Kiwi rugby scribe: Springboks best team on planet!

Please note this oaks - Two-time World Cup-winning centre Conrad Smith, in praising Springboks centre Lukhanyo Am’s form in 2021, also described the Boks backline as ‘world class’ and in addition to Am made mention of the qualities of Willie le Roux, Damian de Allende and Cheslin Kolbe.

OF COURSE MOZZZZ AND THE ORG WILL BLEAT ON ABOUT HOW CONRAD SMITH KNOWS NOTHING ABOUT BACKLINE PLAY AND WE WILL ALL HAVE A BIG LAUGH AT THEIR EXPENSE AGAIN. 

One of New Zealand’s most prominent rugby writers has declared the Springboks the best team on the planet & one of the finest All Blacks midfielders has applauded the class of the Springboks backs. It all makes for a thrilling build-up to the 100th Test between the two teams, writes Mark Keohane.

The world champion Springboks have the attention of the New Zealand rugby media, the All Blacks coaches and most significantly the All Blacks players. There is an acknowledgement that, for now, the Boks lead the way and the All Blacks are the hunters.

It is unfamiliar territory for the men in black, who owned international rugby from 2011 to 2017 and remarkably won 90 percent of their Test matches and back-to-back World Cups in Auckland and in London.

The All Blacks, post the 2019 Rugby World Cup, haven’t played the Springboks because of Covid. In that time, under the new coach Ian Foster, the All Blacks have won eight, drawn one and lost two Test matches. They lost for the first time in their history to Argentina in 2020 and also lost to the Wallabies in Australia and drew a Test with the Wallabies. They balanced the no results in those those three Tests with three convincing wins against the Wallabies (twice) and Pumas. In 2021, they’ve brushed aside the challenge of Tonga, Fiji (twice) and Australia (twice).

Foster, earlier this week appointed as All Blacks coach until the completion of the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France, has spoken of the improvements of the All Blacks in the past 12 months and he has said a ‘special squad’ is being nurtured and developed.

The jury is out on Foster’s All Blacks, simply because of who they haven’t played, which includes the Springboks, England, Wales, Ireland and France – all teams with a pack that could unsettle and trouble the All Blacks.

Hinton has written about all the brilliant professional All Blacks teams and he has seen the occasional world-beating Springboks, Ireland and England team knock over the All Blacks.

He is as good a judge on the merits of the Springboks as you will get and in his analysis of Foster’s reappointment, he stated emphatically that it was the match against the Boks in Townsville on 25th September that would give a real-time measure of how Foster’s All Blacks are tracking two years out from the World Cup.

Hinton expressed surprise that Foster’s contract was extended to the World Cup prior to the two Tests against the Springboks, although he didn’t feel it was the wrong decision and was probably the fairest way of acknowledging Foster and his Covid-related All Blacks challenges in the past 18 months.

‘For starters, why it has been made before the looming two tests against the undisputed best side on the planet (the Springboks) is somewhat of a mystery. Wait a month and they would have had the perfect measuring stick by which to assess Foster’s progress since he took over the top job,’ wrote Hinton on Stuff.co.nz

‘What was the rush? Did this deal have to be done before the All Blacks hit the road for the rest of their 2021 programme? The sniff test certainly suggests so.

So what’s the risk, you might ask?

‘Foster has effectively been extended on the strength of having the wood over what appears to be an historically weak Wallabies outfit. He also lost to Argentina for the first time in his team’s history (splitting the two tests against the Pumas in 2020) and has seen off a spirited Fiji outfit this year with hardly what you would term authority.

‘All of which has made the art of assessment a difficult one. The All Blacks, through no fault of their own, haven’t played any of the other top five sides in the world since Foster took charge in the wake of the failed 2019 World Cup campaign, for which he was an assistant coach.’

Two-time World Cup-winning centre Conrad Smith, in praising Springboks centre Lukhanyo Am’s form in 2021, also described the Boks backline as ‘world class’ and in addition to Am made mention of the qualities of Willie le Roux, Damian de Allende and Cheslin Kolbe.

