Burger’s better than ever
16 Dec 2010
JON CARDINELLI, writing in SA Rugby magazine, says Schalk Burger has refined his game to become the complete loose forward.
‘My ribs are bladdy sore,’ Schalk Burger confided after the Currie Cup final press conference at Kings Park.
He shrugged when probed on the severity of the injury, and how it would affect his Grand Slam tour prospects. He wasn’t optimistic.
Thirty-three minutes into the first half, the immovable Burger had clashed with the irresistible Willem Alberts. As the Western Province captain struggled to his knees, he clutched his chest. His hand surveyed the damage while the asphyxiating pain confirmed the worst. Burger needed to make a call.
It was one of those defining moments where a player’s true character is revealed. Charl McLeod’s chip, Pat Lambie’s linebreak and Alberts’ bone-crunching hit on Burger would all go down in history as game-changing moments. Burger’s decision to play the remaining 47 minutes with a broken rib, however, would be career-defining. The decision encapsulated a commitment to not only his chosen team, but his chosen profession too.
Most players would have stayed down. The Sharks had raced to a 23-3 lead and were beating WP in all facets of the game. There was also the Grand Slam tour to consider. If Burger stayed down, the risk of further injury would diminish. The chances of featuring on that tour would improve.
Burger got up. Two minutes after his altercation with Alberts, he scored a try for the visitors. WP set up a drive from the lineout, and Burger took it upon himself to place the ball over the line. It was another painful decision that would result in a pile of bodies pressing his broken rib into the Kings Park turf, but it was a decision that led to seven points for his team right before half-time.
Pain for pleasure has always been an acceptable exchange as far as Burger’s concerned. The Bok flanker consistently concedes his pound of flesh for the South African cause. He set the standard for commitment in his breakout year, and at 27, he is South Africa’s benchmark yet again.
There have been countless tales about the cult figure aligned to Chuck Norris, stories that are rooted in fact and fiction. Burger doesn’t wear protective gear, and while his coaches brag about his high pain threshold they’re secretly afraid that he may push himself to the point of serious injury. When you pick Schalk Burger, you know what you’re getting, but you have to live with the fact that sooner or later he’s going to push himself too far.
His mortality was confirmed in 2006, when a neck injury sidelined him for the whole season. Since then, he’s struggled with incessant leg injuries as well as a few rib problems incurred through some overly robust play. Then there was the suspension for eye-gouging in the second Test against the British & Irish Lions that cast his reputation as a hard but fair player into doubt. It was an incident that would force him to alter his approach ahead of the 2010 season.
While he’s maintained that incurably abrasive attitude and a perseverance that sometimes borders on sadomasochism, Burger has refined his game. His perennial strengths have undoubtedly contributed to his standing as the Boks’ best player in the past season, but his improved decision-making and discipline has allowed him to evolve beyond the role of breakdown bully. The new and improved Burger is the complete loose forward.
‘I used to be pretty fiery as a youngster,’ he remembers with a smile, ‘but I’ve learnt to deal with the on-field pressure. It certainly is something that comes with experience, and the injuries and suspension last year also afforded me a lot of time to reflect. Something had to change. I’m happy to say that I’ve cut out the nonsense and concentrated on the rugby.’
It’s a simple statement laced with deeper meaning. Burger never gives much away during an interview, and his laid-back manner lends itself to the perception that he doesn’t take his rugby too seriously. But his feats between the four white lines challenge that perception, not least of all the decision to play on with a broken rib in the Currie Cup final. While his off-field persona used to be in direct contrast with the rabid beast hurling itself into the opposition every Saturday, Burger has started to apply some intelligence and temperament to his performances. His power now has a purpose.
‘In a Springbok team that wasn’t firing, he was outstanding this season,’ says Bok assistant coach Gary Gold. ‘Schalk falls into the category of a responsibility-taker. He hunts for the ball, he constantly looks for work to do. He’s always had a phenomenal work-rate, as I remember doing an analysis where he made 70 positive contributions in a match; that’s an incredible stat if you realise that the ball is only in play for 40 minutes.
‘But since he was awarded the Stormers captaincy at the beginning of the year, he’s been a better player. He’s really improved his discipline over the past 12 months.’
Gold recalls when Burger first arrived on the Test scene.
