Aplon in, Bismarck out
20 Sep 2011
The Springboks have made five changes to their starting line-up to face Namibia at the North Habour Stadium in Auckland on Thursday.
In the back division Bryan Habana and Gio Aplon replace JP Pietersen and Odwa Ndungane on the wings. The latter duo are dropped from the squad completely. Francois Hougaard gets a start at his preferred position of scrumhalf, with Fourie du Preez playing off the wood.
Among the heavies, Willem Alberts starts at openside flank in place of Heinrich Brussow, whose is named among the reserves alongside another specialist fetcher, Francois Louw. CJ van der Linde earns his first start at the tournament at tighthead prop in place of Jannie du Plessis, who’ll watch from the stands.
Chiliboy Ralepelle, omitted from the 22 for the first two Tests, will get game time off the bench, while Ruan Pienaar and Juan de Jongh’s versatility means the back division are well covered.
After the victory over Fiji in Wellington coach Peter de Villiers said that he valued continuity in selection, but on Tuesday explained that he needed to rotate with a view of having a full fit squad.
‘The biggest challenge for us it to manage the players. We’ve had two bruising encounters and we have to be sensible if we want to have 30 players fit throughout the tournament. We’re getting thin in some areas, injuries are our biggest concern at this point,’ he said.
Captain John Smit acknowledged the difficulty of preparing for a match just five days after their victory in Wellington, but stressed complacency wouldn’t be a factor.
‘There are challenges every weekend, but motivation isn’t one of those. It is important for us to be ruthless. There are still a lot of areas we want to improve and if we don’t have the proper focus we won’t get what we want out of this match,’ he said. ‘This is an opportunity to carry on the journey to where we want to be and improve our standards. Having played two games here and a couple before some guys have had enough game to move towards their best form. That needs to continue.
‘In a week like this with as short a turnaround you don’t get that much field time to prepare. So the challenge is achieving perfection in the base areas of our game, the set piece and so on.’
The Springboks are expected to beat Namibia comfortably and should negotiate Samoa’s challenge without too much problems, setting up a quarter-final against Australia. Asked whether he had cast his mind ahead to that epic tussle Smit said: ‘One thing about the World Cup is that at this stage there are so many permutations floating about. If you get wrapped up in what lies ahead you may lose sight of what you want to achieve at present. We have to think a week at a time and not worry about what lies ahead.’
De Villiers was bullish when probed on the issue of Habana’s form, arguing that the former IRB Player of the Year wouldn’t have breaking the South African try-scoring record (he is the joint-highest scorer) as a central focus.
‘I don’t think people understand the ethos of this team. If you can point out one player that puts his personal interests above those of the team’s I’ll send them home immediately. There are personal goals we achieve in life and if Bryan breaks the record it will be a wonderful achievement. But what if he scores and we lose? That ultimately is no good.’
Springboks – 15 Pat Lambie, 14 Gio Aplon, 13 Jaque Fourie, 12 Frans Steyn, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Morné Steyn, 9 Francois Hougaard, 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Schalk Burger, 6 Willem Alberts, 5 Danie Rossouw, 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 CJ van der Linde, 2 John Smit (c), Gurthro Steenkamp.
Subs: 16 Chiliboy Ralepelle, 17 Tendai Mtawarira, 18 Francois Louw, 19 Heinrich Brüssow, 20 Fourie du Preez, 21 Ruan Pienaar, 22 Juan de Jongh.
608 Comments
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21 Sep 2011, 00:48 am
People disagreeing everywhere you look
Makes you wanna stop and read a book
Why only yesterday I saw somebody on the street
That was really shook
But this ol’ river keeps on rollin’, though
No matter what gets in the way and which way the wind does blow
And as long as it does I’ll just sit here
And watch the river flow
kalinichta
21 Sep 2011, 00:49 am
@ashampoopaloo(joel1yahoo)-589:
I’d love to but I can’t reach those notes unfortunately…
21 Sep 2011, 00:53 am
@whatever(whatever)-602: then do a solo
am outa here .. so long
21 Sep 2011, 01:05 am
see just how inspiring it can be
if everybody puts his ego down and has a cup of tea
with some scones and cream and marmalade
and crumpets made for three
kali spera .. kali mera .. kali nichta
21 Sep 2011, 03:05 am
@540
” only knows the theory and has never practised…his MB CHb is for bragging not actually healing people ”
@544
” an MB CHB ”
Poor old ‘Twitch’n *****’ if they only knew how much ignorance they exhibit, reveal, demonstrate everytime they distort or guess or speculate or lie when they have the ExtraTerrestrial on their ‘minds’ (and that is more OFTEN the more they are ignored), they would really not entertain that habit.
In educating them they will be mocked but it is not my fault as I simply clear up the glowing ignorance.
Firstly, you graduate with the double degree, M.B.Ch.B ( please note the upper and lower case letters and the dots/fullstops, as it is important). Observe how it vastly differs from their polluted versions too. In their smart, ‘expert’ interpretation it probably means, Master of ‘Boggerol’ and Chancer of ‘Boggerol’.
Next, once you have the degree you have to do the internship/housemanship or simply house job for, at least, a year at a state hospital(like Livingstone or GSH or Somerset etc.) before you ever qualify to be added to the medical register. This is purely, and nothing other than, seeing sick people/patients day after day after day – it is practising the discipline, medicine.
Only after this, are you allowed to go out on your own to practise clinically. To keep options of clinical involvement or research or both simultaneously, every one will get on to the register – thus seeing patients is always a requirement even though you have clerked them from 3rd year already.
N.B. You two skunks will not ever get this again so digest it, stupids.
21 Sep 2011, 03:41 am
@540
” SA has to import drs from cuba ” (sic)
I could simply say mind your own eFFin business, moron, for I owe you and anyone else F O K K O L.
Any individual has the freedom of choice in a ‘democracy’ and it was my choice not to veneer over any facade that I anticipated would result from inadequate preparedness and commitment by any group.
Instead, I choose research which I developed an inclination for at UCT and worked hard and efficiently at whilst a full-time student and employee there.
I applied for none of Harry O’s bursary monies and, on principle, refused multiple times to be capped by him too. So to whom am I indebted?
The situation will regress and deteriorate whether a 1000 ETs are there, mainly but not only because of corruption.
NO one has even earned the right to question, let alone dictate to, me about some other group’s monumental national flaws that are sure to cause untold misery which again I will have to work to eradicate on my return.
You should raise your concerns with the image in your mirror, first and foremost, and then seek out your paramount chief and other chiefs and all the way down to your ‘induna’ with regards your foreign doctors question.
This is not a discussion it is an emunciation so it ends at the fullstop.
21 Sep 2011, 03:46 am
@ET.(ET.)-605:
The stars have messed up the ” Twitch’n B i t c h “
21 Sep 2011, 03:54 am
Your threads are just as boring as the now mostly boring RWC games.
Bring on the real rugby that will be found in the KO stages.
These pool games are mostly gross mismatches (83-7) or uninteresting games like USA-Russia, Romania – Georgia or many, many more such like.
Future WCs should have no more than 10 participating teams.
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