Johnson, Marler debut for England
7 Jun 2012
Flank Tom Johnson and prop Joe Marler will play their first Test when England face South Africa in Durban on Saturday.
There could also be a debut for utility back Jonathan Joseph, who is named among the substitutes. In changes to the run-on side from their last Six Nations Test against Ireland, Marler replaces Alex Corbisiero at loosehead and Johnson comes in for Tom Croft at blindside.
In the back division, scrumhalf Ben Youngs ousts Lee Dickson, who drops to the bench, while in the back three Mike Brown’s inclusion at fullback sees Ben Foden move to the left wing, with David Strettle out of the 22 altogether. Brown’s inclusion is a clear indication that England expect to be bombarded with tactical kicks, the Harlequins man’s aerial ability and counter-attacking ability seen as key.
Meanwhile Owen Farrell starts at flyhalf ahead of Toby Flood, the latter playing off the wood. Home town boy Brad Barritt starts at inside centre and Manu Tuilagi has had no recurrence of the injury that sidelined him until Monday, and starts at No 13.
Speaking about the debutants England head coach Stuart Lancaster said: ‘Tom and Joe have had great seasons at their clubs and have worked really hard to get this chance, both are in great form and have really impressed in training.’
He added: ‘Equally, Mike Brown has been outstanding for Harlequins. By moving Ben Foden to the wing we retain his strike power and aerial skills and can utilise not only Mike’s attacking and defensive assets we can also call on his left footed kicking game.’
England - 15 Mike Brown, 14 Chris Ashton, 13 Manusamoa Tuilagi, 12 Brad Barritt, 11 Ben Foden, 10 Owen Farrell, 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Ben Morgan, 7 Chris Robshaw (c), 6 Tom Johnson, 5 Geoff Parling, 4 Mouritz Botha, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Dylan Hartley, 1 Joe Marler.
Subs: 16 Lee Mears, 17 Paul Doran Jones, 18 Tom Palmer, 19 Phil Dowson, 20 Lee Dickson, 21 Toby Flood, 22 Jonathan Joseph
272 Comments
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7 Jun 2012, 15:21 pm
@ufo(ufo)-194: Do you like Eben by any chance?
7 Jun 2012, 15:30 pm
I just can’t see us losing
But I said the same with the Bulls/Stormers game
7 Jun 2012, 15:31 pm
losing
Hahahaaha
7 Jun 2012, 15:45 pm
@LightZone(LightZone)-201:
the only two people on record as not liking eben are chuck and sylvester… and just look at them now…
chuck used to be 6’4′ now he’s only 5’8″…
and rambo only has the use of one side of his face…
now they too have both ‘liked’ his Facebook page…
if you don’t like him… for your own safety… please don’t admit to it here… just pull your ear… that’s the signal that people who don’t Eben use to identify each other… as they’re too scared to say it out loud…
just look at all the rugby players who tug their ears as they run onto the field…
7 Jun 2012, 15:47 pm
@ufo(ufo)-204:
if Eben reads your comments your nic will be changed to
LightZero : EbenOne
7 Jun 2012, 15:50 pm
@elmer(elmer)-122:
This is the thing though. Everyone in Europe still thinks of 2009 Brussow. He has not had the same impact this season at all. If he did he would’ve been in the team. For all these Pommies on here smugly proclaiming that “they are happy Brussow is not in the team” I can guarantee you they haven’t seen one S15 game this year and their opinion is not worth much on that particular matter.
7 Jun 2012, 15:51 pm
I havent seen any games the Poms played since the world cup… Are they any good?
If they beat Wales, in the 6nations, who is a great team, then they must be pretty good. The Welsh almost won against the boks the past 3/4 games! Then again we lost against Scotland at one point…
I think if the boks can keep their mistakes to a minimum and actually implement the gameplan perfectly they should win comfortably …?
