What Bismarck’s loss means
21 Aug 2012
RYAN VREDE writes that Bismarck du Plessis is the most significant of all the Springboks’ injuries to date and further erodes the hope of them winning the Rugby Championship.
I wrote at the time that I didn’t believe the absence of Schalk Burger, Jaque Fourie, Danie Rossouw, Bakkies Botha and Fourie du Preez (who was courted for a Test return) among a clutch of uncapped players (Duane Vermeulen and Johan Goosen for example) would be terminal to the Springboks’ cause against England. There were competent replacements available who subsequently got the job done. Neither did I feel it would hinder them against Argentina last week, even with Pierre Spies and JP Pietersen added to that injury list.
It was their unavailability against Australia and New Zealand that most concerned me, although I still believed the depth was sufficient to beat the former and mount an appreciable challenge against the Blacks. But Du Plessis’ loss is a hammer blow. To understand it’s significance you have to take into account the tangible and non-tangible impact.
Technically he is the most complete hooker in the game. He is a brutal defender who has also grown as a breakdown scavenger in recent years. Indeed Heyneke Meyer highlighted this as amplifying his value, especially in light of the absence of a specialist openside flank. On attack he is a force at the gainline, a constant source of go-forward. His work-rate in both these facets of play is unmatched by any hooker on the planet (I know this because I’ve seen the Springboks’ analysis of all their competitors in this regard). Furthermore, his set piece work is excellent.
Away from the technical competencies, his game intelligence and temperament under pressure has improved markedly, as has his discipline, which was a point of concern early in his career. He has also become an accomplished leader. Meyer’s estimation of him in this regard has grown to the point where he had considered him for the captaincy. Finally, his experience will be sorely missed. Forty six caps into his Test career, Du Plessis’s presence at crunch times would have been a boon for a youthful and largely inexperienced Springbok pack.
Seldom will one player’s absence be decisive to the outcome, and I’m not suggesting Du Plessis holds such sway at this point in his career. He was, however, the heart and soul of the side and embodied every quality Meyer sought in his players. He has the capacity to galvanise those around him through the standard he sets. He is a match winner.
His replacement, Adriaan Strauss, is a fine player but he isn’t in Du Plessis’s class. That said, Strauss faces a decisive phase in his Test career, where his success or failure will have a significant bearing on the Springboks’ fortunes. In the context of their game plan he is an important cog. His lineout feeds will come under the microscope and with the Springboks’ rolling maul being one of their primary weapons, Strauss’s accuracy will be central to their ability to set this in motion. It is also a facet of play where the Springboks have traditionally had the edge over the Wallabies and Blacks.
In addition Strauss will have to rein in his fondness for lurking in the loose. It is a strategy that suits the Cheetahs’ approach but the Springboks will need him to get stuck in at ground zero in the coming Tests.
In Monday’s press conference in Mendoza Meyer described Strauss as world-class. That offering and other examples of his professed faith in him is not lip service. He has an extremely high regard for the player, whom he brought to the Bulls as a youngster and whose loss he deeply lamented when he returned to the Cheetahs. Strauss owes it to himself and Meyer to take the opportunity that now presents itself.
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579 Comments
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21 Aug 2012, 10:52 am
Excellent player, he will not let us down…..luck has given him q shot in the big time that polotics excluded him from for quite a few seasons. In my opinion anyway. I still remember him covering for gary botha when injured seasons ago as a youngster regularly only to go to the junior wc and take a backseat to chilli. Ironically, chilli played the bench role for the bulls (sic) and strauss moved to the cheetahs.
21 Aug 2012, 10:53 am
I would consider Bismark’s loss a possible reason to start re-considering the inclusion of someone like Heinrich Brussouw again.
Depending on how Strauss can be made to duplicate Bismark’s role, and how our current loose forwards can improve their breakdown performance.
The fact remains, however, that Brussouw’s presence won’t improve our breakdown performance on our own ball, provided that the existing players can up their execution in that regard.
But Bismark is a vital cog in our breakdown game, nevertheless, and his loss is going to be huge.
One thing is for sure, though. With Bismark gone, there’s no way we can start with Keegan Daniel anymore. We simply are too short of physicality in our pack.
21 Aug 2012, 11:11 am
Bismark or no Bismark,Boks wouldnt have won Rugby Championship although his presence would have helped Boks be more competitive and keep scores down away from home.
Kick kick kick Execution over Innovation…..
21 Aug 2012, 11:12 am
Strauss is a dom player. Always looks for contact when he has the ball (to be fair, that is a South African problem, not just him) and loses it far too often in contact – see past Saturday in second half. In a 5 min period he twice took the ball while deep in Argentinian half, went into contact and lost the ball.
Of the current 3 hooker in the squad, I’d play Burden. At least with him aounr something might happen – and no, I’m not a Sharks supporter.
21 Aug 2012, 11:16 am
@Tacitus-2:
I agree on Daniels, but he does bring more to the table than Spies (in everything but the lineout).
Just in case you think Spies would be better
Personally, I think Coetzee could be used at 8, with Alberts at 7, with Brussow at 6.
