position in the backline for Da Allende it will be like shifting the deck chairs on the Titanic, same for anorexic Mostert and that headless chook Kriel. Still don't get how the Bok pack play a physical game with Mostert in the mix,
Hold on…I just checked…he made 2 tackles.
Mostert took two balls against the throw, made all but one of his tackles, was often the first player to protect the ball carrier.
The Boks weighed 920 kgs up front vs Ireland’s 890 approx. put Kleyn on and that becomes 930 vs 920. And I guarantee you Mostert is putting in more effort.
This difference in physicality is insignificant. Now could you have a whole pack of lightweights? Obviously not. But we can certainly accommodate one lighter lock with huge loosies and props….as we did with the great Victor Matfield.
That said I would start with Snyman because he is a mega talent, but I would never play a bog ordinary lock like Kleyn ahead of Mostert
Dave you see what you want to see.
Dave you are forever bashing Mostert but your hero in charge of the team obviously sees his skill and effort game after game and that is that matters.
Case closed.
A 150lb leopard will kill a 260lb man with ease or a 880 lb zebra ...there are other things in physical science that matter.
Weight only matters when equal playing ability is about same, Frik Du Preez was 106 kg, Sergio Parrise 113 kg and ZinZan Brooke 102 kg...very few can outclass these players, locks and loosies are not set in stone. Kwagga imho is an example...best loosie we have.Some players punch well below their weight.
No David, it was not literal but a figure of speech or symbolic, I think you have good rugby sense ...like a good hedge that needs to be be clipped once in a while. Don't however become too obsessed by weight and size, most of the time it could be right but not always.
None of us will ever get it spot on, but we all are trying. Results are often misconstrued incorrectly in judgement in world cups, because this competition has many variables, not ability only as seen since 1987.
It's rather like a prominent horse race that has results, normally with second or third favourites and sometimes outsiders winning, but no that cannot really happen because horses and humans are different and the structures as well, but top 3 favourite teams, yeah.
With Dupont incapacitated it looks like SA is the one because they lost to with inexcusable error which they should correct, but NZ'ers are hurt and have pride, that is dangerous and France is severely wounded by impaired Dupont and absence of first choice no 10.
Having said this without loyalty or feeling, I think France will win. The best French team of all, in France and it's about time after so many close calls, namely 2011. They have the same pride of SA NZ and IRE, but an edge in Paris.
My preference is for Eben and Snyman to start and Kleyn to be theick replacement. This means either Eben or Snyman plays 80 minutes.
Mostert has a big engine muchike Du Toit. Both play 80 minutes with no problem. So Rassie might be thinking if I start with Mostert I can let Eben and Snyman play flat out for 40 minutes.
Poor Mozzzz has got himself in a huge bind. He has to trash Allende regardless of how Allende has played. It's just pure unadulterated bias.
Given the absence of Marx and then also playing Mostert 2 of your tight five do not give you a physical edge.
A tight 5 of Ox, Marx, Malherbe Eben and Snyman is unmatched in World Rugby. Tragically we will never see them in action together at this Workd Cup.
Kerevi hasn’t been great so far this WC, but then he hasn’t had the turnstile Dud marking him.