7 Jun 2012, 15:57 pm
@ufo(ufo)-204: @ufo(ufo)-205: hahahahaha
the real answer should probably read: “Like him? LIKE him? Are you CRAZY??!!! I LOVE HIM!!” So obviously we now have Houston_love_Bakkies_Botha as well as UFO_loves_Eben.
I do enjoy his playing as well.
7 Jun 2012, 16:00 pm
@LightZone(LightZone)-208:
yeah… if he can stay injury free it’s gonna be fun watching his career unfold over the next decade or so…
7 Jun 2012, 16:10 pm
If Eben has any characteristics of his notorious family Cliffie and Skattie, then the English are in for a nasty surprise
7 Jun 2012, 16:10 pm
@ufo(ufo)-209: Let’s hope he does. The last time we had a dominant lock it was Hennie Bekker and WP beat all-comers…ok yes there were other performers in the team as well BUT…
7 Jun 2012, 16:15 pm
@LightZone(LightZone)-211: Don’t forget Schalk Snr, Neil Hugo, Div Visser.
7 Jun 2012, 16:17 pm
@TooMuchRugby(TooMuchRugby)-210:
@LightZone(LightZone)-211:
enough silliness from me now…
but yes… he is a special talent imo…
loved the way in the highlanders game when he was pinned down on their side of a ruck and two of their players used the opportunity to go charging in on him… with just head head and shoulders sticking out and totally unable to defend himself…
they stand back to admire the effect of their charge and he looks up and asks them if that’s all they got… and motions them to try again…
very tough stuff and great character from a 20 year old…
7 Jun 2012, 16:18 pm
@Michael(mikeybrass)-212: That’s why i said there were other performers. Is it coincidence that the dominance of Bulls coincided with Bakkies being dominant?
7 Jun 2012, 16:18 pm
@Heavens Game(Heavens Game)-197:
he is open side. But all the frogs loosies are fetchers!
7 Jun 2012, 16:19 pm
@Michael(mikeybrass)-212:
absolutely mikey…
but they weren’t as ready or matured at 20 years old…
7 Jun 2012, 16:21 pm
@Michael(mikeybrass)-212:
not my most logical post… but you get my point…
7 Jun 2012, 16:22 pm
@LightZone(LightZone)-214: I never had the pleasure of watching Bekker play. I saw Schalk in the ’86 series and watched the other two mentioned. Was Bekker really better than all three of them, who were awesome?
@ufo(ufo)-216: Eben is a freak
7 Jun 2012, 16:23 pm
@ufo(ufo_loves_eben_etzebeth)-209:
your admiration for the boy is admirable. i hope he lives the hype and some. with the loss of so many greats we needed a hero to rise.
7 Jun 2012, 16:27 pm
@houston, we have a problem…(i_love_u_bakkiesbotha)-219:
hehehe…
i think you’ll be changing your own nic soon…!!
what hype…?
my comments on an anonymous blog don’t amount to hype…
but yes… let’s hope he can deliver on the obvious potential he has…
7 Jun 2012, 16:28 pm
@ufo(i_love_u_eben_etzebeth)-213:
i expect a great showing from him, no doubt
but be mindful that he needs a great locking partner to go with the combo
at provincial and national level.
hope hm will solve this riddlle for the unions.
7 Jun 2012, 16:28 pm
@houston, we have a problem…(i_love_u_bakkiesbotha)-219:
i just hope his shoulder is right…!!
7 Jun 2012, 16:30 pm
@ufo(ufo)-220:
7 Jun 2012, 16:35 pm
@ufo(ufo)-222:
true.
hm’s not one to risk players though, specially a 20 year old kid. so its probably more overconcern and a safety first approach than a case of them hiding an actual injury.
sadly, i can say with confidence this is a practise at the stormers and sharks it seems.
if thats the csae then take him off early.
