Frans blow for Boks
1 Oct 2011
Frans Steyn has sustained a serious shoulder injury and will play no further part in the Springboks’ World Cup campaign.
Steyn was clutching at his shoulder towards the end of Friday’s physical battle with Samoa. Head coach Peter de Villiers refused to comment on injuries right after the game, but on Saturday morning, he was in a despondent mood,
‘Frans is likely to go home,’ De Villiers said. ‘The doctor will confirm that it’s 100% later this morning, but at the moment it’s 95% that he’s on his way home, and that is a big blow for us.
‘I was lying awake [last night thinking about who to call in as a replacement]. We will still have to make a few calls and see.’
The obvious replacement for Steyn at No 12 is Jean de Villiers, and the Boks are further covered in the position considering the prodigiously talented Juan de Jongh is in the squad of 30.
What De Villiers, De Jongh and even a player like Morne Steyn lack is the ability to kick penalties from 65m out. The Boks will also miss Frans Steyn’s line kicking game, as well as his ability to slot in at flyhalf, centre, wing or fullback if the situation demands it.
There were bound to be a few injury concerns following such a brutal contest with the Samoans, but Peter de Villiers moved to play down the ailments of Bryan Habana, JP Pietersen and Francois Hougaard.
‘All those guys have got battle scars, but we hope that they can recover to take their places this coming week.
‘I don’t know what’s wrong with us. When we get injuries, we get them in one position. We’ve had problems at lock [during this tournament], and yesterday we lost three wings. So when Lady Luck turns her back on us, she turns it properly.’
De Villiers said that he was happy with the way Danie Rossouw and Victor Matfield performed as a second row combination, and hinted that this pair will front the Aussies in the quarter-final. For the moment, Bakkies Botha won’t be risked until he’s absolutely ready.
‘Do we really need him at 50 %, the way he is, or do we need him at 100%? Rather give him more time.
‘Danie is going very well and we’ve got Johann [Muller] who is properly healed, he will be in the mix this coming weekend. So to have Bakkies back is a soothing thought for me.’
The injury situation aside, the Bok coach said that the team had done everything they had set out to do at the beginning of the tournament.
De Villiers believes that winning ugly is still winning, and doesn’t think that the narrow wins against Wales and Samoa have shown the Boks to be off the pace when compared to the Wallabies and All Blacks.
‘When we won in Wellington by one point, we achieved what we came here to do, which is win games. A lot of people call it winning ugly, but it’s uglier if you don’t win. We scored 160 points for and 22 against [in four pool games]. That’s a difference of [about] 140 points so we came through quite well.
‘Our first goal is now achieved, we’re through the pool stage. We could have lost yesterday and could have been sent home, so to come through against Samoa is an achievement.’
By Jon Cardinelli, in Auckland
151 Comments
Pages: [1] 2 3 4 » Show All
30 Sep 2011, 23:26 pm
This has got to be the worst news of the day.
30 Sep 2011, 23:27 pm
And that’s all she wrote, huge loss!
Oh well…
30 Sep 2011, 23:29 pm
Major disappointment. Frans played well and is always a threat. It is sad that every time we play Samoa our biggest worry is injury. Samoa played like thugs today and they are not worthy of admiration. I watched the game again and the niggle was continuous and the pathetic referee missed a lot of it. He overlooked the continuous off the ball play and yet found a way to punish Smit for a knock on. The Boks know how to play with intensity and the Tri-Nations is always played like that – but without the thuggishness of a team (Samoa) who seem to have no other answers. Nothing brave and admirable about the posers in Blue today.
30 Sep 2011, 23:30 pm
We will still beat the Aussies but will struggle against NZ. We lost bekker, Juan and now steyn. They’re the equivalent of Thorn, Kaino and Nonu for NZ.
Time for perspective is… Now
30 Sep 2011, 23:36 pm
Well this is a serious blow for SA.
His massive goal kicking range has been a genuine threat and has likely kept a loose lid on some of the tactics of the other teams.
30 Sep 2011, 23:37 pm
@WhatIf(WhatIf)-3:
Do we know what caused the injury?
30 Sep 2011, 23:42 pm
I agree with you whatif #3 i thought the samoans were more interested in trying to smash the boks phyisically than trying to beat them playing rugby.Every time they play the boks it is always the same it is as if they are saying if we cannot beat the boks we will injure them i think they are the dirtiest team at the world cup and i am glad they are out.
30 Sep 2011, 23:43 pm
Samoa played very, very physically but were not one iota more “thuggish” than the standard physicality of the Boks, which is a source of pride for them. If you want to dish it out, be ready to take it, pilgrims.
