Having dissected the Springbok forward stocks onTuesday, we will now run the rule over the South African backs and look to name a captain and a starting XV.
But first, let’s review the squad:
Forwards: Tendai Mtawarira; Trevor Nyakane; Marcel van der Merwe; Jannie du Plessis; Frans Malherbe; Coenie Oosthuizen; Bismarck du Plessis; Adrain Strauss; Eben Etzebeth; Lood de Jager; Victor Matfield; Flip van der Merwe; Stephan Lewies; Heinrich Brussow; Marcel Coetzee; Siya Kolisi; Willem Alberts; Jacques du Plessis; Teboho Mohoje; Duane Vermeulen; Schalk Burger.
Backs: Fourie du Preez; Francois Hougaard; Johan Goosen; Marnitz Boshoff; Damian De Allende; Jan Serfontein; Juan de Jongh; JJ Engelbrecht; S’Bura Sithole; Frans Steyn; Lwazi Mvovo; Bjorn Basson; JP Pietersen; Cornal Hendricks; Willie le Roux.
From these members – which doesn’t include injured
players such as Jean de Villiers, Pat Lambie, Pieter-Steph Du Toit, Gio Aplon and Jaque Fourie – a captain will be selected in the absence of regular captain de Villiers.
Bismarck has shown good leadership with the Sharks this year and has the respect and experience to match his leadership. His candidacy for the armband is solid and he doesn’t look like he’ll drop form any time soon.
Victor Matfield would be another strong captain as he has been there and done it all. If he weren’t selected as captain, he would be part of the leadership core. He has the ability to draw in his troops and lift them around him. He has an aura of power and strength and I would consider him of the greatest players and not just in the locks.
These two players would be my pick for captain, as the back line is young and hasn’t had the experience of pressure leadership. There are some experienced players but most of them have less than 15 caps at Test level.
The scrum half position worries me a lot. There have been a few performing players in South Africa and the fact that Sprinbok coach Heyneke Meyer has asked Fourie du Preez to return from Japan sends a signal that he isn’t confident with what is available on home soil.
Personally, I think that Cobus Reinach should have been given a shot. He has been one of the in-form players of the year and I think that he is doing a better job than Francois Hougaard. I would put du Preez in the starting XV due to experience and his skill level.
The other position that is a major concern is fly half. There have been injuries and under-performing players all year which has led to the selection of Johan Goosen and Marnitz Boshoff. Neither of these players have proven to be top test level players.
Goosen is too injury prone and his form this year has been debatable, but not at Test level. Boshoff is new and I don’t think he can take on the All Blacks or Wallabies without making mistakes. I do hope that Meyer looks north for his preferred fly half, if not Frans Steyn can fill in at fly half, but it isn’t his preferred position.
The centre combination offers a little relief from the downfalls of the halves. With de Villiers injured for now, I’ll exclude him but normally would have him at number 12 without question. If I had to choose from the players available I would look to Jan Serfontein and Juan de Jongh as the centre combination.
Serfontein is deceptively quick and can create the half gaps needed to off load and get a player through. De Jongh has the ability to create space and runs good angles for his teammates to play off. Both need to improve their kicking game when looking to get behind the defensive line but their running skills are good.
The back three again has some depth and depending on style of play, depends on who would start. Willie le Roux adds the danger element to the counter attack ability but his in-play kicks need to be improved. JP Pietersen has been to the top and has the strength to break the advantage line. He is still a little rusty but hopefully Meyer can shake the residual cobwebs and get him to his former form. He is a big guy with pace, so it’s difficult to stop him in the open. One of the most dangerous attacking players this year has been Lwazi Mvovo and he has had a few caps last year. He has been a stand out player for the Sharks and would get my nod.
With the northern-based players not selected for the training camp, I suspect that they’ll be called upon once their domestic season is over. The men that I would look at are the usual suspects in Ruan Pienaar, Morne Steyn, Francois Louw, Schalk Brits, Bryan Habana, Bakkies Botha and Juan Smith.
If these men were included in the Springbok squad, the experience and skill level would be lifted and a more dangerous team would be on the field. But for the sake of things on paper, I will stick with the players that have been selected to the initial camp.
In selecting the players, I also look to the Rugby World Cup and if the team will remain relatively unchanged until then. A consistent team with a consistent captain has a better chance of delivering success in England.
I also suspect that some players will retire after the World Cup, so the youth will have to fill in the gaps. There are so many young and talented players that I would like to give them a chance and would play them in dead rubber-type games or games like mid-week fixtures.
I would like to see S’Bura Sithole in action and gain some experience before England. The other young talent that I would like to see before England is Stephan Lewies, Damian de Allende and Oupa Mohoje and I’m sure Meyer wants to build some experience in these guys.
So here’s the final side:
1. Tendai Mtawarira
2. Bismarck du Plessis
3. Coenie Oosthuizen
4. Flip van der Merwe
5. Victor Matfield
6. Schalk Burger/Francois Louw**
7. Marcel Coetzee
8. Duane Vermeulen
9. Fourie du Preez
10. Frans Steyn/Morne Steyn**
11. Lwazi Mvovo/Bryan Habana**
12. Jan Serfontein
13. Juan de Jongh
14. JP Pietersen
15. Willie le Roux
16. Adrian Strauss
17. Jannie du Plessis
18. Frans Melherbe
19. Eben Etzebeth/Bakkies Botha**
20. Heinrich Brussow/Willem Alberts*
21. Francois Hougaard/Ruan Pienaar**
22. Johan Goosen
23. Bjorn Basson
*depending on the opposition, these players are interchangeable.
** the players that have been in form in the north but are not available for the training camp. The players that they replace will either be dropped to the bench or shifted to another position.