7 Jun 2012, 16:35 pm
@houston, we have a problem…(i_love_u_bakkiesbotha)-221:
two words
quinn roux
7 Jun 2012, 16:38 pm
@Michael(mikeybrass)-218:
Div was one of the best locks we’ve produced. Bekker was a good lineout player and in the open, but an absolute ***** elsewhere. His lineout opponents used to regularly wait for him take the ball, then turn him when he came down.
7 Jun 2012, 16:38 pm
@Michael(mikeybrass)-218: To me Hennie Bekker was the epitome of a lock at the time. He was mobile where others were not. Much like his son these days. He was much fiercer though it might be time and romanticism that might be clouding my memory on that one.
7 Jun 2012, 16:40 pm
How did Bekker rate compared to the great Adolf Malan?
7 Jun 2012, 16:40 pm
@houston, we have a problem…(i_love_u_bakkiesbotha)-224:
i don’t blame the coaches… and it’s pretty much all coaches that do this…
it’s very tough to rest a fit n healthy player when they’ve got the next match to win…
most rotations or rests for players in super rugby this year have been injury enforced… either before or during the season…
i blame sanzar for the way they are pushing more and more games into the schedule…
we’ve all had this conversation before… and i’d rather have fewer teams in the super comp… playing fewer games… with more quality players and more quality rugby on display…
7 Jun 2012, 16:42 pm
@LightZone(LightZone)-227: Everyone has different memories and opinions so I’m not going into who was better or not. I personally thought Bekker was good but that’s just me.
7 Jun 2012, 16:43 pm
@David(David)-226:
p u s s y c a t.
7 Jun 2012, 16:45 pm
@ufo(ufo)-229: This is why I wonder what will happen should we beat England 3-0 and by huge margins.
7 Jun 2012, 16:48 pm
@Michael(mikeybrass)-228:
hennie was an excellent physical and mobile lock… schalk senior maybe not quite as mobile but just as physical… if not more so… div visser too was physical and quite mobile…..
neil hugo and adolf malan were both mobile but much leaner…
(as far as my recollections go…)
pity rugby lovers were deprived of seeing these guys play… and pity these guys weren’t able to showcase themselves to a wider audience…
7 Jun 2012, 16:49 pm
@Michael(mikeybrass)-228:
Both were lineout specialists with Bekker better in the loose. I must admit I never really rated Malan outside of his lineout work.
7 Jun 2012, 16:52 pm
@ufo(ufo)-233:
I don’t believe we ever saw the best of Div when his career was cut short with the tragic death of his child.
7 Jun 2012, 16:54 pm
@ufo(ufo)-233: Seems we have similar opinions on the players of yore. Serves nobody to compare different eras though. Although I agree with it I think it is a pity the Boks could not play during those days. We would’ve just stayed top ever since I think. Springboks may have been the All Blacks of today.
7 Jun 2012, 16:55 pm
@David(David)-226: I remember Hennie Bekker in a provincial match (versus Transvaal, I think) taking the ball from a deep kick off and sprinting all the way down the touchline to score. He must’ve beaten at least nine defenders: speed, hand-offs and strength. Like his son, I always thought he would become the greatest ever, better than Frik du Preez at least, but he never reached the heights I thought he would. He had limited opportunities though with SA being isolated then.
Adolf Malan never really impressed me, except for his magnificant lineout work. Very tall, a little skinny for a lockforward, a bit like Ross Skeate, but he really could jump.
