Noakes: Tourists will struggle
26 Jun 2009
Tim Noakes insists that playing the next two Tests at altitude will be a big disadvantage for the Lions.
While the Lions have trained with altitude masks throughout their tour, and are only flying up to Pretoria on Friday night, Noakes believes they will still find life difficult at Loftus on Saturday.
‘Fatigue sets in a lot quicker at altitude and everything seems that much harder,’ he says in the latest issue of SA Rugby magazine. ‘What you do at relative ease at sea level makes you much more fatigued on the highveld.
‘It takes an extra effort to keep pushing really hard and most teams would have done the best they can by the last 20 minutes.
‘There’s no doubt that playing at altitude is a major advantage for the Boks, particularly the Bulls players who play at altitude regularly – they know what it’s like and what’s required.’
Noakes expects the Lions to adapt their game plan in order to deal with the rarefied atmosphere.
‘They will play with less intensity in the first half and will hold back a bit, maybe look to slow the game down a bit and in that way hope to last the full 80 minutes.’
In the same issue, former Lions scrumhalf John Robbie disagrees with Noakes, saying he coped just fine during the 1980 series.
‘I suppose some of the big forwards would talk about shortage of breath, and the ball obviously travels a little further, but to me everything seemed more focused and faster. I loved it and I can honestly say I never noticed it,’ he said.
– The new issue of SA Rugby magazine is on sale now for R23.95
57 Comments
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26 Jun 2009, 08:52 am
It is freezing cold in Pretoria
26 Jun 2009, 08:54 am
cue tackler
26 Jun 2009, 08:55 am
#1 dWeePer: Indeed, gonna swap the brandy for some sherry this weekend!!!
26 Jun 2009, 08:59 am
Fish – Tacklers too busy unblocking toilets.
26 Jun 2009, 09:03 am
Noakes probably has a point but we’ve mostly selected athletic players with one or two exceptions.
26 Jun 2009, 09:10 am
John Robbie – what a tough guy. And a hero. I’m not surprised he didn’t struggle.
Robbie: 1
Altitude: 0
26 Jun 2009, 09:20 am
Katman
26 Jun 2009, 09:39 am
Now this is an opinion I can respect. Every man and his dog in the UK seems to have suddenly become an expert on the altitude factor over the last week and its annoying considering half of them probably have never even been to Jozi/Pretoors. Noakes is an intellectual sporting giant and he knows his stuff back to front and inside out. He’s one of the best sports scientists in the world. If he says the Lions will struggle they’ll struggle.
26 Jun 2009, 09:43 am
The thin air means that it’s harder to sustain combustion, so Noaksie’s infamous “burnout” can’t possibly happen so easily. It’s all scientific, I tell you.
(Noakes? Pfffft!)
26 Jun 2009, 09:49 am
Thameside – Tackler will disagree with this
26 Jun 2009, 09:51 am
#10 Slappes:
Ja well he’s known for his somewhat controversial views so its no skin off my back.
26 Jun 2009, 09:54 am
#2 the peanut gallery:
26 Jun 2009, 09:59 am
The boks frontrow is all from the coast, who are the least fit players, and Schalk Burger is also from the coast, which half the bok pack are at the same disadvtage. Bakkies is normally replaced by the 60min mark and Juan was buggered by that stage last week.
Unlike other tours the Lions have spent a month in SA and racked up their biggest score at Ellis without looking like slowing down. I believe they are fitter than us.
26 Jun 2009, 10:00 am
#9 TheTackler: stick to the plumbing tackles
26 Jun 2009, 10:12 am
Tackler – I know your area of expertise ie **** Extraction Specialist. Business tip for you after you unblock a toilet hand out free anti-diarrhoea pills.
26 Jun 2009, 10:18 am
Wont the Boks that arent from the highveld struggle as well (Beast, Smit, BdP, Schalk, JdV, Ruan, JPP, Steyn, Adi)?
Cant really see altitude playing that big a factor. B&IL’s will just beaten by a better team. Its all about attitude
26 Jun 2009, 10:19 am
#13 cab:
Indeed taximan, altitude will not hamper these B&I lions
26 Jun 2009, 10:23 am
#8 Thameside Bok fan: That’s weird, I live in London too and I seem to get the impression from the papers that the Lions know they will have issues with the altitude. I didn’t see any mention of the altitude being no problem. That’s why they have undergone altitude training.
26 Jun 2009, 10:33 am
#18 Gordo:
Ahhhh you’re not getting your daily fill of the Beeb are you?!
26 Jun 2009, 10:35 am
#17 Ruggaluvva: the Namibian, Sharks, Southern Kings & Wallaby supporter: Theay are a hamper to themselves. Don’t need altitude for that. Hahahaha
26 Jun 2009, 10:38 am
#13 cab: Duh, everyone knows our coast is at a far higher altitude than the NH coast. They don’t stand a chance. Noakes will back me up on this, I’m sure.
26 Jun 2009, 10:44 am
#21 katman:
lol. i’ve never understand that one either.
26 Jun 2009, 10:44 am
We’re just going backwards and forwards with this altitude issue now. We have Steyn and Robbie telling us it’s not a big deal and Noakes telling us it will have an effect. Not really sure why we’re debating it anyway, it’s not the first time a foreign side has played at Loftus.?
