In contention for 10
5 Jan 2012
JON CARDINELLI, writing in SA Rugby magazine, assesses the candidates who will be vying for the Springbok flyhalf jersey this year.
You’d read about it in a comic book or in a sport-meets-sci-fi short story. The powers that be respond to a World Cup failure by ordering their coaches and sport scientists to build the perfect player. Deep in the catacombs of the Newlands headquarters, the eggheads utilise advanced bio-technology to extract the strengths of each South African flyhalf and assemble a composite capable of spearheading a new breed of Springboks.
This hybrid possesses the boot of Morné Steyn, the vision of Ruan Pienaar, the cool composure of Pat Lambie and the innovation of Elton Jantjies. He has Butch James’s defensive belligerence, as well as Johan Goosen’s rare ability to nail long-range penalties. Rejoice all ye faithful South African supporters, for at long last we have manufactured the perfect 10.
It’s a fantastical scenario, but you’d be forgiven for thinking it’s going to take a laboratory experiment or even a radioactive spider bite to initiate South Africa’s flyhalf evolution. This country is blessed with an abundance of talent and yet the coaches continue to back limited players in the all-important position, or indeed fail to back those who have the potential to develop into something resembling the complete package.
In early 2008, Peter de Villiers expressed his desire to mould the Boks into a more threatening attacking unit. Ruan Pienaar was hailed as The Chosen One as the Boks embarked on a tour of the United Kingdom, and by the end of that three-match sojourn Pienaar had proved it was possible to strike a balance between running the ball and playing a more conservative, territory-oriented game.
In 2009, however, De Villiers lost faith in Pienaar as well as his own ambitious strive for duality. His selections, once made with the future good of the game in mind, became purely results driven. Pienaar was replaced by Steyn and while the selection brought the Boks short-term success, it proved to be a long-term decision that set South African rugby back four years. Predictably, the Boks stagnated in 2010 and 2011 and their subsequent World Cup quarter-final exit only underlined a pre-existing problem.
Most South African rugby supporters will want to forget about that disastrous campaign. They will want to read about the next Bok coach and the next group of players tasked with taking this nation forward. They have every right to feel enthused given that the well of talent in South Africa runs deep, but it would be foolish to ignore the failures of the past. The next Springbok coach has to take these harsh lessons into consideration when selecting his preferred flyhalf and formulating his game plan ahead of the 2012 season. What De Villiers’s tenure has provided is a blueprint of what not to do when it comes to managing key players and constructing playing patterns designed to win matches between and at big tournaments.
Steyn may have provided the Boks with goal-kicking security and a formidable tactical kicking game, but his weaknesses were mercilessly exposed by some of the better World Cup teams. Wales targeted his channel in South Africa’s opening game, while Samoa and Australia also enjoyed terrific momentum whenever they focused their attack on the limited No 10. With ball-in-hand, he played so deep in the pocket that he allowed opposition defences to negate South Africa’s attacking space. To paraphrase Eddie Jones, you just can’t afford to pick a flyhalf who plays in a dinner suit.
While the past few seasons have highlighted what is wrong with our rugby, they haven’t given us a definitive answer to the flyhalf question. If Steyn is unable to rectify his shortcomings, which after three international seasons looks to be the case, then the next Bok coach has to back someone new whether the goal is short-term success in 2012 or even long-term success in 2015.
Pat Lambie is a prime candidate. He was handed the flyhalf responsibility as a 20-year-old in the 2010 Currie Cup, and proved to be the difference in the final against Western Province. He was given limited opportunities on the Boks’ tour of the home nations, but honed his game in the 2011 Super Rugby tournament, particularly in the departments of tactical kicking and shooting for goal.
Lambie did an admirable job at fullback during the recent World Cup, but has the skill set to excel in a greater game-shaping role. After four seasons, Wallabies coach Robbie Deans has now decided that it’s time to move the supremely talented James O’Connor to inside centre or flyhalf. After a two-season apprenticeship, perhaps it’s time that Lambie made a similar shift to the playmaking axis.
That he has the composure to perform in a high-pressure environment is not in question, and his value on defence and attack has been evident in previous Tests against the home nations as well as in this year’s Tri-Nations Test in Wellington. That latter display was especially significant as Lambie showed that he could impose himself on attack despite the lack of momentum up front.
