He's apparently untouchable. We're stuck with him unless he gets injured.
He's apparently untouchable. We're stuck with him unless he gets injured.
I vote for Esterhuizen and Willemse
Oh what crap de Allende was very good last season and was good against NZ and one of the better players against the Argies
Damian hasn't had a good test. Period. He was abysmal last year, so much so that Erasputin began exploring other options. Damian is not test quality. Not even super rugby quality.
YAWN
What I like about Esterhuizen is he runs onto the ball at pace. Delande seems to be walking or in a stationary position.
Delande is not a bad player, but replacing him would just bring something new to the Boks. An extra spark - a less stale approach
Can Delande be injured? Maybe one of his own players will injure him so they can get the ball more often
Well, would like to see how Esterhuizen plays this weekend. Am is on tour, so maybe he’ll start again. De Allende had two starts in a row. I think the coaches will pick him as they’re 12.
There are only 3 centre spots available in the World Cup squad. So it is between Kriel and Esterhuizen.
I think Kriel has the inside track as he is a coach favourite and can cover 13 and the outside backs.
So Esterhuizen will have to play out of his skin on Saturday if he wants to stand a chance to knock out dud or Kriel
Damian is a very bad player. He is the most fundamentally flawed centre I have ever seen. But, he is a media darling, so he will start our key World Cup fixtures. I very much doubt Esterhuizen will make the cut, no matter what he does, as evidenced by his sensational play in the RC of 2019. He should have stayed in Japan and tried to play for them.
Willie and Eben have been with Boks roughly as long as DDA.
Willie's value is clear...same as Eben....
Then we get to the magic that is DDA. I can't think of player with so much time investment that has produced so little.
His worst attribute had to be his decision making. Skill one can work on but a brain that can't make decisions at the speed and level that tests require is something I can't live with.
Willie and Eben were producers before they had a reputation. Damian, like Steph, Lambie, Goosen, Libbok, Roos et al were reputations without production. A type of personality that the media and fans liked. Then the waiting, "give him a chance". Damian has over 50 test caps, and 50 failures. Nothing at all to be proud of. That's how cheap the Bok jersey is. The only player who was a little slow to show his worth was Thor. He was poor in his first season, but he turned it around from game 1 the following year. If they don't show signs early, it's an almost carved in stone rule that they never will. And I won't accept the notion of positions either. Jean on the wing, Fourie at 15, Monty at 13, Morné at 15 (Lions debut, and saved the test with try saving tackle), Frans at 14, Duane at 8... you get the picture.
The contributions Dud Allende made last Saturday were pretty much what you would expect of a flank. The maul try he finished off, some work slowing the ball down, a bit of process tackling.
But contributions as a centre? He got the ball 10 times, did anything exceptional happen? Nope process runs and neutral passes.
There is no mental spark upstairs to visualize the opportunity, so he plays in a fog, relying on process. But when he has to make a decision it’s inevitably the wrong one.
No player I can think of has neutered Bok back play more than Dud Allende.
It pains me to see South African rugby settle for so little. The likes of Saddex seem to be happy, and exclaim how positive they are. That's not a person who cares about anything, it's dulled passivity. We had the chance to exploit Australia and New Zealand when they were down and cement our status as the premier SH side, and knock the stuffing out of the NH. Now it looks like we have fallen further behind than we already were. It's very disheartening. When I heard that Erasputin was coming again for another cycle, I knew exactly what was going to unfold. Damian is the essence of this side's ambition and readiness to face the threats of the top teams in world rugby. All I hear are excuses from the coaching team and the media to avoid having to deal with the grim reality. You cannot move forward if you cannot accept where you currently find yourself. If you don't want to admit what the problem is, how can it be resolved. Other more intellectually capable cultures ruthlessly weed out the problems and do whatever it takes to get to a better place. I recall how the Brumbies removed over 17 players in a mass clearout to break player power and install a new culture, then they hired Jake. Look at the Snarks? They didn't want to hear the truth, and they fell off a cliff. It sums up the culture in SA.
Roos isn't a reputation for me, Deus.
I've just watched him play and would like to see him get a run on the side of the scrum for the Boks.
Were I him, I'd go to England and play for their top clubs, maybe get into their national team and never look back.
To be fair to his club rugby, I've only seen highlights videos, but those highlights raised more questions for me. I've gone over his Bok tests thoroughly, and it wasn't good. I'm not saying he can't ever make it, he's still one I put in the maybe bracket, but I think his reputation is grossly exaggerated. If he can produce the goods, I'd have Kwagga, Wiese and Roos in my loose trio.
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Delande has had some very good games, but I think he is just too predictable. He is often out of position on attack and seems to line up as a loose forward instead of standing further back to organise his backline. He is too flat, and rarely runs onto the ball at pace.
When Libbock got the ball, Delande was often nowhere to be found.
The problem is exasperated by his never getting injured and always being in the team.
A bit like a top boxer, the more video footage that becomes available - the easier it is to understand their game and how to counter it.
For one he stands too upright in the tackle and concedes turnovers, or just slow recycled possesion.
Joining the scrum to score a mauling try is not what we expect from a 12.
It is just the same old, same old. The Boks need Esterhuizen or even Willemse at 12 just to bring something new for the opposition. Willemse could cover from the bench as a utility player covering 10, 12 and 15.