Aren't you overreaching abit there Moz? Anyone can win the RWC 2023 but we want it to be the ABs . If by some act of reckless reffing in the Quarters (rumours have it that we have certain NZ moles as refs) you should slip against Da French then cheer for us as we will revenge on your behalf in the Finals.
44,438 posts
After a nice dinner and Chardonnay. I’m a little more relaxed. We played awfully and still had a shot. Although to be fair Ireland had numerous blown chances in the first 20 minutes. Ireland won with a shrewd last 10 minutes congrats to them for winning a big one..but it’s not doom and gloom for us,
This was a typical Bok effort, an arm wrestle…..we never tried to open up the game, even though our back three looked threatening. In these arm wrestles anybody can win.
The same was true in the last WC in the semi. Playing a static game we gave Wales a shot and they might have won absent a brilliant Francois Louw turnover. We were lucky. Today we weren’t, there was no Francois Louw moment.
We need to go back and look at the win over the ABs when we played with spirit and weren’t afraid to use our back three. The players need to be given the right to take some risks, not when we are 15 points ahead… but from the start. The right to play rugby. If we are going out, let’s go out with our guns blazing, I guarantee we will play better that way.
Secondly, get rid of the antics…Harrassmiss in black flashing his lights. Get rid of that and leave it to Nienaber to run the match.
Thirdly there are some obvious selection changes. Our bomb squad front row is far more destructive and that has been the source of many of our wins. Perhaps they should start.
Snyman and Etzebeth is the best locking combination on the planet…start them.
I really don’t know what to do about the loosies, they are so unbalanced. But make sure Vermeulen is there for the last 20 minutes. And Kwagga was way more productive than Kolisi. Get him on after the half given we are stuck with this small loosie as captain.
In the backs….start Pollard. In today’s type of test Libbok’s long suites are irrelevant and his issues, defence and kicking are game losers.
And change the damn centres, they are completely robotic. It’s a risk given Harrassmiss’ dithering over 4 years. But as we saw today, playing centres with no imagination is a dead end. But whatever we do get Esterhozen on at 12…I don’t care if Dud Allende is moved to 13, although we would be more dynamic with Moodie.
I thought today might be a banana peel….that the AB win was hopelessly over interpreted. Today’s loss also isn’t definitive. We can come back with resolve and dedication. But the time for Harrassmiss on center stage is over….make some changes…get focused and go out there and play some rugby