Elton Jantjies’s match-winning efforts in this year’s Currie Cup final capped an incredible comeback for a player who had struggled in the preceding Super Rugby competition. That he had the goal-kicking ability and tactical-kicking prowess to be a success was never in doubt, but what marked his recent rise was a new confidence on attack and a willingness to take on the defence. Next year’s Super Rugby instalment will show just how far he’s come in this respect, and will also serve as an indicator of his defensive progress. If he can build on his Currie Cup form, he should be groomed for the ultimate responsibility at Test level.
There are more established options that the incoming Bok coach may want to consider. Steyn is a safe bet as long as the Boks aren’t playing a team that can outmuscle them in the forwards. If he wants to be viewed as more than goal-kicking insurance or a one-trick pony in general play, he will need to prove that he’s capable of a more balanced game in the coming Super Rugby tournament.
It’s a tough ask given the Bulls are at the beginning of a rebuilding process and the bulk of their forward veterans, namely Victor Matfield, Bakkies Botha, Danie Rossouw, Gary Botha and Gurthrö Steenkamp, have left the franchise. Unlike Lambie, Steyn has shown himself to be particularly susceptible when his pack is under pressure, and it would be a stretch to believe that he can develop while his forwards are losing the battle up front.
De Villiers abandoned the Pienaar experiment in 2009, and his successor is unlikely to reinstate the versatile player given all that has transpired over the past two seasons. Once open to the possibility of playing 10, Pienaar has declared himself a specialist scrumhalf since moving to Irish club Ulster in late 2010. His confidence has also been dented through the mismanagement of previous Bok coaches, and while it will remain one of the great tragedies that he wasn’t given a fair go at flyhalf, it’s a mistake the next coach won’t be able to rectify.
Peter Grant is another who has hurt his chances of a Bok recall by deciding to play at least half of each season abroad. After his first stint with the Kobe Steelers in Japan, he returned to the Stormers undercooked, and struggled to recapture his form as the 2011 Super Rugby competition progressed. While Grant’s general game has regressed since 2010, his line-kicking has been consistently underwhelming.
The Boks need more than a kicking flyhalf to be successful in 2012, but they also need a pivot who can play a territorial game when the situation demands it. Steyn doesn’t meet the requirement of a modern-day 10 because his attacking game and defence are substandard, and Pop-gun Pete is at the other end of the scale of flyhalves who lack a balanced game.
Apart from Lambie and Jantjies, there are several other youngsters who the Bok coach should be monitoring closely over the next year or so. Sias Ebersohn has flourished in the attack-minded Cheetahs set-up, while Lionel Cronjé has shown at times why Rassie Erasmus once touted him as the next Frans Steyn. Johan Goosen, a schoolboy prodigy who became a YouTube sensation thanks to his outrageous long-range penalty attempts, shouldn’t be spoken about in the national context just yet. What is clear at this point is that all three of these players have the raw potential to be something special.
Of the young prospects, Lambie has had the most opportunities with his franchise and the Boks, but needs to be managed carefully if he is going to be a driving force. Sharks incumbent Freddie Michalak enjoyed a good Currie Cup this year, but if the next Bok coach intends to use Lambie at flyhalf, the 21-year-old needs to be starting in that position for his franchise. That Michalak plans to return to France should also influence the Sharks coaches’ decision to start Lambie at No 10 sooner rather than later.
Lions coach John Mitchell publicly criticised Jantjies at the beginning of Super Rugby this year, but recognised the need to back the youngster towards the end of the tournament. Mitchell also stuck with Jantjies throughout the Currie Cup and preferred him ahead of Butch James when the Bok veteran returned from a failed World Cup campaign in late October. Mitchell should continue to play Jantjies in this key position in 2012. Jantjies’s performances in the 2011 Super Rugby tournament suggested he needed another season to develop, and the 2012 edition will show whether he’s made the necessary improvements to be considered a realistic candidate for Bok playmaker.