‘He had a tendency to push the boundaries and picked up the odd yellow card or two. He’s got better in recent years, and the Stormers captaincy has made a difference to the way he’s approached the game in 2010. You can see that he’s using all his experience when making the decision of when to push the boundary, and when to leave the ball alone. When you add all of those good decisions up, it’s not hard to understand why he was nominated as one of the [South African] players of the year.’
Burger’s journey back to his fearsome best and beyond has been gradual. He’d finished the 2009 season behind Heinrich Brüssow in the back-row pecking order, so he couldn’t afford to be complacent in the subsequent Super 14. Even when Brüssow was ruled out with a season-ending knee injury, Burger continued to gather momentum for what would be an unforgettable period. From the Stormers’ first tour match against the Western Force, Burger’s performances improved dramatically. He’s missed fewer tackles, made some momentum-shifting hits and boasted a gain line average of 90%. He also began to display some neat touches in other areas of his game; his linking play contributing largely to the Stormers’ new attacking brand.
‘Schalk’s an exceptional passer of the ball,’ notes Gold. ‘Teams still use him as the primary ball-carrier from the lineout, but his ability to make those sharp offloads once he hits the line makes him doubly dangerous. Some loose forwards are predictable in the way they tuck the ball under the arm, but Schalk will keep defenders guessing.
‘His improvement in this area is not as much down to the law change as it is to the way [Stormers/WP coach] Allister Coetzee and [WP senior professional coach] Rassie Erasmus have used him in that set-up. The law changes have played into Schalk’s hands, as attacking players who like to carry the ball have become more prominent. He’s made some fantastic contributions such as the Hail-Mary pass in the Currie Cup semi-final [which led to a try for Francois Louw] and even the offload from their signature lineout move culminated in a Bryan Habana try.’
Gold is referring to the law change which prescribes that the first defender makes the tackle before the second defender competes for possession. It’s necessitated a revision in roles for men like Burger, especially on defence. On attack, he can often be found in the wider channels where his underrated passing skills and sharpened decision-making are utilised to the team’s benefit.
‘The attacking side is favoured this season, so I’ve had more opportunities to have a go,’ Burger says. ‘I started working on my running lines and offloading a lot more in 2007, and it became a big feature of my game. I’ve played more of a linking role at the Stormers than at the Boks this year because my responsibilities differ and the game plans differ.’
Along with the Bulls, the Stormers were the quickest to adapt to the new law interpretations in the 2010 Super 14. Burger, Louw and Duane Vermeulen comprised the tournament’s form loose trio, blending traditional physicality with modern guile and innovation. Though Burger and Louw were called up to the national squad after the Super 14, the Bok pack was unable to replicate the feats of the Stormers. In fact, the Boks were badly beaten by the All Blacks and Wallabies in the forward exchanges.
Nevertheless, Burger’s performances in Australasia and during the home leg of the Tri-Nations commanded respect. The Boks finished the tournament in last place with team morale at a low, but when Burger returned to WP, his skills were again exploited to full effect. He captained the side to the domestic final, and while WP fared horribly in the decider, not enough credit was given to Burger in the aftermath.
There’s a perception that Burger’s not the player he once was. He was such a dominant force during the 2004 and 2005 Test seasons, but the neck injury of 2006 proved a big setback and some argued that he’d never again carry that game-changing clout.
While Burger plateaued in 2008 and failed to improve in 2009 due to a string of injuries and suspension, 2010 has been different. This was a year where he finally evolved to the point where he can offer the Boks various options should they ever embrace a multi-dimensional game.
And if he gets knocked down, he’ll get up and play on. He won’t make any outrageous public promises about dying on the field for the Springboks; he’d rather let his trademark physicality underscore a fierce pride and commitment to his team. What more could a coach, and indeed a rugby-mad country, ask for?
– This first appeared in the December issue of SA Rugby magazine.
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117 Comments
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16 Dec 2010, 22:46 pm
@Robzim :
Hey Rob!! Enjoying your Dingaan’s Day with a braai?
Enthralling night’s cricket for me last night which started with the Aus. vs Eng at 9pm which lasted ’til 3.30am and would have continued staight on to the S.A. vs. India game but for the rain.
16 Dec 2010, 22:47 pm
Burger is a total liability, stupidity is as stupidity does
mayhem to Harlem like globetrotters on ice
nowhere near the composite flank loose forward that the Boks need to retain WE trophy
We going to lose this thing due to entrusting the campaign on dead beat finito hero’s like Smit Burger and FdP
16 Dec 2010, 22:51 pm
@E.T. :
Hi man, i am in Mossel Bay, lots of the old Dingaans day supporters in this little town but it has been raining here the whole day so the braai fires are scarce.
