Bismarck content to burn off the bench
20 Sep 2011
Bismarck du Plessis admits to being frustrated with life as an impact player but is determined to excel in the role for the greater cause.
Du Plessis has been the central focus of a raging debate around the continued selection of Springboks captain John Smit. Du Plessis’ form when deployed as a second half substitute has been sublime. This has fuelled the fire of his advocates who argue that form should be the primary criteria for selection, not the intricate explanations coach Peter de Villiers has alluded to in justifying his retention of Smit.
Du Plessis is always careful not to disrespect the tutor he has so obviously surpassed in prowess, and barring the public display of frustration at being replaced in Port Elizabeth against the All Blacks, he has been an unfailingly diligent deputy. He conceded that his burning ambition is to be a starter but is also acutely aware of importance of maintaining a positive attitude and maximising his contribution, however brief it may be.
‘I don’t want to be seen as an impact player, I want to be seen as a [starting] hooker,’ Du Plessis said. ‘I’d like to start but at the moment that isn’t happening, so it is important for me to stay positive. You want to do your part but it isn’t nice to be on the bench. If any player tells you that he is lying. But Peter asked me to do a specific job off the bench for the first two games and that’s what I attempted to do (Du Plessis was omitted from the match 22 to face Namibia).’
Du Plessis has elicited praise from the global rugby fraternity, the most notable of which came from iconic All Blacks hooker Sean Fitzpatrick, who called him the world’s best hooker and marvelled at his skill set. Asked if he had paid any mind to this widespread adulation, Du Plessis said flatly: ‘The only media I read is the Weekblad and Farmers Weekly, so if what they said isn’t in there I won’t see it.’
One of the defining characteristics of the 2007 World Cup winning side was the reserve players’ refusal to let dejection set in (or at least display it publically) and poison the collective. Francois Hougaard is another who could justifiably feel aggrieved at not being a run-on starter as a wing, but he chooses to adopt the attitude of selflessness.
‘I don’t see the point in having a bad attitude about it because it will catch on,’ Hougaard said. ‘If I’m looking miserable there’ll be a negative vibe in the rest of the side. I want to start, doing that at scrumhalf is unlikely with Fourie du Preez there so wing is more likely. But we have world class wings, so my immediate focus is on making a difference and lifting the boys everytime I get on.’
The Springboks are expected to easily negotiate Namibia’s challenge on Thursday in Auckland, but Du Plessis stressed that their geographical neighbours were no pushovers.
‘I thought they played well in the first couple of matches. They aren’t the [weak] team they were in 2007 (the Boks hammered them at Newlands preceding the World Cup). Jacques Burger is playing well and the scrumhalf [Eugene] Jantjies has impressed me. As a team they keep the ball well. We’re treating this as any other match that we’re desperate to win.’
The Springboks are expected to finish top of their pool and in so doing set up an arduous path to a title defence that will likely see them play Australia and New Zealand in successive weekends. Hougaard maintained that their focus lies entirely on Namibia, but wasn’t daunted by the prospect of facing their southern hemisphere rivals.
‘I don’t like to look too far ahead but we’ll have to beat the best teams in the world to get a chance of contesting the final. That’s the expectation you come here with.’
By Ryan Vrede, in Taupo
79 Comments
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20 Sep 2011, 10:33 am
@conan wishes he was a springbok #4 locks girlfriend…(i_love_u_bakkiesbotha)-43:
Also want to see more from Deysel.
Seems a bit one-dimensional and predictable at the moment.
Want to see more from Johnson too before I’m comfortable with him becoming a stalwart in the green and gold.
As for Daniel, he’s very much like Aplon. Exceptionally talented, but question marks will always hang over him at test level because of his physical make-up.
Re the pack moving forward:
Front row will know each others’ game inside and out – Beast and Dup brothers.
Back row, likewise – Brussow and Smith are provincial flanking partners and Burger and Smith have been test compatriots since 2003.
It’s the locking pair that will need to find their feet, which is why it’s important to retain a provincial combo.
That’s why for me it should be either Elstadt and Bekker or Van Der Merwe and Kruger.