That the Boks need to start embracing all facets of the game and maximising their attacking potential is not up for debate, but as to who is worthy of that hallowed No 10 jersey will only be decided after several months of Super Rugby action. Providing the candidates receive sufficient opportunities to prove their worth, it promises to be an absorbing contest that will give the Bok coach something that his predecessors may have lacked: a number of balanced options.
– This article appeared in the December issue of SA Rugby magazine. The January-February issue is on sale now.
362 Comments
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5 Jan 2012, 19:14 pm
@Robzim-147: its weird the Camelias are blooming but it has been really windy and cold the alst couple of days…we even still ahve roses budding. I got some pics from my friend in Kabul today and the snows are falling….so I think winter is here in the NH. Big birthday for Mommy this weekend so we will be celebrating. Euro is diving which is fine…I have been shorting it, but having some hassles with KPMG to get Capital back from a Guaranteed bank account for MFGlobal. Otherwise the sun comes up every day and life is always good.
5 Jan 2012, 19:18 pm
@Roar my Lions …. Currie Cup Champions 2011-149:
But then he will have to play 60-70 minutes, that said, how long you reckon will he last?
Remember: same guy whose season was totalled by a wif name Fabian Jurie (65kg) in a tackle circa 2009
5 Jan 2012, 19:19 pm
@Roar my Lions …. Currie Cup Champions 2011-149:
Who will serve EJ this season?
any decent Scrummy left in the Lions squad>
5 Jan 2012, 19:25 pm
@carcharodon carcharias-151:
Sounds good,good luck with the money market, tricky business. but no muff too tough as u know (up the Navy!)
Lives not too bad here either- great weather, my daughter got great matric results today, surfs not too bad and i have another few days of holidays left.
Bit worried bout the Stormers team for this season, you should also be about the Sharks I guess. But lets see, maybe they surprise us. Bulls also do not look so good, so maybe it’s the year of the cats?
5 Jan 2012, 19:33 pm
@Robzim-154: The Sharks Academy has produced the goods again and again…so not too worried in that dept. But a number of Boks overstayed their welcome and changes should ahve been made a while ago. This will effect the 3 teams mentioned. Lions have a depth problem and they don’t have the cash to fix it. I think we will get our arses handed to us in the Super 15 with Cheetahs being the pick of the bunch. JDV should also quietly withdraw now….one more bump on the head and he is gone anyway. The Spies selection intrigues me and our depth lies in the North and WP….schalk is not the greatest Captain and I think Keegan Daniel is a better Cappie. But Spies may surprise and his performance may improve too…he is the type of guy who likes a challenge. Lambie at flyhalf and that Freestate youngster Gouws should come into the Bok Squad now. Will be interesting to see what happens at lock…with Wikus re-emerging as a lock option…it shows our depth isn’t what it should be. But the WP Bekker and Flippie from the Bulls will probably lift themselves now cause tjey see a gap. But I like combinations….so that isn’t the perfect solution for the Boks.
5 Jan 2012, 19:35 pm
@Hondo-152: there is one scrummy you will like, blue eyed blond, Ross Cronje.
5 Jan 2012, 19:45 pm
Yes Hondo I know about Fudge.
You must be ecstatic!
5 Jan 2012, 19:45 pm
Ok…I’m out. time to feed the dogs.
5 Jan 2012, 19:53 pm
@carcharodon carcharias-155:
It will be interesting to see how Spies goes as cappy- he might surprise us (as you said)- I also like Keegan but imo he is just that one step below international level. IMO Shalck will get the job, but lets see.
Bekker and Flippie would be the ideal combination- Bekker’s continued health is the problem, he is very injury proned and gets overplayed by AC, if he can beat the injury bogy he can become key player for SA over the next few years- a freakish talent imo, one of our few real world class players.
Anyway, I am out for the evening, you must come and blog here more often, Cheers.
5 Jan 2012, 19:57 pm
@Dawn-157:
couldn’t care less,
it’s was a well known secret he can’t take hits
5 Jan 2012, 19:57 pm
@Roar my Lions …. Currie Cup Champions 2011-156:
Is that the kid from the Sharks?
5 Jan 2012, 19:58 pm
Select your 10 after the first 8 rounds of Super Rugby.
5 Jan 2012, 20:02 pm
Ja hondo. He’s a softie.
