The Proteas are falling apart....

on a wicket that's worth around 350+ on Day 1. There's problems galore starting with an opener(Van Wyk) who is out of his depth in his maiden trip to India, a terrible batting order, Faf should drop down the order to 5 and Amla as cappie should take ownership and bat at first drop. The new wickie(Vilas) is a total disaster, how did he get into the side? He is no improvement on QDK. If that doesn't work then new faces might as well be brought into a side that needs application and skill to meet the demands of Indian conditions.

 Guys, guys, guys the Protea team is nothing without Div.
Alma is not a captain's A..E and reminds me of Matfield (over the hill).
Shocking to say the least.
But it appears that cricket is going the same way the country is.......

That's the trouble in SA...huge athletic ability but NO HEART...that applies to rugby as well. Ask the heart of cricketers...JONTY

Funny that cricket is going the same way as the country....the Proteas if you don't know are numero uno in test cricket...... the country?
Also,  If Amla is over the hill then who would you replace him with? Regardless of who you replace him I'd like to remind you that cricket is an 11 man game.

Can't say I was convinced by that Faf dismissal though. The low one the keeper caught was pretty clear....the ball bounced up off the glove. In Fafs case it would have been  a miracle if none of the ball touched the deck.

 
Nothing new here.

They're losers.

Mediocre team selections will always produce the results it was meant to.

We saw that with Zuma's Goats.

 Denny sorry to burst your coloured bubble but sport is played to get a result....a winning one.
As long as u select folks on colour and not ability u are going to get results as produced by SA sporting teams.
Yes cricket is a 11  member team with everyone contributing to the effort.
Get it.
Yep the Proteas are rated #1 but keep watching and holding your breath.
Regarding Amla's replacement.... I am not up to speed with domestic cricket in SA but I am sure that their must be someone who is capable of leading a team and inspiring them to greatness once more.
When I think of all the great players who have led SA on the cricket field and I see the present "slapgat" captain I am more than disappointed.

The bottom  line is that they have not been able to plug the hole that was left after the departure of Graeme Smith, Jacques Kallis and Mark Boucher.
Of course their is a  certain old fart who would accuse me of wanting Smith et al back in the team. That is absolutely not the case. What I am saying is that we do not have players of the calibre of the three of them and sadly, there do not appear to be any on the horizon.
"When I think of all the great players who have led SA on the cricket field and I see the present "slapgat" captain I am more than disappointed."
Compare that to a hard-arsed Graeme Smith who removed the plaster off his broken  hand/arm to go out and bat in an effort to try and salvage something in a test. 

The decline in our rugby will stem from similar developments, but likely prove more disastrous. 

 Mozart
The decline in our rugby set in because too many players who should not have been in the team anymore were in fact in the team.  In the WC most of those have contributed to an alarming decline in the ranking of the team    
If you did not see the losses over the last 14 months as decline then you must have been blind.  If you could not understand that the most experienced team ever fielded against Japan lost because the experienced players were not up to standard - then you are indeed the rugby illiterate on this site,
The problem with the Proteas is deeper than what meet the eye.   I think that the issue of the captaincy is a major issue.   Amla has been off the boil for a while now and his test performances has plummeted recently.  Is that the result of him being appointed as captain?   Most likely. 
As  result of that problem the bating line-up is all wrong.   Van Zyk never played as an opener in any form of cricket - now he is being used as an opener  in the hope that the poor recent performances of Amla would be off-set by using him at 3.  However, that plan did not work out.   
The team is all wrong at present and that is a fact as well.     The Proteas would soon lose their number 1 ranking and some corrective measures is needed. We must also remember that none of the top batters - bar AB, Duminy and Du Plessis - are familiar with Indian pitches and that is also a problem.   If any of those three players do not fire the Proteas are in trouble.  In the tests that was blatantly clear.             

 

Stats - Graeme SmithBatting and fielding averages MatInnsNORunsHSAveBFSR100504s6sCtStTests11720513926527748.251552559.6727381165241690ODIs19719410698914137.98864880.811047788441050
Stats - Hashim AmlaBatting and fielding averages MatInnsNORunsHSAveBFSR100504s6sCtStTests85144136813311*52.001322451.5123288378740ODIs1261239600815952.70672389.36212860338630

 Denny
It is not about career figures - it is about present form.   Y\The Amla that used to be tops is showing a serious decline in form.  That could be due to the fact that neither Amla nor Smith did well playing against India in India - but the more important question is - did Amla's appointment as captain adversely affect his performance?      

For Graeme Smith, Mark Boucher and Jacques Kallis. ...read Victor Matfield, F du Preez and Jean de Villiers.
There is zero chance that second raters like Lomp/Stephanie and Allende are going to fill their boots. 