Frans’s absence radically changes everyone else’s game plan because as good a kicker as what Morne is, he lacks the range to punish you from 60m+ out like Frans can. Now opponents can infringe with relative impunity inside the Boks’ half and only have to behave in their own half.
30 Sep 2011, 23:45 pm
@NoRugbyGuru_0_(RugbyGuru_0_)-4: Wallabies have beaten the Boks home and away, two out of two, earlier this year. They’re far more skilled and 100 times better coached than SA.
30 Sep 2011, 23:48 pm
Ag tackles, don’t talk fiction with me. We played our 2nd stringers in the 1st test away from home against Aussies and had fark all match fitness in the 2nd test.
Did you forget how we blew the wallabies off the park in the 1st 40 min in the 2nd test?
30 Sep 2011, 23:50 pm
Horrible news.
Was always worried someone crucial was going to get injured against the over-physical samoans.
And Zinzan Brooke had predicted Samoa to top Pool D. What a k0nt
30 Sep 2011, 23:51 pm
@blueboy(blueboy)-7:
Interesting view that.
I recall comments in years past from supporters along the lines that Carter and McCaw specifically, would be dished up injuries by the Boks just as they had in previous encounters.
30 Sep 2011, 23:51 pm
@Brads(Brads)-6: Fair point. I will need to watch the second half again to see where it could have happened. My point is that it is surprising that the Bokke have not suffered more injuries like this due to the unrestrained (and often illegal) aggressive play of the Samoans.
30 Sep 2011, 23:52 pm
tackler why don`t you put your head between your legs and kiss your arse,the samoans are not hard phyisically legally,there is a difference between hard and dirty and if you do not know the difference then you are just another typical kiwi arsehole.
30 Sep 2011, 23:53 pm
Can anyone give me some web adresses for kiwi or ozzie rugby websites.
30 Sep 2011, 23:59 pm
Morne’ Steyn has not played badly , but would have liked to see Butch at 10 against Aussies. Can’t see it happening tho.
Aussies read us like a book with Steyn at 10 cause it is so so so predictable – he’l either kick or pass to the first receiver who would then get smashed like they do at the Bulls giving it to Wynand Olivier. Same scenario off the ruck , we’l pass to the first receiver they will be waiting to smash him.I really do fear that the Aussies know how we play and how to play against us in order to succeed.
1 Oct 2011, 00:08 am
Snorre is ‘n nar, maar een ding is seker en dit is dat hy ons sterkste span gekies het. Moet die eerste wereldbeker wees wat ek nie kan dink aan iemand wat daar hoort wat nie in die squad is nie…1995 Tiaan Strauss, 1999 Jouba en Teich, 2003 wil nie eers begin nie 2007 aanvanklik Bismarck 2011 ?? ek weet regtig nie of hul iemand hoef op te roep vir Fransie nie, enige kans Juan Smith is al reg?
1 Oct 2011, 00:09 am
@blueboy(blueboy)-15: i use http://www.rugbyheaven.co.nz
1 Oct 2011, 00:10 am
Not good news, I hope its not that serious…
Get well soon Frans
1 Oct 2011, 00:13 am
chances are that jannie might get cited, therefore it might be good idea to replace fransie with a tighthead – bj fit?
1 Oct 2011, 00:26 am
Blueboy, try: http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/
http://www.nzherald.co.nz
1 Oct 2011, 00:32 am
@blueboy(blueboy)-15:
http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-union
1 Oct 2011, 00:34 am
Bad news. There goes most of our new found attacking flare.
Habana, JPP and Jaque Fourie better get used to just chasing up ‘n unders again…
Funny, if anyone had suggested a few injuries after the Samoa game (Steyn, Habana and Hougaard) I’d have said get out of town.
1 Oct 2011, 00:35 am
@blueboy(blueboy)-14: Tackler is an ex-yarpie.
1 Oct 2011, 00:36 am
Samoan captain Mahonri Schwalger took a parting shot at shrill Welsh referee Nigel Owens as his team exited the World Cup in gallant fashion at North Harbour Stadium on Friday night.
Owens appeared to be harsh on the Samoans throughout an epic encounter won 13-5 by the defending champion Sprinboks to seal their quarterfinal qualification in top spot from Pool D.
He made a number of contentious calls against the Samoans throughout a see-sawing 80 minutes, including a crucial double-movement on wing David Lemi with the islanders hot on attack late in the second half as they launched a fabulous tilt at a comeback.
He also red-carded Samoan fullback Paul Williams for what looked to be nothing more than a slap at Boks flanker Heinrich Brussow, though he did rather balance that out soon after by yellow-carding replace South African hooker John Smit when he was penalised for a deliberate knock-down and kicked the ball away.
