Rugby Truths - if you want to win games

Stay away as far s possible from Meyer's favourites.   There was none of Meyer's favourites Matfield, Morne Steyn and Willem Alberts playing this weekend and their teams won their games.  The moment they play - they make sure their teams loses.   I know Fat Willem is injured and Matfield may even be although after he buggered up badly - it is pretty sure he is not on the playing list for his clubs.
And Fat Fransie is not any better - he missed a conversion that would have taken his team through to the finals next week.   Still no matchwinner anymore.
   

 This is pure genius ....no wonder you call yourself Clever Mike.

 Mike, matfiled should disappear - he has been a complete disaster and cost meyer his job as you said.  Alberts looks over the hill. Fransie. Well he must show he is fit and regained his mojo. He play in recent years has been very poor.

 Yep and Stephanie was a glorious shining star at the RWC. Clueless drivel.

This assumption would be true- but only if in each case a younger player exists that is of international standard. 
Sometimes keeping a player that is long in the tooth- until the younger player of the required calibre is available is a better option. 
Jaco Kriel could potentially have been a revelation at the World Cup- but how many players outside the squad would have made more impact than those in the squad.
Jaco Kriel would certainly have been a better option than the injury prone Fat Albert. 

 De Jager was a 10 times better player at the WC than useless Victoria and what Morne Steyn was doing in the squad heaven only knows.  Victoria was a serious disaster when playing for Northampton just three months after the WC conclusion.    What does that tells us in any event?  It clearly says that he should never have been in the squad.           

 But it was de Jäger who got snot klapped for the crucial AB try. 

Mike, let it go man! Meyer is no longer coach! Matfield will surely never again smell a Bok jersey! There is no sign whatsoever that any of the players you have noted will ever play for the Boks again. And what you have said above has been said a thousand times! 

OuMaaik, I reckon you gonna miss Matfield the most 

 I am just rubbing it in on Mozart.  His stupidity in supporting duds last year was notorious - and he keeps on moaning about younger players and saying how we are going to miss the "greats" he supported - whose greatness was never in evidence in the past year.   The creep does not get it yet - he lives in the past and cannot adjust to the present.     

 If he's a creep who lives in the past and is a stupid who supports duds.....why does it bother you so much that you've become repetitive? I mean really...how does whatever you say he is affect you? Do you suffer sleepless nights? Has it affected your health? Has it affected your lifestyle? Has it cost you a loss of money ?

No, it does not bother me  - but if their is a case of repetition it is the same old story of Mozart over and over again.  How the players he classifies as "greats" will be missed in future.    And his BS about De Jager and other younger players continues unabated.  That is the drivel I respond to - but th fool keep on repeating the tommyrot of his.    

 If it's drivel how come you the only one who gives a toss? I fail to understand why anyone would respond to what you call drivel. Posters are complaining that you are boring...that they've heard it all before...that's all I'm saying. I don't carry on repeating myself with things I disagree with, I simply won't allow for it to dominate my life.

Mike if all of the old guard leave (JP, Habana, Fransie, Morne, Du Preez, Schalk, Alberts, Matfield) then we're going to lose leadership in a big way. 
It's often underestimated how Proteas much losing a few key, experienced players can be detrimental, look at the Proteas.

Whilst some of these clearly don't look up to international standard anymore (Alberts, Matfield) 

Others remain the best or one of the best in their position (JP, Habana, Du Preez, Schalk)

The problem we made after 2011 was that we never bedded people in properly before 2015 and then just threw them into the pressure cooker, people like De Allende, Kriel, PSDT all didn't have much international experience and then were suddenly just thrust into the world cup squad and starting 11. 

We need to look at who will be key people in key positions in 2019 and aim to give them the experience needed and let them build partnerships and understandings. (Gellant, Senatla, Vorster,Kriel, De Allende, Pollard, De Klerk, Lood, Etzebeth, Kitshoff, Nyakane, Marx, Malherbe, etc, etc)

The New Zealand rebuild from 2011 to 2015 was perfect, they had a clear plan and everything came together at the world cup.

 APD
I never favoured that playewrs like Schalk Burger and Habana not being in the WC - and had serious reservations about Du Preez because of his lack of game time over the 14 months before the WC.
My contention is you must bear recent performance in mind when selecting a team and if that is absent then the players should not be selected - despite their experience, reputation and leadership contribution.   The problem in the WC squad was that the reputation players caused the use of a game plan they may be familiar with - they were not able to adjust their performances with any new game plan -at the expense of playing positive rugby.   The problem was that game plan was easily contained by opposing teams - even the Japanese knew what to do and did it exceptionally well against the "most experienced Springbok team ever".
However, we must get past what happened in 2015 and as you said - look at the future.  However, some of us are not prepared to do that and keep on moaning about the loss of the "greats"  who in the main was far from being "greats" last year.   
I think there are a lot of good players coming through - players Meyer ignored or rarely used because of his fascination with the old guard.   It would be very interesting to see how the next Springbok team is made up - I can see a long list of changes that should have been made 2 years ago to give the new players a chance to develop within the team structure.  Unfortunately that never happened and the new coach would have a very inexperienced base to work from.         
 
  
    

I think the positive thing for the new coach is that a lot of our talented younger players will have some WC experience under their belt (De Allende, Kriel, Pollard, Etzebeth, Lood, Malherbe, Nyakane) so hopefully we can build a good base. I don't know why but I'm feeling quietly confident about the future. 

 APD
I share your optimism about the future, but am worried about the coach appointment.  If it is Coetzee a lot of my optimism will go out of the window.     

I agree Mike, I'm not one in the Coetzee camp. As Rooi has pointed out in the other thread though, it seems he has fallen down the pecking order. 

I'll admit I don't know too much about Rassie Erasmus' coaching, so maybe it's a bit of risk. 

Personally I'd like Akkers, and in failing that Nick Mallet.

 Funny enough - I asked my brother about the coaching job - he has some rugby links with the Stormers and he also came up with Rassie's name.  If it was to be Coetzee - the announcement would have been made in December already.   However, Coetzee is deeply unpopular with the rugby fans and the fact that he never succeeded in rectifying the Stormers backline problems and the team's consequent inability to score tries is counting against him.