - village idiot.  

Joost. He is very much the Brett Favre of rugby. He isn't the most technically gifted, but tough, and rugged. He also had that lucky streak. If you had one man who could chip into a pool of players and come out with the ball for a key move, it was him. 

Mortlock is another. I lost count of how many times we had the game in the bag, and you just knew if he touched the bal l, it was all over. He was one of the great heart breakers of world rugby.

Others that stand out for me: Habana, Fourie, Du Preez, Matfield, Hooper, Larkham, Gregan. Players who just had a knack of making decisive contributions. 

I would definitely not include Aplon never rated him

Who cares what you think? 

Morné Steyn, the record breaking Bok with a higher try ratio than Butch, Pollard, Lambie, Goosen, Jantjies, Pretorius, Stranksky, Naas et al, with a career tackle percentage well over 80%, with numerous assists and big game moments. The most highly decorate and most successful Bok of all time. The second highest points per game ratio, only behind one other Bok, who had 25% of the tests of Morné. Only the fakest of "fans" criticise Morné. 

As per Aplon? You don't rate him, but you rate Arendse, Nokwe, Nkosi? You also give a pass to Damian, Steph, and Kolisi? You are a very flimsy opponent Saddex, you aren't even carp level. Any 77kg wing who can smash Nonu, Rocokoco, Muliaina, and So'oialo back from a standing position is no push-over. I like Kolbe, but he couldn't do that. Heck, most of our midfielders couldn't do that. Damian hasn't done it once in any of his tests, and I have documented his entire career! What a laughing stock you are! 

Arendse and Moodie are D- rugby player who can run fast. Am was good until last season. Question marks hang over him. Libbok is a poor man's Goosen. Pollard hasn't bettered an opposition 10 since the Scotland test of 2018. Marx is a sub-Bismarck since 2019. 

Arendse is one of the reasons our attack was the worst of the Erasputin era last season, and why the defence was statistically the closest to that of 2016. It was the worst season of Bok rugby since 2002. The only difference was that we faced all time bad opposition, but even then, we looked mediocre. Not one competent test in an entire season. So how then shall we give them a pass? Marx was the best player in the world in 2016, but since that time has regressed markedly. Bongi isn't going to win you turnovers, but does everything else much better and much more reliably! As for wings, we have Mapimpi and Kolbe, the rest are very limited runners of sub-par rugby ability. If you have a passive defence to run at, the likes of Arendse are good at padding out the stat sheet, they offer nothing else. Moodie is worse. 

I'm not a people pleaser Saddex. It's apparent that you have a mob mentality. Or at least a sense of group herd think at a primitive level. Not a thought leader among men, and too stuck in a box of limited ideas reinforced by pride. You never learn Saddex. I actually feel quite sorry for you. 

He had one poor test, his debut. Every other performance has been excellent. He is the most consistent Bok, and holds the highest standard. Stop lying Saddex. 

Those are not even close to being the facts. You keep harping on about what other people think, as if I care. I don't care about pleasing people, and I can certainly say that you don't speak for the rest of the board, or humanity! You are a pompous, molting old fool. With with a forked tongue. 

Negative? Because I don't are with your views? But you are positive when you denigrate the most successful players in Bok history, or their better coaches? You have been proven time and again to fabricate it all up. You have to be repeatedly corrected on the most basic of Bok trivia, and much worse on actual in game activity. I'll continue to call a spade a spade. That Erasputin's Boks couldn't excel against the worst RC opposition of all time speaks volumes for this mediocrity. I'll continue to correct your errancy and lies and put you back in your place. 

Coming from you, that is very reassuring. I don't accept tripe, and I don't lie to defend rubbish, as you have done so often to support to mediocrity of Erasmus and the man who does the dirty work for him. The biggest sham in world rugby history, with the selection ability of Straeuli. 

Plum 14 x Kwaggas and 1 x Mostert the unbeatable team.

DbD about that 40 yard kick yes I would pick Morne but some would select "Humper Elton".

If we were in a 22 attacking situation, and we needed a 10 to send a bullet pass to get us into space, I'd select Morné ten times out of ten. He wasn't just a kicker, he was a lethal distributor. This was overlooked because of the obsession of a 10 to run at people. These lesser minded South Africans didn't understand that there was more to Carter, Larkham, Cooper et al than just running at people. It's very common for South Africans to overlook talent for a personality they like. The Fan favourites who have failed these past 23 years have always been a certain personality type. Usually passive types. I could list dozens of instances. Some of our best players have been booed by these pseudo fans. Monty, Pollard, Morné. Sad, isn't it? The most highly decorated Bok 10 who has tangibly better performance than those who were fan favourites is called by Dave useless, and even to the extent of apparently being 100 times less than Lambie et al. 100 times less. How does one arrive at that conclusion? Emotion over reality. Saddex is a very emotional fellow. He is supposedly a positive person. I don't think he was so positive about Straeuli, Jake, Snor, Meyer, Coetzee. The poor fellow has a knack for innately finding his way to a bit of an own goal 

Of overseas players Ma'a Nonu was the one I knew would bring a

difference for the ABs each time he played.Rock solid player.

He was rock solid, but that era of all blacks was characterised by overall efficiency. Accuracy in execution under pressure was their hallmark. In 2021, I saw the biggest cracks appear. They would cut us apart, but couldn't quite finish us off. I recall Wayne Smith talking about how they would train against real scenarios in training. Rehearse how to break down real systems. It reminds me of the peak of the New England Patriots under Bill Belichick. 

Looking forward to this year's rugby, one month to go