Williee Kolbe Am DdA Arendse Faf Pollard ........... bench Willemse Libbok Reinach.
Great topic, however, we have a few players that are game breakers and then we have some that are great in tight contest.
Pollard is a class player and only 28 and will be 29 at the world cup. Logic states that he is our 10, but his game has gone backwards and so has his value. Didn't set the world alight for the French team and now in the sickbay at Leicester Tigers. Not sure he will be ready for the World Cup or be on form.
So I would go for
9. Faf - He is a better player when our backline attacks more and we don't expect him to kick all the time. (Hendrikse looks half asleep and has no pace, can't snipe like Faf or Reinach) Backup, Reinach. This guy has pace and really come alive in the last 20 min. Will up the tempo when we go for ball in hand. Hendrikse is my 3rd choice.
10. Libbok, wish he had a few more test under his belt this year, has really matured since joining the stormers. If fit Pollard on the bench, maybe but don't know if he can still play attacking rugby.
11. Moodie - Great in the air, really solid defence, still a bit green but hope he has another good season at the bulls. Opted for his height and versatility, can play 13, 15 and 11 or 14.
12. Esterhuizen, his distribution is miles ahead of Dud, offer the same tank option in defence and go forward ball, but can pass off both hands.
13. Am, Both Esterhuizen and Am are familiar with one another and should play more games together.
14. Kolbe, normally Mpimpi plays better with Am on his inside, but he is not a game breaker. Will hassle the other backs but also leave his wide channel exposed.
15. Willie, he has showed enough this year that he could have another season left in him. I would also stick with Willemse at 15 for now, even though I think his best position is 12, but we have better players in all positions.
21. Reinach
22. Willemse / Pollard
23. Arendse, if Kolbe is not fit, then Arendse. Like for like players, showed his worth in breaking open games.
I like Willemse at 12, but I like the size of Esterhuize and the fact that he us up there. Maybe Willemse should be at 12, but what we saw how he setup the counter attack on Saturday, quick step, sprint and pass. Where as at 10, he still needs to learn. Really frustrating as I would love to have Willemse on the park but it can't be all out attack. He is a really solid defender though, but I feel that at 12 he may have to do more tackling than attack and I want to see him attack.
He is now a utility player. Not sure how the Stormers will use him. I don't want Libbok to be dropper or moved around. Libbok is the better kicker than Willemse.
If Willemse worked on his kicking over the next year then it would be a really hard choice.
"Libbok, wish he had a few more test under his belt this year, has really matured since joining the stormers. If fit Pollard on the bench, maybe but don't know if he can still play attacking rugby."
I agree with this. I see him more as a cool head to come off the bench for 10 and can also be used as a utility player .
Pollard is a very direct player and can break tackles from 10 or bash over the line. He is really hard to bring down, so it is almost like having another tank 12. He has his off moments, missing touch or the odd penalty kick implosion. But then Libbok in his last test also over kicked his touch finder but that was in extra time so it had no impact on the game.
My only concern with Libbok is that he did lose the ball in contact a lot last year and had the highest number of balls turned over in the URC. I don't think the boks like making errors or turning the ball over.
But, it is a nice headache to have, but I have no idea which players would be fit but we know we have a good mixture of young and old backs now.
This is our potential World Cup squad for the backs,
9. Faf, Reinach, Hendrikse (Reinach because he has experience playing in France)
10. Libbok, Pollard
12 Esterhuize, Dud, Willemse
13 Am, ? Maybe Moodie if he plays 13 there for the bulls.
11/14 Kolbe / Arendse / Mpimpi
15 Willie / Gelant / Fassi
I'm not sure how many backs they would normally select for the World Cup squad. is it 13 or 14, knowing that you have to have 3 scrumhalves in the team.
But think Moody should have a crack at 13 which will give us enough cover in all key positions.
My only concern is 13, Kriel is there but not spectacular and mainly a defender, Am has silky skills and can get the wings into play. We seem to make more meters when we use players like Willemse, Wille and Libbok and getting the ball to the wings quicker. That pass of Libbok against Italy to Arendse was pure magic.