Went for Elstadt and Bekker because I think they will move around the park more and Boks need the speed as the back row I suggested – Brussow, Smith and Burger – will likely be lacking in that department.
But Boks can compensate for lack of speed in loosies with the likes of Beast, Bismark, Elstadt and Bekker in the forwards!
20 Sep 2011, 10:35 am
@puff(puff)-50: please go and sit in the corner!
20 Sep 2011, 10:37 am
@GreenLion(GreenLion)-46:
Bwahahaha … just goes to prove once again that you get lies, damn lies and then stats ..
Against Fiji js made about 5 – 6 tackles but he slipped about 3 … can’t recall the Wales game so well, but recall that he slipped 1 or 2 in that game as well.
Does being to slow to get into possition and therefore not been able to lay a hand on the person count as a miss tackle? If someone tackles a player and he falls into you, does that count as a tackle for you?
Bismarks lineout throwing is just about on par with js … smits 1st throw on Sat was not in straight, but the ref did not blow it, agaist Wales one was not in straight and one missed the jumper … lets give smit the kudos agaist Bismark for lineout feeds by a ball hair, simply because Bismark outshines him by a mile in all other areas.
I do not include scrums because that is very reliant on the props and locks and difficult to judge the hookers contribution or non contribution.
Boggles my mind that we will settle for 60 – 70% efficiency and intensity for 60 min of the game and them get all exited that for the last 20 min or so we can increase a notch or two when the subs come on, when we can operate at close to 90 – 100% for the whole 80min if the correct players start, and the subs who come on can maintain it.
20 Sep 2011, 10:42 am
@Staal(Staal)-52:
Only if Jessica Biel, Mila Kunis and Rosario Dawson sit there with me!
20 Sep 2011, 10:57 am
@Paws(Paws)-53: Write a strongly worded letter to espnscrum then!
H Smit 0/0 0 0/3/4 10 0 0 3 1 7/0 0/0 0 0/0
www dot espnscrum dot com/statsguru/rugby/match/93472 dot html
20 Sep 2011, 11:30 am
this will be Bismarck’s last world cup chance i think, pity he’s not getting the shot he deserves… we can only hope that this is just the pool stage strategy and Bismarck will start for the knock-out games.
20 Sep 2011, 11:34 am
Fitzpatrick should be the last to talk as he also kept better hookers out the team on similiar reasons to Smit..Likes of Norm Hewiit,Matt Sexton & a young Anton Oliver were better players in last 2 yrs of Fitzpatrick career
20 Sep 2011, 11:42 am
@fantasticbarnsmell(fantasticbarnsmell)-56:
Nonsense.
He will be 29 in 2015.
That said – Ralepelle, Strauss, Liebenberg, Fourie, Maku, Burden.
Some fantastic depth at hooker there for SA.
What’s interesting is not too long ago we seemed to have so many options at scrumhalf.
But now Sarel Pretorius is going to the Waratahs of all places.
Fourie Du Preez is heading to Japan.
And Ruan Pienaar is woefully off the boil.
Only Hougaard stands out and he is playing most of his rugby at wing at the moment.
20 Sep 2011, 11:45 am
3, 5 and 9 a bit of a worry re depth moving forward.
Although Oosthuyzen at tighthead is encouraging.
And Jannie is finally coming into his own.
The great news is the depth at 10 that’s coming through.
And, in Johann Sadie and Juan De Jongh, we finally have decent options to compete with the great but ageing Jacques Fourie at 13.
20 Sep 2011, 11:49 am
@puff(puff)-58: ya i know his age will be within range, but as you said there’s plenty of challengers to the position and him sustaining form is not a given.
20 Sep 2011, 11:51 am
Bizzie is 26/27
With the amount of time he has spent on bench ova the yrs he stands to have a long career as his body hasn’t taken punishment as much ala Danie Rossouw.
He will be aound nxt wc IF he doesn’t leave
20 Sep 2011, 11:57 am
@GreenLion(GreenLion)-55:
I’ll have too … H Smit???
I hope they were at the right game atleast . hahaha
20 Sep 2011, 11:59 am
regarding the future, what do you guys think of Frans Steyn? future at 12 or 15?
