Faf

In a post the other day i spoke about intelligent players who can read the game.

That road inevitably lead me to thinking about Faf De Klerk. Possibly the smartest 9 we have had in the country for a good few years.

Everything he does is about putting the opposition under pressure. Sure he doesn't have the greatest pass and yes there is a degree of the unorthodox about him but it seems that what he offers in terms of the overall package is unmatched by anyone else presently.

His try line decision making is possibly the best i have ever seen. He seems to regularly be able to chose the right man to get over the line. In open play his decision making is just as devastating. Given freedom to play and left at his discretion he uses chips kicks and high balls to great effect also. For me, that's one of the biggest indicators of a 9's awareness. Knowing when to kick and where to kick to.

In a Lions match earlier in the season he came on at 10 to replace Jantjies who had taken a knock. Granted there were only about fifteen minutes left on the clock and we all know what happens to teams playing the Lions in that last bit of the game. Still, the moment he came on he began making tries and caused absolute havoc. The guy has that much sought after vision that sometimes makes on look silly but very often takes games completely away from the opposition. Maybe my memory is poor, but i dont remember seeing any other spell of play by any SA franchise 10 that was as cutthroat and accurate as that spell from Faf. Not bad considering that he is a 9 who only moonlights at 10.

Also interesting to note that in the first games last year against the Irish, he did brilliantly well. Then was MOM against the Argentina. Somehow the more time he spent under Coetzee, the more his game seemed to devolve. Just like almost every other player the last two years.

Apparently he is a bit of a character and causes disruption in the team. Well AS has rendezvous with random girls in airport toilets. Do i care? Nope. I care only about what happens on the field. Also, these types of problems are not immovable objects.

Faf has X factor in ridiculous amounts and he is a game winner. For me, there is no other SA 9 that comes close.

Aaron Smith is no doubt the best atm. Lets assume the ABs had to decide on a 9 from SA to replace him. My guess is that Faf would that 9. Nuff said.

How on earth did we let this guy go?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STQCkR1qDrc

Tell me that clip does give you goosebumps.

I don't get it either. He also saved one of the Ireland tests for the Boks by making an inspired spot tackle that stopped a certain Irish try (your video provides another example of him doing exactly that sort of thing). He certainly can read play and he has courage. Sure, not perfect, but a much better option than anyone else in the country. 

I quoted a piece by someone on the thread about the scrums v Ireland. That same person wrote this piece in August 2014, after someone mentioned playmaking/decision making by the flyhalf. Some on here might not think this person is a plonker but I’m sure Plum and Pakie would have something meaningful to say: “Depends on the player/s you have, I'd say... Both are supposed to be the main decision makers, but in some cases you have a 9 that may not be a great decision maker, but he may have a good service and is accurate in what he does. In such a case you would just want him to play quickly to to give the 10 more time... Most of our current crop of scrumhalves, including Pienaar, Hougaard, Reinach, Van Zyl, etc all fall into that category, with du Preez and Faf de Klerk the only exceptions. Our 9's would be more effective then if they just delivered the ball quickly to the 10. 9 is a much tougher position for the decision maker as you have to play heads-up as you approach the break-down. You then have to get your head down to get the ball and sometimes do the dirty work in close and after that, you have to make sure that the original alignment of the opposition is still the same, before you execute... This is also where the 10 needs to communicate with the 9, to tell him of any changes, or to call for the ball. As a 10 can mostly play heads-up, the information he gives to the 9 will enable the 9 to do certain things "blindly" if required. In the case of the 10, there is a little bit more time and as a 10 you have a better view of the field in front of you. If your 9 is slow, or has a weak pass, you have less time and have to rush the execution of whatever you are doing. In the case where the 9 is a relatively poor decision maker, you want him to focus just on his service in terms of speed and accuracy. If he wastes time on making decisions, you are screwed at 10. Faf de Klerk at 9 is a decision maker and he has a good snappy pass. Due to his lack of size however, he is a bit of a weak link on defence.... But then, Pienaar is a poor defender too... And now, I've convinced myself that Faf de Klerk should also be part of the squad in the place of Pienaar”

 Cera, i don't know who wrote that, but i agree almost entirely. And if that was written in 2014 prior to Faf's awesome 2015 and 2016 seasons then all the more credit to them.

They don't sound like the words of plonker to me.

 Faf might be the next Jano Vermaak, but he's not there yet. Jano is p robably the most underrated 9 in SA .... ever! He should have been in the Bok fold this year. Best scrummy by far.

 I have been on about Faf ever since he was dropped. He is the best scrummie we have .Ross cronje is a good scrumhalf. I note however he goes into his shell when playing for the Boks.FAVE FACTS. No Coetzee coached backline has ever been that good.

But the decision to prefer Cronje originated with the Lions. So we may blame Coetzee for this one, but he was simply following the lead of our supposedly best coach. To me Faf loses confidence in long, tight games. His best moments came when he introduced energy off the bench. I also thought he looked like the real successor to F du Preez against Ireland last year, but he never made his case. Much like Reinach, also hailed as the answer, but ultimately limited by technical and decision making deficiencies.

 Just for clarity.  I said Vermaak is our best scrummy. Faf might be as good in time, but he has some issues in his game to sort out before starting for the Boks again.

Vermaak has always been a favourite of mine too, Draad. I don't get to see much of him these days though as I watch very little provincial and Super rugby.

 His experience will make a huge difference in the team. He lifted WP and the Stormers every time he played. Duvenhage isn't too bad, But Jano is streets ahead. He's lost nothing with age.

Oops!