09.Hendrickse
10.Pollard
11.Mapimpi
12.Esterhuizen
13.Am
14.Kolbe
15.Willie
This is about the strongest backline we can field at present. For all of the criticism leveled at Pollard, I haven't seen anyone better. This has the potential to be the best centre pairing in world rugby. We need some serious injection into out defence, which has hovered around 81% this year, far behind the best teams. We have lost solidity across the defensive front without adding the ability to break down good defences. Even our maul has creaked. This lineup has power, speed, elusiveness, and skill. There's an ability to play with some exotic plays and patterns, playing through the line, not merely around it.
"09.Hendrickse
10.PollardArendse is very good in open space. Every other part of his game is quite average. He is nowhere close to being our best back. Am, Hendrickse and Willie are our best backs. Everyone else is replaceable. I have never seen Arendse succeed against a good defence and I have never seen him cope with pressure.
I like Am, but he's been absent...KLA has been stellar.
Am looked tired for a period, and he struggled to connect with all of the aimless running happening around him. The likes of Willemse and Arendse are prime culprits for that. Arendse has shown no signs of being a great player. He is essentially the Nokwe of today, but even less physical.
Fook Card, if you can't see KLA's value, there's no point discussing this..he's the find of the season.. end of...
Reference the instances that highlight his all round game at a world class level. I've been studying film for a long time, so do proceed carefully.
Plum for the definitive attacking backline see my post about a Bok side I would like to see.
I loved the above description and part of it was really stupid. Take for instance the Esterhuizen case. He was tried out numerous times in matches in 2018 and 2019 and in the end never made the 2019 WC squad. Reason - he really had a defense problem at 12 and he tended to die with the ball when carrying it or give away turnovers or penalties in such cases. He is pace-deficient and even when he did play in the just completed series he really was not a house on fire and did not add anything in the game he did played in.
The other farce is comments on Willemse. He is extremely dangerous when allowing space to operate in and that he will not get at 12. He did well when he played on the wing and scored a try when he was replaced at flyhalf in a recent test. I think his best positions would be at full back or at 13 or even on the wing. He has the necessary pace to play in those positions.
For me the problem still is at flyhalf. Pollard was excellent in 2019 - but hi since been suffering from injuries and has not played well when playing for Montpellier on club level and for the Springboks. Jantjies has in the main being a disaster since 2019 and is not the answer at flyhalf. I am not sure whether Pollard will recover his 2019 form and for me the flyhalf position becomes an issue.
What most of the site members missed is that the 2018 tests were used as experiments when it came to certain players - same as the tests played this year. The team will develop further in 2023 and some further experimental selections will be done in 2023 - but at the end the WC squad will become clear. For instance there is at this stage clarity on the issue and the chances are that players like Kriel, Esterhuizen and Jantjies will not be in the WC squad in 2023.
I loved the above description and part of it was really stupid. Take for instance the Esterhuizen case. He was tried out numerous times in matches in 2018 and 2019 and in the end never made the 2019 WC squad. Reason - he really had a defense problem at 12 and he tended to die with the ball when carrying it or give away turnovers or penalties in such cases. He is pace-deficient and even when he did play in the just completed series he really was not a house on fire and did not add anything in the game he did played in.
The other farce is comments on Willemse. He is extremely dangerous when allowing space to operate in and that he will not get at 12. He did well when he played on the wing and scored a try when he was replaced at flyhalf in a recent test. I think his best positions would be at full back or at 13 or even on the wing. He has the necessary pace to play in those positions.
For me the problem still is at flyhalf. Pollard was excellent in 2019 - but hi since been suffering from injuries and has not played well when playing for Montpellier on club level and for the Springboks. Jantjies has in the main being a disaster since 2019 and is not the answer at flyhalf. I am not sure whether Pollard will recover his 2019 form and for me the flyhalf position becomes an issue.
What most of the site members missed is that the 2018 tests were used as experiments when it came to certain players - same as the tests played this year. The team will develop further in 2023 and some further experimental selections will be done in 2023 - but at the end the WC squad will become clear. For instance there is at this stage clarity on the issue and the chances are that players like Kriel, Esterhuizen and Jantjies will not be in the WC squad in 2023.