5 Jan 2012, 20:14 pm
@PissAnt-162:
Exactly. And make sure you have enough depth at FH. Like maybe 5. Ask the Stormers.
Otherwise you’ll end up with srumhalves and props and flanks playing there.
Hang on, we already do.
5 Jan 2012, 20:28 pm
@Hondo-161: yes, thats the one.
5 Jan 2012, 21:17 pm
This article is a bit premature and pointless. Still a lot of S15 to go before we make our minds up.
5 Jan 2012, 21:19 pm
Happy to have these young talents but I think everyone has gone a bit overboard with Lambie praise. He does look calm and collected, but so do I when I play, it doesn’t make me a great player. He is talented but aside from the cc final 2010 I haven’t seen him play well enough at 10 to convince me that is his position. I thought he was average in the 2011 super rugby season. I have seen glimpses to suggest he is a good player but he doesn’t have the same threat that Jantjes has to me. I believe Jantjes definitely has chinks in his armour but I see more unease in a defence he runs at than with Lambie and he seems more capable of moments of brilliance (eg Brumbies last year).
As many have said, this super rugby season will teach us a lot about these players. I will be watching every minute again without expecting too much from these guys. I am just glad that they all are South African.
6 Jan 2012, 01:04 am
@goyougoodthing2-2:
If we had Janties at 10 and Lambie at 12, Nonu and his china’s would run at them all day!!
No, keep Steyn at 12 and Lambie at 15 if you are gonna put Janjies at 10
6 Jan 2012, 05:07 am
@whatever-168:
OMG. Finally, someone with common sense!
Lambie 15, Fransie 12, Jaque 13, Elton 10, Hougaard 9, Spies 14, Toute 11.
We’ll crush everybody.
Are you all over your conservative shite? Let’s get the best rugby players to play rugby TOGETHER.
Smell the coffee!!!!!!!
6 Jan 2012, 06:39 am
sachin edges one…out for 80
6 Jan 2012, 06:53 am
My Bok 30 for 2012…..
15. Riaan Viljoen / Jaco Taute.
14. Gio Aplon / J.P. Pieterson.
13. Jacque Fourie / Johan Sadie.
12. Francois Steyn / Jean De Villiers.
11. Bryan Habana / Lionel Mapoe.
10. Johan Goosen / Patrick Lambie.
9. Francois Hougaard / Sarel Pretorious.
8. Pierre Spies / Willem Alberts.
7. Schalk Burger (c) / Juan Smith.
6. Heinrich Brussow / Francois Louw.
5. Andries Bekker / Juandre Kruger.
4. Bakkies Botha / Rynhardt Elstadt.
3. C.J. Van Der Linde / Jannie Du Plessis.
2. Bismark Du Plessis / Andriaan Strauss.
1. Coenie Oosthuizen / Tendai Mtawarira.
Coach : Heyneke Meyer.
Assistant : Rassie Erusmus.
Forwards : Gert Smal.
Backline : Carlos Spencer.
6 Jan 2012, 08:15 am
@Puma-87:
Always good thanks bud… trust you’ve had a good break and have a great 2012 too…!!
yeah… lambie is certainly being shafted by plumtree at this stage… he proved in the 2010 cc final how good he is… (and not just it that game…. he’s no one-game wonder…) it’s hardly his fault that thereafter plumtree brought in michalak… but he has done well for the boks when he has played and in whatever position he has played…
i don’t think it is therefore too much of a stretch to say that he would do very well at 10 for the boks… his preferred position… if as you say he was allowed to settle there… not only on the field but given the confidence boost of being told you are IT…!
it’s amazing how some players get months and even years… (spies) to fulfill their ‘potential’ but guys like lambie get one chance at 10 in a half-baked bok side and ‘experts’ are saying, “He was tried there and failed spectacularly every time.”