7 Jun 2012, 16:56 pm
@LightZone(LightZone)-232:
i don’t think we’ll beat them 3:nil or by huge margins…
the low profile approach this english team has taken should jangle a few bells for the boks and us supporters… and with their saffa players who know our guys and have points to prove… this is going to be a lot closer and tougher than many of us are giving them credit for…
i think we (as fans) are being quite arrogant and waaay too complacent… i’m confident heyneke and the players are taken it a lot more seriously and giving the poms a lot more respect than we fans are…
i expect a 2:1 result to us… and even if it is 3:1… the scores will be a lot closer than any of us expect…
7 Jun 2012, 16:57 pm
@David(David)-235:
indeed david…
helluva player…
7 Jun 2012, 17:02 pm
@LightZone(LightZone)-236:
year… comparisons of different era’s are fun but meaningless…
but i do agree that had we competed then we would have dominated the AB lie they dominate us today… (which heyneke is going to change)
we had world class players then in almost every position… special players too numerous to mention…
and quite possibly could have kept that dominance running… we certainly have always had the players… just our coaches have not always selected the best players… for various reasons…
but i’m backing heyneke to recapture that dominance…
7 Jun 2012, 17:05 pm
cold wet night in cape town…
time to batten down the hatches…
cheers all…
7 Jun 2012, 17:07 pm
@ufo(ufo)-238: Would be difficult to beat them 3-1 I’d say
I think it will be tighter than we expect BUT what IF. Or even if we should win but not huge margins? Every coach wants to keep a winning team…for instance would he change Kirchner? IF Bekker recovers will he replace Kruger? Possibly Duane will come in but will Coetzee or Alberts drop out for Schalk or Siya? I don’t see Aplon coming in soon. Habits form extremely quickly amongst coaches.
7 Jun 2012, 17:08 pm
@LightZone(LightZone)-236:
Actually, Bekker and Div played against NZ on the ill fated ’81 tour, and Schalk against England in ’84 partnering Vleis Visagie.
7 Jun 2012, 17:08 pm
Etzebeth reminds me a bit of Theuns Stoffberg, another old generation lock. He also played at 7, very fast, athletic and aggressive. (Had a terrible stutter…) I rate Stoffberg higher than Bekker. Stoffberg played with Klippies Kritzinger, Johan de Bruyn (had a glass eye)and Kleintjie Grobler, all in the Free State team. They were terrifying together.
7 Jun 2012, 17:14 pm
@David(David)-243: Yes I know they played together but that was in a totally different era right? Actually they played off each other. I just think that romanticism of one’s favourites cloud the memory to discuss their attributes such a long time distant. That NZ tour is now 31 years ago!
7 Jun 2012, 17:14 pm
HEAVENS GAME.
Dusatoir scrums on the left at every scrum. No 6 A ‘loosehead flank’ as it would read on my teamsheet at school.
The French National team disregard the openside scrumming dynamic, but certainly do not select 3 opensides as suggested elsewhere on this thread. Currewnt French trio has a strong lineout emphasis, as they normally do. Bonaire and Harinordiquy are never openside type players!
They take the balance of their loose trio very seriously but see the scrum differently.
One argument says that having the same flank on the same side of the scrum all game improves scrum synergy, and that the defensive and attacking options are different either way.
IMO the French could teach us all a thing or 2 about the scrum.
7 Jun 2012, 17:17 pm
@LightZone(LightZone)-242:
The coach HAS to see a winning culture through the lens of a rotational selection system. Overplaying any player will result in crucial untimely injuries. Building an inclusive squad system is the fine art of man management. When player in a squad ALL get their chance and understand WHY and WHEN, that is when they see the merits of their abilities and where they have to improve to match their competition. Siya, Schalk and Duane will see action in the Championship. But the y will need to show their best game in the last rounds of the S15. Spies, Kanko – are living on borrowed time.
7 Jun 2012, 17:18 pm
David.
Remember Louis Moolman?
Did he ever loose a lineout ball at no 2, and in the era of no lifting.
7 Jun 2012, 17:20 pm
@hensopper1(hensopper1)-248: I remember his beard!
7 Jun 2012, 17:21 pm
@LightZone(LightZone)-245:
Yes, it’s impossible to judge players from different eras against each other, but I still have memories of the extent that Div impressed me. He was one of those forwards who provided the impetus that led the rest of the pack. He was also one of the first who specialised in contesting the ball from his own sides kick off.
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