I dont know what to make of the SA/India game, can it be the pitch or did the Indians choke against the pace and bounce of Steyn/Morkel?
16 Dec 2010, 22:54 pm
@skopiskoobidoo :
The thing is your favourite coach loves Burger/du Preez/Smit et all so they will start come hell or high water
16 Dec 2010, 22:59 pm
@Black Panther :
He has more brains than you, ya ******………are we also meant to be impressed that you have had a beer with him?
Doos!
16 Dec 2010, 23:00 pm
@Robzim : Evening Holiday Maker – Who was Dingaans? Pleasen enlighten this Pommie…..
16 Dec 2010, 23:01 pm
@Robzim :
There is rain mostly everywhere except Beaufort West it seems where the dam is 0% full.
Definitely the the greenish pitch which is pacy and bouncy and seaming and, in addition, not so fast onto the bat. Also Steyn(the real one and not like the othher 2 Stains) and Morkel bowled to plan and with discipline and mostly at the stumps.
The 2 openers were done in by the bounce and Dravid and a very good looking Tendulkar(8 fours in his 36) were done in by 2 excellent balls to be adjudged lbw.
Harba was freakishly run out off a no ball when coming for the 3rd run and his bat got stuck in the dampish soil.
Lady Luck assisted in the winning of the all important toss.
16 Dec 2010, 23:04 pm
@carol :
How’s our Saffers doing for the motherland? Although , in fairness, I have to say your home grown bowlers are essentially winning it for you.
16 Dec 2010, 23:06 pm
@carol :
Hi, not a good start to the “holiday” and Dingaan was a famous Zulu leader but that is a long story so perhaps you should google him.
I see Shane Warne is quite popular amongst the Pom women again?
16 Dec 2010, 23:10 pm
@Robzim :
I fear now, unless India can answer the 2nd knock with a magnificent score, that th mental superiority for the rest of this tour will be with the Proteas.
The questions the Indian strokeplayers will be asking must surely be; “Can we really play those pacy bouncy S.A. pitches”?
And that question will surely erode their batting confidence as it inhibits them going for those strokes to give the Proteas bowlers the upperhand in the mental stakes.
16 Dec 2010, 23:10 pm
@E.T. :
Yip, so from here on I guess India will hope and pray for more rain or otherwise they are going to be in for a long 4 days. If SA can get a lead of 150+ it should be tickets for them – Kallis will probably be the key player as usual.
16 Dec 2010, 23:10 pm
@E.T. : We bowled them out for 268. Now we are 29 for 0.
Have to say your guys are not exactly bowlers are they!!
However we are greatful for their batting!!!
16 Dec 2010, 23:11 pm
r e t a r d is banned?
16 Dec 2010, 23:13 pm
@Robzim : Well he must have done something noteable to get a Public Holiday!!
Liz Hurley seems to find old Shane Quite ‘Hot’ must be the bleached mullett!!
I like to think I would not be ‘bowled over’ quite so easily!!
16 Dec 2010, 23:13 pm
@whatever :
We know you are banned, so don’t tell us, r etard.
16 Dec 2010, 23:14 pm
Et
Did I not tell you so?
16 Dec 2010, 23:16 pm
Happy Days, I see Grant10 is back….
16 Dec 2010, 23:16 pm
Carol
Percy bowled you over with his bleached mullet.
Off his short run.
16 Dec 2010, 23:19 pm
@gunther : Fark, you are right!!
16 Dec 2010, 23:20 pm
@gunther : Actually, Percy has never had a double chin……Shane has a bleached mullet and a hamster face!
I am not keen on rodents!
16 Dec 2010, 23:22 pm
@gunther :
Be fair and say you got the best of the bowling conditions by winning that all important toss. If India won that toss the situation would be mostly reversed with protea batsmen struggling.
Dravid, Tendulkar and Harba batted well under those conditions and got out to very good balls or a run out.
First round definitely to the Proteas but their are hopefully 5 more Indian innings to come.
16 Dec 2010, 23:22 pm
ET
On another issue, I saw in an article published on RT that Tim Noakes said that it is rubbish that VO2 contributes partly to athletic performance.
What is the latest on this issue? Maybe they quoted the good Prof wrongly but as far as I know VO2 certainly must contribute to at least part of athletic performance?
