Bloem blessing
22 Jul 2009
Playing Jean de Villiers alongside Jaque Fourie will alter the Springbok dynamic, fortunately for the better.
Adi Jacobs was due to start at inside centre against the All Blacks but was sent home on Monday after he failed to recover from a groin injury. On Tuesday, Bok coach Peter de Villiers denied Jacobs would have started at No 12 and proceeded to tell keo.co.za that while the injury was a big blow, he had the reserve players to ensure South Africa’s game plan would remain unchanged.
However, De Villiers subsequently admitted Jacobs and Jaque Fourie brought ‘different flavours’ to the game. Never a truer word said in contradiction, Pete.
Fourie will bolster the Boks significantly at No 13 just like Jean de Villiers will bolster the Boks significantly at No 12. As a combination, they will give the Boks what they’ve been lacking for 12 months: defensive security and attacking momentum.
Jean de Villiers’s much publicised move to Munster was confirmed on Tuesday and Saru and the Bok management have made it clear they want locally-based players starting for the national side. With De Villiers on the way to Dublin after the Tri-Nations, it appears as if the management were looking at Jacobs as a long-term replacement.
But Jacobs’s injury has forced the management to favour a tried-and-tested combination. The Springboks’ chances of winning in Bloemfontein will have increased, as there are several advantages to starting De Villiers and Fourie as a combination.
All Blacks centre Ma’a Nonu will have his wish this Saturday, as De Villiers will be waiting for him in that first centre channel. As a formidable outside channel defender, Fourie should make De Villiers’s job simpler.
For all their perceived success in the last year the Bok midfield combo of De Villiers and Jacobs have struggled as defensive unit, poor communication being only one pitfall. Jacobs missed a number of tackles but in making a tackle he often failed to stop the attack from crossing the advantage line. Fourie has the physique to knock attacking runners back, as does De Villiers, attributes that will be needed against an All Blacks’ backline that includes the 105kg Nonu and 100kg Sitiveni Sivivatu.
On attack, the Boks now have the beef to breach the gain line, an advantage that should make the opposition suffer off the second phase. De Villiers, with his 100kg bulk, is often used to set the platform and attract multiple defenders while Fourie also takes some stopping when in possession. Both players are capable of offloading in the tackle, a feature that should further aid the Bok momentum.
Jacobs scored some spectacular tries in 2008 thanks to some great anticipation and running lines. But when defences are tight, he has battled to make an impact.
The All Blacks lapsed in the first half of the Eden Park Test, but their defence sharpened considerably in the second period and eventually won them the game. They will be focused on producing an 80-minute effort because of their inconsistency against the Wallabies.
The success of Saturday’s midfield pairing could provide Peter de Villiers with a poser. At this stage, there is no clarity on the extent of Jacobs’s groin ailment, but if Jean and Jaque rediscover the magic of 2005, Jacobs may not make the starting line-up next Saturday, fit or not.
It would be a tough decision for the management to make if they are truly considering De Villiers a non-option while he’s at Munster. They have to think of the future, but at the same time, winning the Tri-Nations is top priority.
Fourie is yet to confirm a move to French club Clermont. Will this also jeopardise his involvement in the starting line-up if he announces the move before the end of the Tri-Nations, or will the management again prize the trophy over their Bok’s future plans?
For now, we will see the best Bok midfield combination in action. Providing the forwards play to potential at the weekend and expose the All Blacks’ poor lineout, we could well see the backline producing a more consistent performance.
Seeing that success, the Bok management may find it difficult to deny players with overseas club ambitions a starting spot.
Jacobs’s injury was a blessing in disguise, as it forced the Bok coaches to reunite De Villiers and Fourie. Saturday will reveal the benefits of starting a combination that has long been feared by the Australasians.
By Jon Cardinelli, in Bloemfontein
1,166 Comments
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23 Jul 2009, 12:19 pm
#1145 grant10: Cheers, yes. Have had one from GBS and Ed too and am cheering up now!!
23 Jul 2009, 12:29 pm
#1147 carol: very cool to here!!
Off to chiro for last session at 13h30….neck and shoulder about 90 % better,,,,feeling strong …fancy a dance!!
23 Jul 2009, 12:29 pm
hear!!Sorry …and ? fterdance
23 Jul 2009, 12:37 pm
#1148 grant10: Yep after I have been to the sports injuries clinic…Honest!! Hahahah
“Runners Foot”!! Might limp a bit!
23 Jul 2009, 12:40 pm
#1150 carol: Really???? Shame man….long beach walks i tell you…thats the answer!!
23 Jul 2009, 12:49 pm
#571 grant10: You’re no fighter, just full of hot air. Your idea of fighting is arranging to have a beer with Langenhoven, the biggest naked racist that has ever posted on this site. And, of course, telling people what a wonderfully proud South African you are! What a wimp.
23 Jul 2009, 12:59 pm
#1152 Inevitable: LOL….So quick to cast stones …..
23 Jul 2009, 13:03 pm
#1152 Inevitable: Have you ever considered giving a person a piece of your heart
or always just a piece of your mind??
23 Jul 2009, 13:06 pm
#1154 grant10:
Just ignore the idiot!
23 Jul 2009, 13:36 pm
it was inevitable that this would happen…..
23 Jul 2009, 14:05 pm
#1117 Pietman: good on you Pietman, very humble of you. The verbal and racist abuse that you have had to tolerate on this site has been shocking. I hope you continue to say it as it is, despite the adverse conditions.
23 Jul 2009, 14:06 pm
My mind says to put the money on Pietman & my heart concurs.
He, along with guys like Grootblou, Superbull, Skop etc are true rugby characters and IMO actually anchor the site. To lose any of them would be a shame and a mark of how low the site has sunk.
If you really want to do something good for your country, take that motley crew (you know who they are) and go and post at “The Happy Bubble Dwellers” blog.
23 Jul 2009, 16:19 pm
Yoh, yoh, yoh things can get heated around here. I missed all of this yesterday…damn.
Anyway respect for standing your ground Grant and standing up for what you believe in…respect.
As for the criticism…it’s expected boet, a lot of people would rather congregate in a group and subscribe to one group opinion instead of being independent and critical in their thinking. Anyway I don’t want to flog a dead horse but today I think I saw South African society at a glance from all angles on this blog alone.
23 Jul 2009, 16:53 pm
#1159 Jozi: Never easy to stand up for what you believe in when the chips are down….but rather lots of people wanting to smash me than not being able to look at myself in a mirow.
23 Jul 2009, 17:31 pm
#1160 grant10: Dead right, thing is when it comes to issues such as this one, you’ll always find yourself swimming upstream but hey that’s not new territory for you. You were calling for Brussouw when everybody else was screaming schalkie’s praises everywhere.
Anyway Grant, all the best man. See ya later.
24 Jul 2009, 17:46 pm
hahaha this thread’s hilarious. Took me 2 days to go through it though as I wish I had the time to comment, but *clap* *clap* guys and gals, very entertaining indeed!
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