Van Zyl tortures bumbling Boks
4 Dec 2010
JON CARDINELLI reports on the Barbarians’ comprehensive 26-20 win over South Africa at Twickenham on Saturday.
The result will be sweet for Nick Mallett and Alan Solomons, the South African duo that orchestrated a win over the All Blacks in 2009. It was also a massive occasion for the two South Africans in black and white hoops, Anton van Zyl producing a match-winning display at the lineout and Quintin Geldenhuys scoring an important second-half try.
The Barbarians were expected to spurn conservative tactics and hold true to expansive traditions. While they lived up to their expansive billing, their tactics suggested beating the world champions was more important that putting on a show.
The win was forged on a powerful set-piece, with the BaaBaas bossing the scrums and disrupting the Bok lineout. Van Zyl and Chris Jack used their experience of the South African game to make some important turnovers, and were often assisted by the tourists’ lack of precision.
The Boks struggled to keep possession, and when they did build through the phases, unforced errors stalled their momentum. The BaaBaas punished them through some penetrative counter-attacks and used the boot cleverly to further fracture the Bok defence.
Defence has been a problem for the Boks in 2010, one the new players at Twickenham failed to rectify. Barbarians centres Ma’a Nonu and Adam Ashley-Cooper racked up the linebreaks, breezing through the South African midfield with frightening ease.
While the Barbarians were expansive, they played with a lot of structure. Their first try was the product of a clinical build-up, Will Genia slipping a neat inside ball to Drew Mitchell. Their next two scores were achieved from turnover ball, a wayward Bok lineout and a breakdown steal culminating in tries for the make-up team.
Surprisingly, they opted to shoot for goal when awarded a penalty in the dying minutes of the first half. James O’Connor pushed the attempt wide, but the decision to kick said a lot for the desire to win, especially since they were 19-3 ahead.
Some great anticipation by Odwa Ndungane got South Africa back into the contest, an intercept try and subsequent conversion reducing the deficit to nine. The momentum began to swing in the tourists’ favour, although a number of attacking opportunities were wasted through breakdown mistakes.
They brought a physical attitude to Twickenham, but missed the accuracy that destroyed England last week. They battled to train in the build-up to this fixture, and their performance reflected the fact. Francois Hougaard produced a determined individual showing, but neither he nor Elton Jantjies had much ball to work with.
As the clock wound down, the Boks grew more frantic. Beast Mtawarira boosted the scrum when he replaced a disappointing Coenie Oosthuizen in the second half, while the Boks found some parity at the lineout. But turnovers at the tackle point were exacerbated by rolling punts downfield. If there was a stat for metres conceded, the Boks would have conceded plenty.
In the 57th minute, Jantjies missed his second penalty attempt of the night, pushing a relatively simple shot wide. He also missed a tackle on Neemia Tialata, which allowed the All Blacks prop to set-up a try for the South African-born lock, who currently plays for Mallett’s Italy, Qunitin Geldenhuys. It proved to be the telling blow.
Bakkies Botha and Bandise Maku scored late tries, but the final scoreline flattered the visitors. The fact that they missed four kicks at goal shouldn’t detract from the fact that they played poorly. The BaaBaas deserved to win, and even more disappointingly, little was learned about the fringe Boks in a match that was meant to serve as a great opportunity before a World Cup year.
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766 Comments
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5 Dec 2010, 16:52 pm
Unfortunately it’s thre season and not the REASON that prevails.
Beware the ominous profundity in that.
5 Dec 2010, 16:52 pm
@youknowwho : Well if that ceiling is a humble janitor’s then Heaven help the Boks…
The problem is, it seems ole Dippy Divvy – Mr. 45% win record, isn’t even doing that…
Yippeekayay Mofo…
5 Dec 2010, 16:54 pm
Really got to go.. ciao
5 Dec 2010, 19:01 pm
@PdV_The_Greatest_Coach_of_all_time_The_MohammedAli_of_Rugby_Coaches : Yip, Plum will have to (along with the Stormers and Bulls) get the guys back into shape, work on their handling, work on their cohesion, remind Lambie how to be a 10 again, reteach and refine backline play and hopefully start to dictate more this year with ball in hand, on boot and in backs.
Not only PDV but all SA Boks coaches have sent players home after EOYT unfit and off form.
Seems to do more harm than good.
5 Dec 2010, 19:18 pm
@goyougoodthing2 : Glad you included PDV in the same club of mediocre bok coaches… Thats what he initially set out to achieve.. He knows that he has underachieved but that is generally what is expected out of Bok coaches… they are only expected to win one tournament every 4 years. I think its called the RWC..