26 Jun 2009, 10:46 am
#21 katman:
I dont believe all the twak thats being spoken here
The NH is higher
As example: Mt Everest in in the NH and its far higher than the SH peaks
Looking at any world map, you will see the NH is higher up than the SH
26 Jun 2009, 10:49 am
#20 Isigidi:
26 Jun 2009, 11:07 am
#24 Dust: yes we’re higher up, closer to the North Pole which is at the top, you guys are nearer the bottom
26 Jun 2009, 11:07 am
26 Jun 2009, 11:29 am
Big mistake by PdV to have taken our Boks for almost two weeks to train in Durban before the first Test. We too may struggle. You lose your altitude conditioning in just a week. It will take more than a week to get it back. Bulls players will get it back a bit quicker. If we only arrived in Durban on the Thursday for that test left on the Sunday we would have lost nothing.
We are though now training for one week back up in the thin highveld air. You get the altitude conditioning back in two weeks. Boks will still be better prepared for the altitude than them. Especially that they have been training in freezing cold WET Cape Town on soft fields. Those altitude masks will have hardly helped them. You need to live in the altitude all the time to get the full benefit. Train, sleep, eat and do everything there. Don’t think they had their altitude masks on for dinner? hehehe. We have also been training on the hard dry fields and have one week back of altitude conditioning in our lungs. Think their lungs will burn, burn, burn and the legs going to get very, very heavy in the last 25 min.
Only thing that the Lions will enjoy is that there wont be any HEAT to deal with as well as the altitude. That will make it a bit easier for them.
Heard its freezing in Pretoria. Going to be very cold during the game.
26 Jun 2009, 11:30 am
Now who do I believe?
Noaksie says they will definitely struggle and will want to slow the game down early on and,
Fransie Steyn, Spies and Robbie say it makes no difference to them and never has?
What I can say is that do we enjoy these stadiums up north and generally post our best results at Loftus and Ellis Park.. so here’s hoping for a repeat of the 52-3 or 62-22 or thereabouts
26 Jun 2009, 11:36 am
Did I read correctly yesterday. Is Jo’burg 500 m further above sea level than Pretoria?
26 Jun 2009, 11:39 am
WTF is an altitude mask?
26 Jun 2009, 11:47 am
#31 The Riddler:
26 Jun 2009, 11:56 am
#30 The Riddler: Yip it is.
#31 The Riddler: No clue either but probably supposed to help with the altitude. Think mountain climbers wear them. The ones that climb Everest.
26 Jun 2009, 11:57 am
#31 The Riddler: It’s that Zorro sleep thing they give you on the plane.
26 Jun 2009, 11:59 am
Besides, at the rate that the ice caps are melting and oceans are rising, altitude will soon be a thing of the past. Scientific fact.
26 Jun 2009, 12:01 pm
#32 Big Hit: It might be tough running around with one of those oxygen bottles on wheels – like my grannie used to have
#33 Puma: So Puma, why dont they just go train in Jo’burg and thn Pretoria is a stroll in the park. I always knew those Bulls lived in a bit of a “gat” there 
#34 katman: Yasssssssssus bean, that’s why Vickery got butmunched in the scrums – he didn’t even see it coming.
26 Jun 2009, 12:10 pm
Can John Robbie remember that far back I think not…we only remember the good things – never the pain ask any woman a week after labour!
26 Jun 2009, 12:33 pm
Every touring team that loses at Ellis Park or Loftus blames the altitude – those who win generaly say it wasn’t a factor?
26 Jun 2009, 12:39 pm
Morning all
I read in a prev post to Google “Viscount Crouchback”
I did that, you will actually not believe what a twat St Mich/Viscount is.
Just incredible really ..
Speechless ..
26 Jun 2009, 12:43 pm
#36 The Riddler: Makes no difference PTA to Joburg such a small difference the altitude.
26 Jun 2009, 13:00 pm
Frans Steyn and John Robbie both say that this altitude thing is over hyped and that they find/found it fine to play at altitude.
Over hyped and getting so “long in the tooth” we will have to cal it the Saber effect pretty soon.
26 Jun 2009, 13:02 pm
#39 dr dre:
We know.
Arsehole of note, that oke.
Fortunately he only surfaces about every 4 years.
26 Jun 2009, 13:10 pm
#39 dr dre:
Speechless Doc Dre………….but you did read it!
26 Jun 2009, 13:16 pm
#43 cane: The first 8 lines and checking out a picture of a horse was enough.
26 Jun 2009, 13:19 pm
Uiscount crouchbackrider, the voice of the plebs? Very entertaining viewpoints though
26 Jun 2009, 14:05 pm
#42 Pietman: #39 dr dre:
It is actually bladdy funny.
He is a stroker of note, but there are some exceptionally amusing artivles on there.
26 Jun 2009, 14:06 pm
#46 cab:
You should remember Mickey man, from the ‘other’ world, hehehehe!
26 Jun 2009, 14:18 pm
#44 dr dre:
Come on Doc……..The picture of the horse………..This is P.G Woodhouse, crossed with a bit of Kenny Everett. (God rest their Souls).
26 Jun 2009, 14:25 pm
#46 cab:
ah yes, of course, he was on here first, i just find it dissapointing that the cad has changed his pseudonym after the RWC. cowardice of the highest order.
Make no mistake he takes his england rugby very seriously and the last 5 beastings did not go down well.
26 Jun 2009, 14:34 pm
#44 dr dre: Ja for me too. All that stuff about Anglo-Saxon… eish I was trying to eat lunch!
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