also… if he was given the kicking duties he’d be way more consistent… but he’s called on to kick after being subbed in the last few minutes and suddenly it’s him who has to take the pressure kicks…
seems some people just want to set him up for failure.. but imo his composure, intelligence, attitude, humility, commitment and ability… are worth long-term investment…
6 Jan 2012, 08:26 am
when you see how some of these young guys like jantjies, cooper, o’conner, any number of young ABs etc… let their sudden status and fame go to their heads and behave like jerks…
it speaks volumes about the guys character that lambie has remained so humble and grounded… that really impresses me…
before all the complaints from lions fans… yes… to be fair… after an initial dressing down by mitchell jantjies has pulled up his socks… so kudos to him and mitchell…
point being… lambie hasn’t needed to rukked right… so what we see from him is what he really is… a good kid… a good player… a good person…
6 Jan 2012, 08:28 am
Far too early to call. Halfway through the S15 we should start to see who the strongest candidate is. My guess is that it will be a two-horse race between Lambie and Jantjies. And whoever doesn’t make it, could cover flyhalf from the bench. Also too early to pick the fullback, although I can easily get used to the idea of Taute at 15. If he has a good S15, this might just happen. Slot Steyn in at 12 and we have the beginnings of a pretty decent backline with youth on their side.
6 Jan 2012, 08:30 am
@>^..^< katman-174:
a lot of sense in your post…
6 Jan 2012, 08:40 am
@>^..^< katman-174: Ed Zachery.
A few things come into considseration.
Who is fit and uninjured for example.
Who is on form and confident.
Elton strikes me as a confidence player, capable of amazing moves, and my instinctive favourite provided he’s in top form. Lambie for me is a very good, solid player and capable of very good things, and may be the “safer” choice in many respects.
I suspect that we haven’t seen the last of Morne Steyn though.
With Hougaard at 9 they will be playing a lot of rugby together in the Super comp and I’m keen to see how he does when he doesn’t have the Victor/Bakkies factor which made the forwards based game plan a no-brainer.
Now that he may not have the forward dominance that he had for much of his career i’m interested to see if the Bulls game plan will change and if he can adapt to that well.
As you say it will possible look a little different in May.
6 Jan 2012, 08:43 am
size matters.
6 Jan 2012, 08:48 am
@au revoir mon tout noirs, au revoir…-177: who are you referring to?
6 Jan 2012, 08:48 am
@ufo-175: Don’t speak too soon. The year is still young.
6 Jan 2012, 08:53 am
@stormersboy-176: I’m a fan of both Jantjies and Lambie. But the thing that bothers me (just a bit) about both is their lack of pace. Admittedly your flyhalf doesn’t have to be Habana quick, but guys like Carter and Cooper seem to have an extra yard of pace that makes their linebreaking so much more threatening.
6 Jan 2012, 08:55 am
@>^..^< katman-179:
huh…?
i’m agreeing with what you said… (and pissant said yesterday…)
6 Jan 2012, 08:59 am
@ufo-181: And I’m saying don’t get too used to the sense I posted there. By mid Feb I will have posted a whole heap of kak too.
6 Jan 2012, 09:02 am
@>^..^< katman-182:
hahaha…
okay cool…
i’m a bit slow after a few days off…
reckon we’ll all have posted heaps of poo by then…
6 Jan 2012, 09:07 am
@>^..^< katman-180: True, but they both seem to have enough pace over 20 – 30 meters, judging by some of the line breaks they’ve done, in particular Jantjies.
I like the way Jantjies takes his options with ball in hand. He also has very good balance which is good to watch.
i guess time will tell.
Thing is, I’m not against any of the candidates per se, and potential is one thing, but at the end of the day I’m sure that each will get their opportunity and whether they can make the most of it is really the key.
6 Jan 2012, 09:07 am
@au revoir mon tout noirs, au revoir…-177:
morne steyn 184 cm 90 kgs
elton jantjies 176 cm 84 kgs (on lions website but 91 kgs on others)
patrick lambie 177 cm 92 kgs
johan goosen 185 cm 88 kgs
so much of a muchness imo… swings and roundabouts… so in this case does size really count for much…?
6 Jan 2012, 09:08 am
I’m a big fan of Jantjies and I like Lambie but I think that boy (Goosen) from the Free State is going do to the business this year.
6 Jan 2012, 09:10 am
@ufo-173: i’m interested to hear how jantjies has “let fame go to his head”?
all i remember was him falsely implicated in the Os eoyt saga and when he missed a team appointment for the Lions on their overseas tour last year.
do you have other info that suggests that elton has been gassed by the “fame”?
