There might be understandable eyebrows raised at a hint of conservatism in Springbok coach Allister Coetzee’s selection for Saturday’s test against Ireland in Dublin but the strength of his bench could just be the difference between the sides in an anticipated close contest.
If this was the old days when rugby was much more of a 15-man starting team game than it is now, Steven Kitshoff would be justified for wondering what more he needs to do in order to get the nod as the starting loosehead prop.(AGREED)
Tendai Mtawarira has been solid all season but Kitshoff’s first start in a test match in the Newlands clash with the All Blacks produced one of the finest performances turned in by a Springbok anywhere this season.
The 95-times capped Mtawarira returns to the front row after missing the Cape Town game because of personal reasons. He will bring his experience back into the mix and there is an understanding that when a first choice Bok has to withdraw from a game he retains his place when he returns.
However, Mtawarira will have to go some to reproduce the massive energy that Kitshoff brought to the Newlands match.
With Kitshoff on the bench and Jan Serfontein not playing because of his club commitments, the Boks are effectively starting this match without two of their best players from the one point defeat to the world’s best team just under five weeks ago.(GLAD TO SEE JAN GETTING SOME RECOGNITION AS HE HAS BEEN PlAYING WELL. NOT THAT MANY OAKS ON THE BOARD WOULD KNOW THIS!!!!)
There is some validity though to Coetzee’s claim that modern rugby isn’t about 15 players anymore but a 23-man squad, and it is on the bench that the Boks appear to have a definite edge on Saturday.
Coenie Oosthuizen also returns to the front-row now that he is over the injury that has kept him out since the Boks were in Perth over two months ago, which means that Wilco Louw, one of the most influential players in the closing stages of the Currie Cup season, will again play off the bench. (BEST EASE COENIE INTO THING OFF THE BENCH!)
Louw though made a massive contribution as a replacement in the last quarter against the All Blacks, and him and the livewire Kitshoff playing together later in the Aviva Stadium match is an appetising prospect for the visitors.(COULD BE THE PLAN GET SCRUM DOMINANCE IN SECOND HALF)
Lock Franco Mostert can also help effect a momentum shift off the bench, and Uzair Cassiem, who is among the reserves this time after returning from his injury, might just be better suited to being an impact sub at international level than being a member of the starting team.(NO CASSIEM HAS NOT SHOW HIMSELF TO BE TEST MATERIAL AND NEITHER HAS BONGI - BUT YOU WOULD BE RISKING YOUR JOB TO SAY SO)
“Modern day rugby is about using 23 players effectively and having Kitshoff coming off the bench with 30 minutes to play has worked for us this season,” said Coetzee.
ANOTHER CHANCE FOR JANTJIES
Indeed it has, though you could forward a counter-argument that the best all-round Bok forward performance produced by the Boks this season came with Kitshoff in the starting team.
With Oosthuizen not having played for two months, there is an element of risk in the starting team front-row selection.(AGREED)
Coetzee will have to quickly evaluate whether the selected players are carrying any rust and then not waste time in making changes should they be necessary.
In Oosthuizen's case his mobility might even make him a better impact bet than Louw, with Louw's scrumming power perhaps needed in the early parts of the game when physical and first phase ascendancy is being decided.
Coetzee has done well to keep the core of the pack that did so well against the All Blacks together, with Pieter-Steph du Toit continuing off the side of the scrum.
When was selected on the blindside flank for the Newlands test there was much debate, but his strong performance on his home ground should have silenced that.(COULD BE A GREAT NUMBER 7 IN THE MAKING)
Damian de Allende’s return at inside centre in place of Serfontein is the only change at the back, with Elton Jantjies being given another chance after producing a nervous performance against New Zealand.(ACTUALLY i THINK IT WISE TO EASE POLLARD BACK HE HAS PLAYED PRECIOUS LITTLE RUGBY)
Jantjies doesn’t appear to respond well to competition from within the squad, and perhaps having Handre Pollard breathing down his neck now that the Bulls player is fit again hasn’t helped him.
He is going to have to put that out of his mind quickly though for Ireland at home are going to be a massive challenge and the Boks are up against an intelligent and extremely astutely coached team.(AGREED)
In other changes to the Bok match day squad, Bonbi Mbonambi returns to the bench in place of Chiliboy Ralepelle while Francois Venter, the Free State captain, is also back in the playing squad for the first time in a while.(NEITHER SHOULD BE IN THE SQUAD)
Like several of the men who will sit alongside him when the match starts, Venter does look a strong bench player and that could just be where the Boks have the winning of the match on Saturday.(4 BENCH PLAYERS DO NOT BE LONG IN THE TEAM - BONGI, CASSIEM, PAIGE AND VENTER)
SPRINGBOK TEAM: Andries Coetzee, Dillyn Leyds, Jesse Kriel, Damian de Allende, Courtnall Skosan, Elton Jantjies, Ross Cronje, Francois Louw, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Siya Kolisi, Lood de Jager, Eben Etzebeth (captain), Coenie Oosthuizen, Malcolm Marx, Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements:Bongi Mbonambi, Steven Kitshoff, Wilco Louw, Franco Mostert, Uzair Cassiem, Rudy Paige, Handre Pollard, Francois Venter.