 There is zero chance that in their declining years they were any good anyway.   You fail to realize that the three players mentioned by you were part of the reason why their was a serious decline in Bok rugby over the last year and that Fourie du Preez was bog ordinary in the last series.  
After a great year in 2013 - De Villiers last year was bog-ordinary as well and after his return from injury he was a poor performer.  Matfield was a serious liability throughout the tests he played in since his return to test rugbyHe was useless without the fairy tales you spun on this site.  A player without grunt in the Tight 5 is a serious liability.
Your constant attacks on De Allende and De Jager is an embarrassment and showed your total rugby ignorance comprehensively.  When will you ever understand that players in their middle and late 30's with rare exceptions have a detrimettal affect on team performance - an d the three players mentioned by you are NOT among the rare exceptions.      

Your avatar says it all....there was no player more out of his depth at the WC than the seuntjie  you have been worshipping since 2012. It would have been better for his hyped reputation if he stayed at home.

 The Stats post wasn't directed at you Mike it was for our erstwhile friend calling for his replacement...in calling for his replacement he doesn't know who to replace him with...the stats are there to show that Amla is not a slapgat instead he is there on merit and as for the Captaincy?...well who is there?...can you think of someone?It was always going to be hard replacing JK....everyone knew that...everyone that is  who understands and knows cricket. Suddenly the team, a young team, is under the cosh.
As for playing in India....pray please tell me of any team or player outside of the sub continent who has consistently done well in India?
Arthur John, I'm quite happy to sit back and listen...go ahead.

Well Denny it seems to me Mike has been calling for Amla to be dropped from the one day team for a while. Now from the test captaincy...your stats actually should be directed  at him.  

 Mozart
Nop one was a bigger let down in the RWC than Matfield - Du Toit had very little game time and in the one match he did play he was effectively - in the absence of Matfield a lock while Matfield was standing around as per normal in the backline.   Why was Matfield rated at 5/10 for his performances in the WC and that was a generous rating - he was useless when he did play and my rating would have been 3/10 if it comes to performance.     
I have not been calling for his replacement - but I did mention a number of times his recent lack in form.   That was evident in the series against India in particular in boith the shorter versions of the game as well.
However, since you have no idea about rugby or cricket performances and cannot even understand what is meant by the term performance - you are a nice one to make stupid suggestions about what other people have written on that topic.   

Victor and Fourie Du Preez were brilliant in their day.

We were fortunate to have them play for us. Sadly though, all things come to an end someday ... and that day arrived for them 5 years ago.

Jean was a good solid center ... but nothing special.

Of course replacements will be found. We have already replaced Bakkies with Eben and there are more than enough replacements for Jean.

Finding a replacement for the Victor of old won't be easy ... but for the Victor of today ... no problem. There are several quality players available that outshine the elderly man by someway.

 

 

 You know Clean Cut sometimes you make a lot of sense but sometimes you talk plain kak. Point in case are your cricket comments.

 
Denny ... I do not enjoy cricket ...  not any more ... I will be the first to admit that I do not know the game as well as you obviously do.

I wish I could contribute with a post or three ... but I think it best I don't.

Hence ... no cricket posts from me.

I can however see a bunch of losers ... especially when they're such blatant chokers ...especially at WC's ... blowing hot and cold ... no consistency ... a waste of time ... much like the national soccer team.

It frustrates me so when I look back to days when I did have an interest in the sport ... with the likes of Clive Rice and Graeme Pollock ... Alan Lamb and big Vincent van der Bijl ... Hansie Cronje, Gary Kirsten and Alan Donald. Those were good days in my opinion. Special boys.   

Now we have a bunch of muslims running the show ... racist selections is the order of the day ... it's no longer a matter of selecting the best but more to get the colour mix right ... that sits in my craw!!
 
I don't watch domestic cricket at all any more.

I fear that my love for domestic rugby might end up going the same way. I'm already struggling to hang on to the tainted Bok.

If I do make a stupid cricket comment ... please forgive me ... the root of it all stems from pure frustration ...

 

 

 

" Now we have a bunch of muslims running the show ... racist selections is the order of the day ... it's no longer a matter of selecting the best but more to get the colour mix right ... that sits in my craw!!"
I understand....I feel your pain. No worries mate.

