Schalk Burger has sounded the alarm over the Springboks' latest tactical shuffle ahead of their crunch match against the All Blacks in Wellington, questioning the wisdom of Rassie Erasmus's decision to make seven changes, including a completely revamped backline. It's shake-up time, but is it also break-up time for team cohesion?
Burger, airing his views on The Verdict, expressed his concerns openly. "We’ve gone back to basics, I suppose, in terms of naming [the team] early – but loads of changes. Too many from my side," he remarked. The introduction of Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu at fly-half and Damian Willemse at inside centre has stirred a mix of excitement and anxiety. "It’s a completely new backline, so it’s set up that we want to play ‘Tonyball’, play more rugby. Can you flip and flop through styles like that in big Test matches? It’s hard to get right," he added.
"Damian Willemse at 12 is super exciting for me – I love his close-contact skills, and if you play him as a playmaker it’s great. Sacha at 10 is exciting and daunting at the same time – a bit scary, isn’t it?"
Last weekend's 24-17 loss at Eden Park was a sore point, with the Boks conceding two easy tries early on. Burger didn't mince words about the initial setbacks and tactical missteps following a disappointing start. "I called this, unfortunately – a 14-point deficit to start. The same frailties in our game exist: early defensive lapses, lineout problems, and the breakdown," he noted.
The switch from a conservative game plan to something more expansive didn't pan out as expected. "With [attack coach] Tony Brown on board we’d built a shape, but that shape disappeared. If you’re chasing, you still need the shape – tighten the options, sort out the breakdown, but keep the picture so you can create soft shoulders," Burger explained.
The lineout struggles were particularly glaring, with the Boks losing four of their 18 throws. "Our rhythm was off – too many dummies, poor lifts and throws. New Zealand ran a proper mirror contest – they don’t give you free ball. Against that, the speed of the drill beats the man-watch. Ours wasn’t quick enough," he critiqued.
The inability to convert opportunities into points was another critical issue highlighted by Burger. "It was a tale of two 50/22s. Beauden [Barrett] kicks one – they score. Handré [Pollard] kicks one – we don’t. We didn’t convert our entries at all. We ran the same strike stuff New Zealand had clearly prepped for – you need a variation after it works once," he concluded, painting a picture of a team that needs to rediscover its rhythm and tactical sharpness to overcome a well-prepared New Zealand side.
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Schalk Burger has sounded the alarm over the Springboks' latest tactical shuffle ahead of their crunch match against the All Blacks in Wellington, questioning the wisdom of Rassie Erasmus's decision to make seven changes, including a completely revamped backline. It's shake-up time, but is it also break-up time for team cohesion?
Burger, airing his views on The Verdict, expressed his concerns openly. "We’ve gone back to basics, I suppose, in terms of naming [the team] early – but loads of changes. Too many from my side," he remarked. The introduction of Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu at fly-half and Damian Willemse at inside centre has stirred a mix of excitement and anxiety. "It’s a completely new backline, so it’s set up that we want to play ‘Tonyball’, play more rugby. Can you flip and flop through styles like that in big Test matches? It’s hard to get right," he added.
"Damian Willemse at 12 is super exciting for me – I love his close-contact skills, and if you play him as a playmaker it’s great. Sacha at 10 is exciting and daunting at the same time – a bit scary, isn’t it?"
Last weekend's 24-17 loss at Eden Park was a sore point, with the Boks conceding two easy tries early on. Burger didn't mince words about the initial setbacks and tactical missteps following a disappointing start. "I called this, unfortunately – a 14-point deficit to start. The same frailties in our game exist: early defensive lapses, lineout problems, and the breakdown," he noted.
The switch from a conservative game plan to something more expansive didn't pan out as expected. "With [attack coach] Tony Brown on board we’d built a shape, but that shape disappeared. If you’re chasing, you still need the shape – tighten the options, sort out the breakdown, but keep the picture so you can create soft shoulders," Burger explained.
The lineout struggles were particularly glaring, with the Boks losing four of their 18 throws. "Our rhythm was off – too many dummies, poor lifts and throws. New Zealand ran a proper mirror contest – they don’t give you free ball. Against that, the speed of the drill beats the man-watch. Ours wasn’t quick enough," he critiqued.
The inability to convert opportunities into points was another critical issue highlighted by Burger. "It was a tale of two 50/22s. Beauden [Barrett] kicks one – they score. Handré [Pollard] kicks one – we don’t. We didn’t convert our entries at all. We ran the same strike stuff New Zealand had clearly prepped for – you need a variation after it works once," he concluded, painting a picture of a team that needs to rediscover its rhythm and tactical sharpness to overcome a well-prepared New Zealand side.