I am part of the consensus that would like to see Willie le Roux play Bok 15. But on Saturday wing is the better choice. That's where he is currently playing for the Cheetahs and he is in a groove. Why ask him to adjust for his first test? Nope, let him prove that his mix of skill and vision works in the Bok scheme and move him to 15 at a later point.
Moz it would be preferably from Le Roux's point of view. Who to play at 15?
I think Willie has it all worked out as to how he can pop up everywhere whilst playing wing. At fullback one needs to be more careful about not being out of position. A question is can the Boks on short notice accomodate his roving style.
If Le Roux was to play on the wing there would be no reasonably good fullback to replace useless Kirchner other than Aplon who also played wing mostly this year, its a decision that needs to be made closely looked at. Im sure Le Roux is more comfortable on the wing at this stage but if he is capable of moving to fullback it will be better for the team, thats where we need him the most.
Lucid there is of course Lambie as well for 15 but I dont think Meyer is thinking of that. Probably makes more sense from a team perspective to play Willie at 15. Lets see what we have with Le Roux at 15. We do have wings in Habana and Mvovo.
Man I get annoyed every time I think of Bekker and JP going to Japan!!!!!!!
Bear in mind who we're playing against.
Leave Lambie at 10.
Play Willy at 15.
Damn shame Engelbrecht isn't in the mix. Would have loved to see him on at 8. Instead we have to make do with chciken shit Spies.
Hope to see Eberhson and Serfontein as our center pair.
Jano should get the nod at 9.
Hope HouGAT doesn't get another cap. Doesn't deserve it.
Exciting times lie ahead.
Gooooooooooooo Bokkkkkkeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!
Cleancut Lambie spends more time at 15 when he plays at 10 so might as well select him there
Wrong Willie must play at fullback this is his best position. We need him at 15. Any thoughts about playing him at wing is just stupid. Only a moron would consider him as a wing. He lacks the speed to be a Springbok wing. Cleancut wakeup Hougaard must start at 9
As per norma l there are diversity of opnion as to where Le Roux should play - as if it is a certainty that he would be in the team, There is no certainty at all - we all know that Meyer is a wierdo insofar as selections are concerned and Le Roux may end up on the bench or nowhere at all.
Insofar as the position for Le Roux is concerned - he plays at full back for the Griquas and is utilized on the wing by the Cheetahs so as to accommodate Danillier. The question consequently is - is he better at wing than at full back? It is more advantageous for him to play at full back - from that position he has much more opportunities to become involved in general backline play than on the wing. In essence to my mind he is a better proposition and a much more dangerous player at full back than he is on the wing.
Will Meyer pick him for the Starting Line up? It would be very un-Meyer like to do so - Meyer would rather go for the flops last year than do that.
Some good points, and CCs point about the opposition is persuasive. It just keeps occurring to me that this guy is like Campese, who played the whole park. You can't do that at fullback.
Mozart
With respect - I think it is possible. Just look at Ben Smith - the Highlanders full back - as an example.
Maybe, but even Dagg, Robinson and other "adventurous" test fullbacks play much tighter positional rugby. I doubt a fullback can pop up at flyhalf as easily as Willie does. You simply have to have somebody patrolling behind the backline. I think we may find Willie the test fullback is not the same player who plays wing for the Cheetahs. And that's the player that's unique.
i have doubts about willie anywhere in the Boks team TBH, his ability ti pop up everywhere goes against the grain of the Boks natural 10 man game.
he could be like habana and assert himself all around the field the way he does with the cheetahs, but theres a very real threat of him getting new kid on the block syndrome and try to be more conservative making sure he does the fundamentals. u often hear from new test debutants about how it takes a few games before they start getting more comfortable and calling for the ball more, so more then a few questionmarks.
seeing willie on the wing is a possibility, bulls position in the spXV might be all the justification meyer needs to slot in his usual bull favourites.
Sasue
As per normal - you summed up the position 100%. Meyer is about to come up with his normal stuff and that is really making me desperately unhappy about him as a coach. The supporters of the All Blacks and Wallabies must be smiling from ear to ear.
We have seen it all before - players who have flopped in 2012 and will flop again - a game plan that has flopped in 2012 and will flop in 2013. But then the unthinking would not see it that way and keep on raving about the fact that the Springboks did not fail in 2012.
I would keep Le Roux and players like him out of the team - they will only become the blamed ones for the expected sub-par performance of the team. That is the tragedy of SA Rugby - the believe in greatness that does not exist and did not exist since 2008 .
Pick up the lip, Mike and lets see what happens first.
We can only hope that Meyers sees the light, selects the best we have, has them play to a proper gameplan, not kick everything away, cuts away the dead wood of last season - (Hougat, Spies, Kirchner, De Jongh, Aplon, Kruger, vd Merwe, Pienaar, Steyn and Jean De Villiers) and focuses on preparing our talented players for the coming world cup.
Going through another Pieter De Villiers era will be very difficult for me to bear.
I have hope that what he spoke of earlier this year ... being better prepared ... his views on the breakdown ... a different method of playing the game ... come to the fore. I want to see his new found ideas on the pitch.
No more talk.
The proof of the pudding ...
No more excuses.
ou maaaikie you are a great guy and poster but all I ask is that you try and be more realsitic and stop having these dark fantasies of doom - for the wrong reasons nogal.
If you really want to sound even remotely credible re the doom we face rather talk about issues that do have a bearing and not about Meyer who is way ahead of you when it comes to rugby nous.
You could mention the players drain or injuries for example like I do. Or say how dificult it is to beat a nz team when the game is reffed by a bent nz ref like I do etc.
Meyer should only have lost 1 test last year (given Morne kicking normally) so logic says we should do well this year. My chief concerns remain the injuries and bent nz refs. Quotas of course also dont help.
Meyer is the least of my worries. Lets hope fate does not conspire against him. We all know that a number of SA rugby fans (think rooiwtwit etc) have little ability to understand how factors out of a coaches control - like injuries and bent refs - can effect results. We saw this season what happend to the Stormers and Sharks or at least some of us saw.
Get on the St Johns wort ou maaaikie all will be well in the end. One day I foresee, in the distant future, when the biological sciences have much advanced and genes contributing to criminal activity are removed from the human race - bent nz refs will cease to exist - for them there is no other possible cure.
Beeno the visionary pinning his hopes for a cure re bent nz refs on biological advances!!!