Ha ha Beeno, yes you should believe all such stories. What could possibly go wrong?

The complements usually precede a fall. Like the Lambie praise in the build up to the 2011 away test. The plastics are it up all week, and on game day, they went after him for the full duration he was on the field. The plastics didn't something was amiss in the aftermath of the massacre. They never do. They referenced Henry for years after that. Also like Cheika complimenting Dumbian as the best centre in world rugby in 2015. They went after him and won the test exclusively because of him. Actions define intentions and thoughts, not words. 

Keo is now Hasbeen’s guru. Gosh, I wonder if Keo also doesn’t believe in the virus….hahaha. Some guys can be fed anything!

Besig om ons heuning om die mond te smeer.

moolaa, Mark Keohane is a confirmed dickhead and most South Africans recognise his as such. It's only drooling half-wits like Baboon-ou who don't know any better who give him any credibility.

The point boneheads is that it is Conrad Smith complimenting the Bok backline and Allende.  I am not resting my case here on Keo at all. 

As for Keo I have found he makes many good points but of course gets it wrong also. 

Conrad was a clever, very experienced center and I dare venture to say knows a lot more about center play than mozzzz, the Org and halfbakes like rooitwitterbug! 

Remember when No u complimented Damian on his defence in 2015, when Dumbian had the most missed tackles of every player in Super rugby that year, and in the build-up to the Wallaby test where Dumbian's poor defence and lack of physicality singlehandedly gifted the Wallabies a win? And wouldn't you have guessed it, Nonu himself made a fool of Dumbian in that famous 40m escort to the tryline in that year's World Cup. Take compliments with a grain of salt. How often do players and coaches come out with criticism for the opposition? Think before speak Sitzsack. 

Now the mixed up omelette casts aspersions on Conrad Smiths sincerity and intelligence.

Listen to me guys I know best! Bwahahahahahahahhaha 

What do you know? You still haven't answered my question: what exactly has Dumbian done well. Do cite some examples from the game footage. Until then, you literally have nothing. I've provided many instances of Dumbian flubbing. They were called the best partnership in world rugby at centre, despite Dumbian messing up every single interaction with Am. You plastiks are becoming more desperate by the day! Thanks for the laughs though. 

When one mentions the fact that the 2015 semi against NZ was lost because Lomp got face planted for a try and the Dud Allende’s limousine service for Nonu gifted the ABs the game….there is silence and then vague accusations of bias.

No matter how hard I try, I just cannot see DDA as a good player. 

For me, he just has zero guile. Nothing he does ever surprises anybody, one of the worst support running backs ever to wear the jersey and damn the boy is unable to pass both from a timing and mechanics perspective.

Dud was channeling SBW in those days…his role model. I wouldn’t describe his defense as very good….he is still a poor one on one tackler in space as Watson showed at the WC. He has, however learned to perform his role in the Nienaber defensive web.

The real missing element is a rugby brain….the ability to see what’s needed. With Dud it’s all mechanical….program him to fetch and he will fetch. Program him to offload and he will offload. But it appears he can only run one program at a time.

Damian and Sonny functioned very differently. Sonny was running the inner channels with unders lines. Damian never did that. The Stormers never played through teams, but played very laterally. In those early years, Damian was played into space. The Stormers liked their box formation with Damian as a pocket runner. The box morphed into a three man pod and they'd hold the defence and try get Damian outside the edge defender. Or another favourite, a slice play with de Jong coming back inside and, again, putting Damian on the outside edge. A large number of his offloads occured between the tram lines, and a lot of them created pressure where he should have taken contact and set up the ruck for his cleaners. I don't think a return to his offloading would be a goid thing, especially as he is utilised inside, where a Jean style predator would rip through us with sloppily squirted balls. He was more of a 13 than a 12, but he couldn't defend or read play. He really doesn't fit anywhere.