16 Dec 2010, 23:23 pm
@carol :
Our dutchies are our bowlers mostly as they are big and strong and don’t so much want to play for England.
16 Dec 2010, 23:26 pm
@carol :
Shane got “it”. Thats why he bowled her over. I am not quite sure what the “it” is but according to a popular local magazine “it” is something that people like Shane, Steve Hofmeyer, David Beckham, Madonna and Jacob Zuma have.
Something about sexual IQ I think.
16 Dec 2010, 23:28 pm
@Robzim :
I saw that in the Beeld also but did not yet read it and will do so sometime soon.
That is a strange thing for Tim to say as he made a big thing about VO2 and VO2(max) in his honours course.
Just ask Willem Van der Merwe(remeber him still?).
Will definitely read the article then and pick it up with you sometime forward.
16 Dec 2010, 23:28 pm
@Robzim : I saw the article by Tim Noakes but as you know my Afrikaans is not up to much…I just thought his picture made him look like George W Bush.
V02 is a Shampoo – Alberta Balsam, for bounce and shine!
16 Dec 2010, 23:28 pm
Et
This wicket will be just as quick and bouncy over the next two days.
Our boys bowled beautifully.
Credit where it’s due.
One question though.
Can lopsy get away with bowling at 125 kmh at test level?
Tendulkar pulled him of the front foot in front of mid wicket on a helpful pitch.
16 Dec 2010, 23:31 pm
@E.T. : They possibly also do not qualify to play for England either, however much they would long to play under the Union Jack!!
16 Dec 2010, 23:33 pm
@E.T. :
Thanks, looking forward to hear your views. Willem ( a number 8, cricketer, Free Stater who studied at UCT?) – I remember vaguely but the sauvignon blanc has dulled my senses a bit
16 Dec 2010, 23:34 pm
@Robzim : Sexual IQ, is this a South African phrase?
Very few cricketers are ‘hot’ if you think about it…..Rugby and football seem to spawn far more ‘*******’!
Of your list I will only agree with David Beckham…..Madonna is a midget with gappy teeth!
16 Dec 2010, 23:35 pm
@carol : ****** = H O T T I E S.
16 Dec 2010, 23:37 pm
@carol :
Last time I heard your Afrikaans was not too bad, If my memory serves me right you even explained to Transformation the meaning of the word “kaalgat” or did he explain it to you
16 Dec 2010, 23:39 pm
@gunther :
@77
I said all those good things to Rob earlier and totally agree with you that from my viewing that Steyn and Morkel, in particular, bowled excellently using those conditions to the max.
They were the stars of the days play and if they get those conditions againand again and the Indians do not adjust then the Proteas will surely triumph.
You and I agreed not so long ago that right now S.A would wipe Aus. of the floor easily.
16 Dec 2010, 23:39 pm
@Robzim : O hell, were they dancing kaalgat in die reen?
16 Dec 2010, 23:42 pm
@carol :
Lol, Arnold Swatzeneggar also had gappy teeth and he became a Governor and Terminator or was that after he fixed his teeth?
Madonna is a blonde, so the gappy teeth dont count so much.
16 Dec 2010, 23:42 pm
@Robzim :
Yes the same Willem who played #8 and also cricket for WP.
He also played with Naas at the Bulls in the early ’80s.
16 Dec 2010, 23:43 pm
@Robzim : Robzim, how did you remember that?
Is Kaalgat something edible, I can’t remember now…..Can Tranise talk Afrikaans?
16 Dec 2010, 23:43 pm
@Boerboel :
I hope not but with these English women you never know
16 Dec 2010, 23:44 pm
@Boerboel : Hi Boerbeol….I know that song….so Kaalgat is not edible is it!!
Must have mixed it up with something else!! Hehehehh
16 Dec 2010, 23:46 pm
@carol : Depends how you define edible! I might think in certain circumstances it might be “edible”.
17 Dec 2010, 00:02 am
Crikey f’ng Moses can’t somebody implore this keo bunch of Burger disciples to open up a skittle sticks section so that all the pommie pom pom skittle sticking skedaddles can scoot off and skeniver about their skittling antics someplace else
Most boring pastime ever devised by man, skittle sticks, how it ever progressed from an Old bean bag of sherry shifting shenanigans to a colonialists dream of midday sun dogged madness heaven only knows. It must rate with croquette and lawn bowls as the epitome of everything spiffy about the colonialist dream team regime.