6 Jan 2012, 09:14 am
@stormersboy-178:
i mean the whole composition of the backline and to an extent the team is predicated on such calculations.
how big is the 10
how big is the 9
how big are they relative to the 12 and 13
if 12 is big can 13 be small
can they all be small if 11 and 14 are too
can you have a small left wing and a small fullback
if you do you how big is the cover
how big are the opposition players head to head in each position compared to ours.
that sort of thing is obviously an important factor, its foolish to make believe it is not. rugby is a game that accomadates all types but at the end of the day a team of midgets will find out the meaning of life against a heavier, bigger unit.
with this in mind the new coach, whether conservative or revolutionary, will match other characteristics of the potential backline players to their physical size and this in turn to the rest of the backline players attributes as a whole.
i dont think any coach will ever depart from what has been a core strength of springbok rugby and which is well acknowledged by all opposition, namely: that we’re a big unit and we’re physical like no other… any team playing us always says this prematch and highlights it as a big factor in how they expect to play us.
if we’re going to go to running rugby with midgets (which is a sort of what oz is doing but who have ended up with an overall record that sucks more than ours and have no real guarantee it will in fact improve) then we must be prepared for a long period of hell and hard hidings while we travel the path to this promised land. oz has only beaten nz how many times in the last four years?
6 Jan 2012, 09:17 am
@ufo-185:
please refer post #185
6 Jan 2012, 09:20 am
@au revoir mon tout noirs, au revoir…-188: True, and as they say, a good big man is preferable to a good small man,
I’m not a big proponent of that at 10, provided his defensive skills are solid.
Hougaard is quite a big scrummie and there’ll be no issues on his size there.
Steyn is a really big guy at 12 so he’ll be perfect. He gets his hands through the tackle really well, and anyone with some pace on the outside, be it JF or JDJ will be fine.
6 Jan 2012, 09:21 am
@Transformation-187:
referring to mitchell dropping him for a while due to reported attitude problems… and then him improving in that area and doing very since then… as i acknowledged in my post saying to be fair he had improved since then…
6 Jan 2012, 09:23 am
@ufo-185:
you sold steyn short on a few kilo’s but hey…thats ok…
6 Jan 2012, 09:27 am
@au revoir mon tout noirs, au revoir…-189:
huh…?
i refer post #185… but see it was one of mine…
you mean 188…?
what you say is true… but i think with the four mentioned players the differences are not that great to warrant selecting our flyhalf based on the size of those around him…
let’s just pick the most in-form players based on current form… in the coming s15…
6 Jan 2012, 09:29 am
@Transformation-187:
i think he pulled a few minor guildford’s.
6 Jan 2012, 09:32 am
@au revoir mon tout noirs, au revoir…-192:
sheesh dude… so defensive…
i didn’t sell anyone short… simply took figures i could find on google…
could’ve left jantjiese at the weight given by the lions website but included his weight as reported on others too because they varied so much… would’ve done the same for steyn if i’d seen a variation in the few minutes i took to google each guy…
no agenda… just honestly tried to put their sizes in perspective…
6 Jan 2012, 09:34 am
work calls…
cheers all
6 Jan 2012, 09:36 am
@ufo-172: Howzit ufo, Yeah Lambie is a good youngster for sure. Your last paragraph sums it up well.
@ufo-191: You absolutely correct there. Mitchell dropped Elton last year in SuperRugby while on their overseas leg cause of some late night jolling. Well I read that on Sports24 at the time. But like you say Elton has turned that around in the CC. Good on him.
@ufo-173: Good post there bud. Agree with Lambie. He is a sensible youngster. Also has leadership qualities. I think he will be captain of the Sharks in about two years time.
6 Jan 2012, 09:36 am
@ufo-195:
no problem, just saying
6 Jan 2012, 09:37 am
I don’t see Steyn at much more than 90 kg’s. That’s actually a very decent weight for a flyhalf, especially given that he’s only a whisper over 6ft. tall….
6 Jan 2012, 09:37 am
@ufo-191: he was dropped for one game for missing a team appointment, so “for a while” is a bit misleading.
anyway i, personally wouldn’t put jantjies in the quade cooper, o’bieber, cipriani league of delinquents.
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