Times are changing in the UK with more clubs investing in 4G artificial and hybrid pitches. Bath is probably the last of the Somme grounds in the Premiership with all grass. I think even the Stoop has gone hybrid. Not sure about Franklin's Gardens.
The game is vertainly getting quicker at the upper levels.
Pollard takes more contact but Elton looks for the pass. His passing numbers for this years SXV was insane. The Lions like to keep him flatter and a little farther out than Pollard. Play runners off him. He can't tackle, so that is a major crux to his game. Then again, Bosch cannot tackle either and struggles to really assert himself against better, more test-like defences. If you play Elton, you have to commit to a wide-wide attacking structure and as we saw under Coetzee, that doesn't necessarily agree with Bok DNA. Pollard remains the premier 10 in South Africa, with the most characteristic ingredients of a successful Bok flyhalf. The idea of Willemse at 10 won't work either. Irregardless of whether or not it's his preferred position (it isn't) , he simply isn't ready to play at this level - something we have seen repeatedly against the best teams.
The experiment of Pollard at 12 could work, with Jantjies at 10. I like this option off the bench. In this setup Frans can shift to 13 and you have a robust midfield with exceptional distributive capabilities and highly penetrative carries over the gainline - this proved especially successful as a bench option, providing some variance later in games. So, in my opinion, Jantjies on the bench is a significant weapon for when the Boks need to inject a more ball-in-hand approach, such as catching up on a deficit later in tests. Am is more than competent enough to remain for the full 80 though.
On full artificial and 4g the burns can be horrific if the grounds aren't well maintained.
The idea is to wet the pitch before a game with sprinklers and there's a sorta Zamboni type machine that turns the little rubber balls up to the surface. The burns happen when the pitch rubber has been compacted and dry.
Another problem that players have spoken about is the ligament damage and joint impact issues that aren't associated with soft ground.