5 Dec 2010, 19:23 pm
Did I shut down teh site again.. The almighty shaun is back!!!!… beating my chest.. its the Gorrilla (Guerilla) in me.. Whooah
feeling a bit charged up.. just shared an expensive bottled of champers with the missus over dinner
5 Dec 2010, 19:51 pm
@youknowwho : Well he’s about as good as the worst we have had, in fact there were worse I think but the case here is only different because at the time of his appointment it ‘appeared’ that there was a much better candidate.
Which it does seem is true given Hoskin’s moronic statement about rugby not being the only factor. I blame the guys that voted him in as much as I do him for his performance.
I hold him accountable for his 2 assistants, Hoskins and co accountable for PDV appointment and ultimately the entire board for electing Hoskins and co who may have a sack but no one has found any evidence of testicles.
Bleh
5 Dec 2010, 19:58 pm
@goyougoodthing2 : Wrong mate.. PDV is the best of the kak that have always been available.. Meyer needed( Proberbly wanted) a 5 year plan as Bok coach.. PDV was up an running in year 1. He is now wondering what the fuss was all about and has decided to dumb down.. Springbok coaches are expected to have maximum ability.. no minimums mate. Ground zero is always OK
5 Dec 2010, 20:02 pm
@cab : It’s not a test match but it IS nevertheless a defeat. Seven defeats in one season.
5 Dec 2010, 20:51 pm
@youknowwho : We can agree to disagree. I think he’s the wrong side of ****
5 Dec 2010, 21:12 pm
@goyougoodthing2 : You can disagree mate.. but that is your problem.. I am never wrong
6 Dec 2010, 09:11 am
Great game Anton! Hope PDV was watching?
Hearing all the bull about it not being test, so it was OK to put out a weaker team. In my book when that green and gold jersey goes on the park, it is representing the nation and therefore should be the strongest possible team. Young players do not get very much out of a game where they do not have the old heads to keep them right, again, the mix was wrong.
6 Dec 2010, 09:56 am
@goyougoodthing2 : Considering the purchases the Sharks, it seems Lambie will be no15 next season.
Both Lambie and Jantjes had a wake-up call in this last game. Neither are test-match ready. Whether they’ve been broken now depends on how their S15 coaches handle them next season. Could be valuable experience, or could be career-breakers (ala Gaffie and Ruan.)
Considering the quality of players in the Barbarians side, I’m actually quite happy with how it ended. These fringe players of ours have now experienced some of the best players they will probably meet next year in the WC. If our coaching staff have any brains, they would have had individual talks with each of these players after the game, telling them where they have to improve. I think each player’s faults were glaringly obvious. It all comes down to them now.
If you consider the come-back after the first 20-minutes… they weren’t actually that bad. (Except Hargreaves… I don’t see a test-future for him. He was the only player who went from bad to worse in that game.)
6 Dec 2010, 10:05 am
@Grizz : Like was side a few months ago… until the World Cup is cancelled, and teams are no longer measured according to that tournament, I’d disagree with you. Yeah, I feel these fringe players should have played against Scotland.
The result was surprising, but the old guys seemed fatigued in the end. Considering the conditions, a youthful (adrenaline pumped) group would probably have done better against that team. But what’s done is done.
Besides, the worst thing that could have happened in Saturday’s game was that some of our experienced players could have been injured, and missed out on the S15. That would have left them undercooked for the World Cup.
I don’t like PdV or his two cronies, but the team-choice for the this final game was spot-on. What failed us was a lack of game-time together. Would have been nice if they had a mid-week game earlier in the tour.
6 Dec 2010, 15:06 pm
This report is almost completely negative and untrue.
The weather was terrible – it was FREEZING. I would have to have to play a game in that weather.
Coenie and Elton had their FIRST Bok games in those conditions (a first game is a big occasion for any player, nevermind a team having 2 debutants on, in those conditions with a new Captain).
Coenie will be disapointed in his performance but he will improve and become a great prop. Os will help him along.
The ref was shocking in the 2nd half – to both sides. But the build-up to Geldenhuys’ try contained at least 2 blatant errors, one being when the ball went forward popping out from the ruck.
The did let themselves down with the knock-ons, and the 1st half was disappointing, but it was to be expected to a degree with such a new team.
Hougaard was terrible I felt, the aimless kicking once again being used to maximium effect to give away Bok possession.
Jantjes was great – little no-look passes and some much-needed variation in the Bok game. Once the players have played together a bit more, those kinds of sneaky moves will have a great impact on the backline.
As Lambie missed simple kicks, so did Jantjes. Hell, even Morne missed relatively easy kicks on this tour! Lambie was very good at fullback.
I was disappointed for the boys’ sakes, and with the 1st half, but when they settled they looked good against a World 15 that had a backline that knew each other very well, while a lot of ours had never played together or in different combinations.
It was not all bad, and not bad at all
6 Dec 2010, 15:32 pm
@skopiskoobidoo : You must be related to Grant.Only explanation for your unwarranted obsession with him.
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