Still, Schwalger felt his team did not get a fair go from Owens, with the Welshman spending much of the night lecturing the Samoans over their indiscretions. His high-pitched urgings clearly did now sit well with the Taranaki hooker.
“I’m pretty disappointed,” said Schwalger after his team slumped to its second defeat in four matches. “I’m proud of the boys and they gave it all they had. The referee was pretty hard on us. There were a few calls on the field if it goes our way we probably put more points on the South Africans.”
Asked about the 70th-minute sending off of Williams after he tangled with Brussow at a ruck and then appeared to slap at the flanker as they disengaged, Schwalger repeated his assertions about Owens.
“I think the ref was pretty hard on us. A lot of the time they were slowing our ball down. He’s got be fair on us as well — give us a chance to compete. It felt like it was one-way.
“The sending-off was a little bit of acting out there as well. There was nothing in that. I thought the red card was a little bit harsh.”
Schwalger added that “even in the scrum they were cheating a little bit”, though he also said that playing the Springboks had been a special night for his team.
1 Oct 2011, 00:38 am
Bring out The Butch.
1 Oct 2011, 00:39 am
Bunch of dirty whingers.
1 Oct 2011, 00:39 am
As a neutral, both teams played hard physical rugby and it was great to watch. Everyone knows, to compete with the boks means taking them on at their own physically hard game.SA players were not innocent, in Paul Williams case, he was guilty of gamesmanship and fair play to Brussouw for trying to break that bind, but there were a few hard strikes to the back of the head. I too would feel obliged to strike someone in the face if they had sent 10+ blows my way….
No doubt some ‘antagonistic’ words came from the boks in those early scrum exchanges. The Samoan #5 exhibited his anger at these. If anything Samoa is guilty of allowing the boks ‘gamesmanship and niggle’ get the better of them – no doubt the boks went in to this game with a plan to extract discipline penalties from the volatile samoans.
It is a shame FS is gone because rugby as a spectacle will be the worse for it.
1 Oct 2011, 00:43 am
F Steyn is a huge loss. Pity.
1 Oct 2011, 00:51 am
oh well it was fun while it lasted, roll on 3N 2012
1 Oct 2011, 01:00 am
@fantasticbarnsmell(fantasticbarnsmell)-30:
Dont give up just because of F steyn loss
It may not be that bad I think he maybe ok if we reach the semis
1 Oct 2011, 01:02 am
@eddie(eddievxx)-25:
There you go- the bok fans believe the ref was against them and allowed the samoans to get away with murder but the samoans obviously see it differently and think they have drawn the short straw.
Who is wrong and who is right?
Fark knows,there are always 2 sides to any story depending on whose side you are on and true neutrals are hard to find.
So, the winner today might be a whinger next week, that is just how it goes in this stupid game.
1 Oct 2011, 01:05 am
Just surprised nobody in the Samoa camp has questioned the appointment of a welsh referee to a match that has/had almost as big a bearing on wales’ continued participation as their own game against Fiji.
Not that I think any referee would be so unprofessional in rugby.
1 Oct 2011, 01:05 am
Firstly a few things were clear.
1. Wear green jerseys forget about the white jerseys
2. Mat field is no captain
3. We will miss F steyn
4. M steyn falls apart when under pressure
5 Spies MIA Again and again and again and again.
6. Lambie getting better and better
7 Should have had Butch against Samoans
8.Fdp struggling
9. Guthro needs to start always
10 skalk and Brussow doing fine but also Spies’s job
1 Oct 2011, 01:07 am
Massive loss! Bye bye 60m penalties and sole bit of creative flair in our backline. We just better hope JDV doesn’t pull his usual RWC trick and get injured straight away because there is no Steyn waiting to replace him now.
1 Oct 2011, 01:09 am
@Tartan(Tartan)-33:
Good point, a loss for samoan means Wales should come 2nd and not play Oz
1 Oct 2011, 01:13 am
We do have the magnificent Riaan Viljoen from Griquas and Cheeetahs Super 15 that is not only an awesome attacking fullback, but also a very good long range kicker too, to replace Francois Steyn. But of course he will be ignored and only when he plays for the Sharks next year (yipee), will he get a proper look in to the Bok team, Div did pick him a couple of years ago on the eoyt, so who knows…no to Wynand Olivier!
1 Oct 2011, 01:15 am
@CoachPete(CoachPete)-34: Can’t fault any of your points there. I was most dissapointed with Morne on defense again, especially after reading an interview with him after that Wales game where he admitted he’d let himself and the team down but would work hard to rectify it.
