Planet Rugby’s WC team #5

5 Franco Mostert (South Africa): The unsung hero of Springbok rugby racked up the third most tackles in the competition with an incredible breakdown work rate. He goes under the radar for many.
Runner-up: All Blacks veteran Brodie Retallick had another stellar tournament; he always rises to the occasions in his brutality on either side of the ball. He was immense in the final game, dismantling the Boks’ set-piece. A word for South Africa’s RG Snyman, who was huge in every way and rose to the occasion in the semi-final to score a match-winning try

Thoroughly deserved…the number 4 lock attribution is also interesting:

4 Eben Etzebeth (South Africa): Simply immense, our Player of the Tournament and a man who has calmed his aggression to offer a complete lock package. An all-time great.
Runner-up: Maro Itoje is back to his very best, the England lock is a menace in every aspect, getting better and better as the tournament progressed.

Etzebeth has finally got the recognition he has deserved for years. The best lock of his time, perhaps ever.

It’s also interesting that mobile locks like Mostert and Itoje are changing the game. The emergence of lock flanks like Du Toit and Courtney Lawes, is matched by flank locks like Mostert and Itoje.

Lawes and Du Toit are bigger men  than their lock counterparts. But it hardly matters as long as all the bases are covered,

The right combinations blend brawn, mobility and specific skills like the lineout.

Mostert will be selected again this year. Because he is a smart player, a great lineout technician and totally reliable defender. It’s not just the number of tackles he makes but where he is to make them…often you see Mostert tackling players in space. And he is always on hand to protect the ball on the deck. His constructive contributions may not be as spectacular as others, but he makes so many of them. A worthy RWC #5

Dave must be chocking on his ice-cream desert whilst reading this.

Credit bestowed to a great #5 player.

Time to start supporting that England cricket team Dave.

Becs please help out.

Mostert is behind RG and lood in the pecking order for 5...and behind PSDT for 7, but his versatility makes him a valuable player off the bench.

Way better than Lomp and certainly not as talented as Snyman, but smarter.

no, he's not stupid, but he's done a couple of stupid things in his time...he's good, but not a generational great like Eben...and potentially RG.

I thought you might finally notice that Dave, a bit slow on the uptake? I think he selected Retallik as his runner up at 5 because he wanted Itoje as a runner up at 4. I hope you noticed Itoje’s  try saving strip today.

He chose Cheslin, Ox, Eben, Mostert and Dud Toit….named Eben his player of the tournament. Not such a fool.

Would you have chosen Kolisi?

Mostert had a great WC!

I think Dud Toit was indispensable to our win. That may surprise you but as in the last WC final he raised his energy level. He did make one big hit on Barrett as he was passing and made lots of tackles. He was still feeble over the ball though, so it wasn’t a complete performance.

Nope I call him indispensable because of his half time pep talk against England. Apparently everybody was just sitting there in silence, nothing from Eluckmiss and his coaches, and then Dud spoke.

Just the fact that he did that was apparently novel, but he pretty much said we needed to wake up. That was an epiphany and the okes saw the homespun wisdom in those few words. The rest is history.

"He did make one big hit on Barrett as he was passing and made lots of tackles. "

Either you can't count or you have ridiculously high standards for "big hits"...Barrett is probably still feeling those hits...I never thought Brian Lima would be surpassed in the tackle department...and to think, not one washing line...

Can’t say I saw another ‘big hit’. But I could be wrong, rare, but it’s been known to happen.

...so only one of the 28 was a big hit?

He made 4 tackles that were hits, maybe a second tackle on Barrett close to the whistle was a big hit…marginal. He also allowed guys like Savea to drive through his tackles for a meter or two….the thing you keep accusing Mostert of doing. I wouldn’t say any of the tackles were a high degree of difficulty ..  a runner in space.

So here are the relevant moments in the Dud tackling sequence. Times are for the link:

Minute 0.42 Barrett breaks Dud’s tackle. Mostert puts him away.

0.56 a really good tackle by Dud on Barrett

1.24 Ioane drags Dud for 2 meters.

1.41 Dud Toit hit’s Jordan hard while trying to pick up the ball

2.41 The  big hit on Barrett while trying to pass.

3.09 Savea makes 2 meters through the Dud tackle.

3.34 Retallick powers through the Dud tackle.

3.42 Dud stops Barrett dead in a good tackle.

4.47 Barrett gets a hospital pass as Dud hits him hard

5.00 Taukei’aho drags Dud for 2 meters.

So what to make of this. There were two big hits on Barrett, both occurred when Barrett was passing or receiving a pass. The hit on Jordan was as the player was picking up the ball.

So I’d say the timing of the hits on Barrett was excellent. There were a few other strong tackles. But mostly the rest were process tackles…and he gets dragged along by the runners just as you claim Mostert is. Case in point the attempted tackle on Barrett at 0.42 who breaks through only to be put away by Mostert.

Check it out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QE_Cdrwg3dg

Also look for all the times he was right over the tackled player, in perfect position to fetch and was just blown off the ball. No question he had a great day tackling. To me the most impressive thing was his positioning to make those hits on Barrett.

But that required massive physical effort. Match in and match out nobody could take that battering. He needs some other contributions….offloads, more effective running, a few turnovers. Things he could do regularly.

I’d also say Barrett was not exactly adroit at picking up the Dud charges. An elusive center could have stepped those totally committed charges.

So more than just one then...

Yep, on review he made two or perhaps three.

I have seen Mostert being weak in tackles many times and he is utterly usseless at breakdowns and is not effective in ball carries in traffic either.   Du Toit is ten times better than Mostert will ever be.