F’k its a boring heap of trash, gimme tiddly winks or ten pin bowling any day of the week over that bleached bland pommiearsed pragmatical paraphernalia they call ‘cricket’ old chap.
17 Dec 2010, 00:03 am
Crikey f’ng Moses can’t somebody implore this keo bunch of Burger disciples to open up a skittle sticks section so that all the pommie pom pom skittle sticking skedaddles can scoot off and skeniver about their skittling antics someplace else
Most boring pastime ever devised by man, skittle sticks, how it ever progressed from an Old bean bag of sherry shifting shenanigans to a colonialists dream of midday sun dogged madness heaven only knows. It must rate with croquette and lawn bowls as the epitome of everything spiffy about the colonialist dream team regime.
Goeie genade its a boring heap of trash, gimme tiddly winks or ten pin bowling any day of the week over that bleached bland pommiearsed pragmatical paraphernalia they call ‘cricket’ old chap.
17 Dec 2010, 00:05 am
Still he has been dethroned. Keo drop your suck any WP players balls biased bullsh1t reporting….and this from a weepee fan.
He tackles and tackles well but he does not pass or create space(let alone chip), he harldy ever pilfers and he is way too upright.
Will he be Jon Smit, playing well after his prime as better players get shut out from playing due to the Old boois club. This sums up our rugby, Alberts should have been a bok at least 2 years ago but he like many other better players will not get the nod from the club.
Habadonna, Smit, Stain, Rossouw, Fdp, Jannie etc…should be thinking about pastures as younger and better skilled players are knocking on the door of the old school.
17 Dec 2010, 00:06 am
double doses, jammer om te pla, maar skittle sticks is nie n mans se sportsoort, enige menier om te probeer kyk nie.
17 Dec 2010, 00:14 am
Burger, FdP and Smit will be the reason it is lifted yet again, whether it be a starting role or off the bench, i am sure they will be happy to fullfill any role and their exp should bring what Os and Purse did with the last one.
Thats why i like PdV no stupid, knee-jerk reactions. If they fit they will tour. Tho i personally believe Bismark must start. Also be interesting to see how effective Brussow is when he returns from injury.
17 Dec 2010, 00:16 am
its coming home, its coming home, rugbys ellisbeker’s coming home again.
17 Dec 2010, 00:20 am
they must just leave these walking wounded geriatrics on the bench, they can come do a little cameo performance of messiah type heroics once all the proper hard yards are well and truly done and dusted, then Burger, Smitty darling and mama’s dearest FdP can come prance around for a few laps of honor, but it’ll have to be the real McCoy ouens that get the job done that do the damage thats necessary otherwise that trio of pandering pantoffels will stuff it all up to kingdom come.
17 Dec 2010, 00:23 am
thats right one more rendition of Ave Maria, from the legends, their final swansong where they bust a valve, they’ll be singing to the champs from Gliese581g
17 Dec 2010, 00:24 am
@E.T. : LOL good memory !! I suppose I am bias re Schalk , the thing is he has shown a complete different side to his play this year , the s14 try of the year was the one that Habana scored against the Chiefs by the Stormers , Schalk Burger handled the ball more than once in that move if memory serves me correct.
As for Lambie , I was not here to witness the game and the handoff (was overseas for a few weeks) but it became known afterwards that Schalk had in fact broken his rib a few mins earlier in the game and this affected his game play , he should not have continued playing in my opinion actually.
As for back in the day , look just thinking back I remember against the Aussies for instance in one game where Habana scored 2 tries with one from our own tryline after they spilled the ball , look at the clip on youtube I think , u will see Schalk chasing the spilled ball , scooping it up , running a little and drawing the man and then pass the ball for Habs to run and score a great try.Schalk burger is Koning lol!!
Buuuut Jaa , u are correct though , I am very bias re Schalk so maybe not the best person to pass comment lol
PS – U cannot dispute though that this year for the Stormers he has changed his game and done it extremely well.
17 Dec 2010, 00:35 am
if ever there were 2 players excessively overrated its Schalk Burger and John Smit, with FdP making up the trio of legendary darlings, if Boks go and place all their eggs in this trio’s basket they gonna come out of WC 2011 with egg yolk all over their faces.
younger more agile players will eat these 3 for breakfast, lets hope somebody sees the realism from the fiction before we get to the quarters (and hoping we don’t cough it all up before then)
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