  @Denny. The point that I was trying to make is that we do not have the players, who put us at the top of the top of the test rankings, any more and, by the look of things,  we will not have such players for some time to come.
Amla is a great cricket player but by the look of things captaincy does not sit well with him. If you look at his career, it supports that. When he had his first stint with the Proteas he was all over the place and totally out of his depth. He was dropped and he went back  to the Dolphins and the first thing that he did was to relinquish the captaincy in order to concentrate on his batting. He got down to work and he worked extremely hard to become one of the most respected cricket players in the world. By all accounts, when the captaincy was offered to him this time around, he probably thought that he would be able to handle it this time around. I am not saying that the captaincy is definitely the one and only reason for his current form, but it seems like that.
And then we have this clown talking about others who, according to him, have no idea about cricket performances:
"That co"uld be due to the fact that neither Amla nor Smith did well playing against India in India - but the more important question is - did Amla's appointment as captain adversely affect his performance? 
Bullsh!t mate. On one of the previous tours to India, Amla did this:

1. VCA stadium in India: 253* (batting at no3)
   
2. A week later at Eden Gardens: 114 in the first innings and 123 in the second innings, also batting at no 3.
   

To rub it in even more, this is only Amla's second series against India in India.
In addition to the above, Graeme Smith, in his entire career, only played seven matches in India and these are his averages on the different grounds in India:Eden Gardens - 2 matches, 4 innings, HS 71, 95 runs, average, 23.75, SR 55.56Green Park - 2 matches, 4 innings, HS 69, 188 runs, average 47, SR 48.21MA Chidambaram - 1 match, 2 innings, HS 73, 108 runs, average 54, SR 85.04Sadar Patel - 1 match, 1 innings, HS 34, 34 runs, average 34, SR 80.95VAC - 1 match, 1 innings, HS 6, 6 runs, average 6, SR 23.08

"I will be the first to admit that I do not know the game as well as you obviously do."

Sorry, I just don't think that's possible. Anyone who knows less about cricket than Dense would be unaware that there's even a game called cricket.

 
Cricket??

What's that??

It's not a medical condition per chance?

 Vlag you might have a point about the captaincy burden weighing heavily on Amla and affecting his game....but there are other issues. Stiaan Van Wyk is not an opener, the batting order is wrong, Vilas should be dropped and perhaps they should bring in the midget Bavuma whom I might add did show application and patience on debut....two things that are missing in the Proteas. I also question the absence of Riley Rossow.

 "Vlag you might have a point about the captaincy burden weighing heavily on Amla and affecting his game....but there are other issues. Stiaan Van Wyk is not an opener, the batting order is wrong"
Hence my earlier remark:
"The bottom  line is that they have not been able to plug the hole that was left after the departure of Graeme Smith, Jacques Kallis and Mark Boucher............."

Leaders either have it or they don't.
U are born with that gift or u are not.
Amla was not.
Poor choice as captain and way past his best.
My original comment still stands.
Regarding stats.....please tell me what stats every won a game.
Performance on the field is what counts at all times.

I don't think we have the players coming through to remain in the top 2. The situation in rugby is much the same.....our junior results and sub par performance in the S15 is indicative. The last WC was the last hurrah of a great squad that formed around 2004....they won't be effectively replaced for a while.....if ever.

 mozart unfortunately u are correct.
I think the 2016 super rugby season is going to be an eye opener for many Saffers.

 The 2016 super rugby season is a still-born baby, by the look of things. We are going to reap the fruit of the Super Rugby balls-up for ages to come. You can only become the best by continually competing against the best. Under the new system we are going to have two or three teams, hopefully four, who are going to be competitive. Then, at the end of the season, two of them are  going to go through to the QFs where they will, in all probability, be like lambs being led to the slaughter. 

 We are going to reap the results of the Suoper Rufvy vallls up for years to come - similar to the balls up our coaches made over the past few years.  Ludeke and Coetee were retarded and White went as far vback as he could to make sure the Shaks do not score tries.
As bad as the elderly players were in test rugby  - so bad they were in super rugby.  There is no way that there will not be a recovery with more talented players coming onto the scene.   I think that all of the Stormers and the LIons will do better and the Bulls are going to be better than they were last year.   
The problem was the stampkar rugby that as the norm in the past with the wemphasis of it being necessary to score tries and rather to hand ball possession over to the opposition.  
It is no wonder that Mozart and Ceradunce are forecasting the rugby doom in 2016.  The rugby played by the Springboks and the three major franchises are being changed and the rot of skill-deficient players - especially in the ba ckline is at least being addressed.   I think that the Stormers, Bulls and Lions are all going to do better than they did this year - but I think the Sharks have such management problems they will probably get near to nowhere next year - the damage done by White and Gold will take time to correct.   The also have to contend with John Smit and his pals.  Fat Stevens - OMG.
The Cheetahs will win a few games - but their player resources are problematic and it will take time to rebuild their team.   The Kings is a disgrace and should never have been involved in Super Rugby.   
Like the Springboks the major franchises are rid of the oldies who were the losers of recent years and they also got rid of the rubbish coaches.  Thinks are indeed looking better than it did last year at this time.