Schalk and Brussow have a phenominal combined work-rate. If we had an 8 that actually did something we’d be asserting even more dominance on opposition teams.
FDP is really worrying. I cannot explain how annoyed I get when I see him standing at the base of our ruck and there is an opposition counter-ruck and instead of burrowing in to get the ball out quickly he stands there looking at the ref flaying his arms about. It is such a pathetic part of his game that he really needs to stamp out fast.
1 Oct 2011, 01:16 am
@Yetirat(Yetirat)-38: *flailing* his arms
1 Oct 2011, 01:18 am
@Yetirat(Yetirat)-38:
I am glad you like my 10 points especially the white jerseys We dont need to look like the poms
With Fdp i think its a bad habit he has always been presented good ruck ball by bulls and lots of times Boks and yes 100 % right he needs to secure ball before the counter ruck
Spies ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
So now Morne knows he has to start because F steyn is out , so does it motivate him ? doubt it
1 Oct 2011, 01:26 am
@CoachPete(CoachPete)-40: Don’t worry the Poms now look like the All Blacks. It’s musical jerseys
1 Oct 2011, 01:28 am
@Yetirat(Yetirat)-41:
Hey if i am the bok coach i would send Spies to Samoa and fatten him up with pig and play the samoans every day
1 Oct 2011, 01:30 am
Interesting hearing comments here that the boks had the ref against them;
I don’t support either team and enjoyed a good albeit hard game of rugby last night but the game I saw seems quite different to that most SA supporters watched:
The Welsh ref had a bad game all round and lost control of the game by about the 20minute mark.
I don’t think he was trying to get the Welsh through to the next round but it sure looked that way.
Some crucial decisions went against the Samoans – three in particular that were game breakers;
The chip and chase by Tuiailigi (sp) in the first half was knocked out of play by Pat Lambie intentionally; it was an illegal and obvious professional foul and totally ignored by ref and linesman – it possibly saved a try, and certainly should have been a very kickable penalty.
The ref should not have blown half time with Samoa hot on attack when he got in the way (as he often seems to do) and caused the breakdown of their move saving the Boks another possible try – Samoa should have been given a chance to finish the play.
The knock on by Samoa over the try-line should have been a penalty try. The try was only prevented by a player (Fourie?) slapping the arm and ball while he was technically out of play on the ground.
The red card for Williams slap (followed by a clever dive by upcoming hollywood star Hennie Brussow) was totally unjustified but was the touch judges call not the refs- I think he realised how bad a call it was and that’s why Smit was sent off a few minutes later (cos his offence wasn’t really that bad either).
As Matfield said at the end of the game the Springboks were lucky – very lucky, as they were just credited with their second undeserved win of the tournament. Better reffing probably would have had them sharing the Namibians plane home today
1 Oct 2011, 01:31 am
@Yetirat(Yetirat)-41:
Sadly for the Poms that illusion is shattered about 20 seconds after they kick off most matches.
1 Oct 2011, 01:33 am
That game was always going to be a problem for the Boks not because of the scoreline, I think most of us knew they were going to win, but the injury list and FS is a huge loss for you blokes. His ability to kick the feck outta the ball is such a dangerous weapon. JDV is a solid enough option but he hasnt played well in years.
Its never nice to see a good player go down
1 Oct 2011, 01:33 am
dammit, that’s a big blow, JDV will go back to 1st choice …
See the Samoans are still harping on about Lemi’s penalty (even though he was tackled) and Williams’s red card. Tired to SA having to bear brunt of these arrseholes who will do anything to disrupt if they cannot win normally. Apparently death threats to Nigel Owens on twitter
1 Oct 2011, 01:37 am
@NoRugbyGuru_0_(RugbyGuru_0_)-10: The Wallabies beat your FIRST stringers right in their own backyard, pilgrim. Two out of two. Looks at the scoreboard.
1 Oct 2011, 01:38 am
Funny how life is. In 07 de Villiers got injured and Frans had to step in at 12. Now Frans had the jersey, and de Villiers has to step in.
Big, massive loss. My comfort is that if we are meant to win the WC, we’ll do so without Frans.
1 Oct 2011, 01:39 am
PS: You guys see after Hougaard was knocked out? Maybe my imagination but Samoan flanker was taunting him on the ground till ref chased him away?
Did I see wrong? I thought that behaviour is seriously sh1tty
1 Oct 2011, 01:40 am
McCaw is out with a sore foot against Canada – in hindsight I believe he was always due to miss this match – nice work by the PR machine to select him in a strong ABs team to keep the media at bay, then rest him under the guise of sore foot.
Pages: [1] 2 3 4 » Show All
Have your say
You must be logged in to post a comment.