20 Sep 2011, 12:06 pm
@fantasticbarnsmell(fantasticbarnsmell)-63:
12.
Jaco Taute, Riaan Viljoen and Lionel Cronje for 15.
20 Sep 2011, 12:20 pm
@puff(puff)-51:
Post Wc
1.Beast
2.Bismark
3.Jannie
4.Flip
5.Bekker
6.Brussow
7.Smith (c)
8.Spies
9.Hougaard
10.Lambie
11.Mvovo
12.F.Steyn
13.Fourie
14.JP
15.Aplon
16.Chilli
17.Oosthuiyzen
18.Alberts
19.Burger
20.Pienaar
21.De Jongh
22.Sadie
20 Sep 2011, 12:31 pm
@mshiniwami(mshiniwami)-65:
There or thereabouts.
I wouldn’t have Ruan Pienaar anywhere near the Bok team though.
The most hyped-up and over-rated player I have ever seen.
Never mind JP Pieterson looking disinterested on the field, Pienaar never seems to have his heart in it if you ask me.
20 Sep 2011, 14:26 pm
Bismarck is an absolute animal. He wasn’t tackling Fijians, he was throwing them.
20 Sep 2011, 14:41 pm
@puff(puff)-66:
i agree I dont rate Pienaar myself,unibrow is the most overrated mentally weak player to ever put on a Bok jumper..Makes Gaffie look like a King Leonatis.
But I rate error prone Pretorius even more & dont even mention McCleod,Duvenage etc Waiting to see how Vermaak revives his career at Bulls
20 Sep 2011, 14:46 pm
@mshiniwami(mshiniwami)-68: didn’t he also go to Grey College? confidence issues galore
20 Sep 2011, 15:00 pm
@mshiniwami(mshiniwami)-68:
I have had a strong distaste for Pienaar since 2008. He had promise but he has proven he isn’t up to it. Boks were shunting the Fijians scrum with such ease yet he still was under pressure. He literally just sat there staring at the ball. The next ruck he does the same thing, ball gets turned over and the Fijians nearly score. He looks like he is sulking whilst he plays.
He is purely there to fill in for Butch and won’t play a crucial part. Sarel should have his spot.
20 Sep 2011, 15:04 pm
@mshiniwami(mshiniwami)-65:
Where’s Gutro? How old is he now?
20 Sep 2011, 15:07 pm
@mshiniwami(mshiniwami)-65:
Not sure I agree with Juan as captain.
He is most likely at the moment, but maybe we have an opportunity to groom a new captain over the next 4 years.
20 Sep 2011, 15:09 pm
@Helen(Helen)-71: \
Guthro is 30 & is off to France post WC
20 Sep 2011, 15:17 pm
@mshiniwami(mshiniwami)-68: Gaffie and Leonitis. hehehehe
20 Sep 2011, 15:18 pm
Did you guys see the marching band hit the haka?
20 Sep 2011, 20:36 pm
Hey all, just come off an early morning
Skype with Snorre. He’s come up with
Quite a Radical Idea…….
20 Sep 2011, 20:42 pm
To all the Smittie fans, this is why the plonker shouldn’t even be at the WC. This is what will happen against Aus or NZ. He just can’t tackle.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zve1YKt_Ex4&feature=related
21 Sep 2011, 07:42 am
Ryan writes that Bismarck is “content to burn off the bench”…
Just about all other media outlet reports that Bismarck says he is very unhappy to be play off the bench…?
Ryan are you perhaps treating Bismarck with kid-gloves…? Massaging the truth…?
Hmmmmm…..
21 Sep 2011, 18:09 pm
5.Great White Shark said:
20 Sep 2011, 06:36 am
Bismark should start in this match for game time.
Hougaard too. Both are going to pick up injuries just because they aren’t playing enough.
“By not starting Bismarck against Namibia on Thursday, they’ve essentially wasted an opportunity to improve the side before the Samoa game and the quarter-final. You look at games like this from the point of view of how you could develop your team.”
Eddie Jones and I agree…
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