21 Aug 2012, 11:16 am
@gecko-4: Strauss is a good player. He is often the first player to support the ball carrier and almost always gets over the advantage line. Loosing the ball at break down is also often due to the supporting players not arriving and cleaning out fast enough. Agree, he is no Bismark, but no other hooker on the planet is.
21 Aug 2012, 11:17 am
@mshiniwami-3: with Bismarck and Alberts in the same pack Meyer’s ‘bashing’ gameplan had a chance to succeed but Willem can not do it on his own. Should he get injured too then it’s curtains.
21 Aug 2012, 11:18 am
@gecko-4:
I am a Sharks fanm, I can tell you Burden is some way off being an international hooker.
His linesouts are good, but not great. And that alone is a major issue.
His scrummaging is also average (again, not bad, just not great).
21 Aug 2012, 11:18 am
I,m pretty sure carter kicked more than the boks did last weekend. It,s just that the ozzies missed takles and the argies did not. The argie defence was huge.
21 Aug 2012, 11:22 am
5. What game were you watching, daniels brings nada to a test like last week, anyone who honestly thinks that daniels offered more tha spies does even when not on form needs their head checked.
Daniels does some things well, but for me its from the bench for specific games.
21 Aug 2012, 11:23 am
@Big Hit-7:
I’m really worried Meyer believes he’s going to have 4 years to build a team. The bottom line is this.
If we don’t see results by the end of next year, he’s gone. PDV only kept his job because of 2009 3N and B&I Lions results, both of which were in the balance until the final minutes of both deciding mathes.
He can’t afford to ‘build’. We have a core group of players already (Bismark, Alberts, Bekker, Eben, JPP, Frans Steyn). I also think we don’t have the forwards (or the scrumhalf) to play our kicking game from 2009/10. For this reason, Morne cannot be in any long term plans. Lambie and Goosen are the 2 10′s we need to focus on.
I hope Meyer proves me wrong, it is very very early days
21 Aug 2012, 11:25 am
@Big Hit-7:
Thats a problem in its self when gameplan is so limited. Add the fact that with a gameplan SO attrictional with OVER emphasis on physicality(where players WILL GET INJURED MORE) and add the fact the forward pack absolute dominance theory is a FALLACY these days especially in test rugby.Its not sustainable not unless you produce the FREAKIEST physical athletes of the same class in THEIR DROVES because they WILL get injured.Alberts is injury prone as is,now Bismark is out,
Add Morne and Hougaard kicking down the throat of Beale,Oconnor,Dagg,Jane and co…was never gona work.Whichever way you look at it.Can sneak a test here and there.but 70-80% win ratio? Ppfffffttttt not a chance.Total rugby or BUST
21 Aug 2012, 11:27 am
@Brigadier Van Zyl-10:
I disagree.
Daniels hits and cleans out more rucks than Spies. His defense is better (Spies slips a huge amount of tackles). His play with ball in hand is better. I could go on. Do I think Daniels should be there? Maybe not. Should Spies? Hell no.
Spies is however, brilliant in the lineouts.
If you had said,”Daniels doesn’t fit into Meyers gameplan’, then I would agree with you 100%.
21 Aug 2012, 11:29 am
Would play Brussow and Bismarck in tandem and scare the **** out the Aussies and Kiwis at the breakdown….
But that boat has sailed thanks to HM sizeist theory.
Best we get Brussow fit and back into Boks a sap…..
Just because Pocock out for 3 months doesent mean Hooper wont cause mayhem at the breakdown.
Amazing that Aussies squad contained 3 proper opensiders….Kiwis have 2 in theirs….Boks not 1 in sight…..
Is everyone else wrong and we right? Especially crazy when we have 1 of the worlds very best ….ask Sharks and Stormers who were drilled by Brussow a few weeks ago…
21 Aug 2012, 11:30 am
@londonshark-11:
Mate even that 2009 team kicking won but it was UNSUSTAINABLE. too limited,but even then under Pdv there was an emphasis on playing wider and converting,scoring tries…Especially after the exprience of 2008 where Boks played wider,mixed it up with success on EOYT.
in 2010,2011 PdV regressed,felt pressure and decide to bank on kicking up/unders and got duly punished.
21 Aug 2012, 11:31 am
@mshiniwami-12:
100% agree. I’m not sure we want to be kicking on Dagg and Jane.
Tactical kicking is vital in test rugby. We just don’t do it very well (Morne included). I’ll say it again. Without FDP, Morne is pretty average. In 2010.
21 Aug 2012, 11:31 am
@londonshark-11: Cant believe the belief that now the whole international season is lost now that Bismarck is gone …. Yes a good player but heck he isnt your flyhalf or key points scorer and imo Strauss is an excellent replacement … stop looking for excuses time to man up little Bokkies
21 Aug 2012, 11:33 am
@grant10-14: Apparently the world has gone back in time and you dont need a fetcher – wish somebody had told everyone else
21 Aug 2012, 11:34 am
@mshiniwami-15:
I’m with you. But what many people fail to realize, is how good FDP and Morne were at placing those bombs on a tee. That’s the only reason it worked. We also had Matfield to steal 50% of all opp ball. So we could kick more, and get it back.
But those days are gone. I would stick my neck out, and play Lambie at 10 this weekend. Why not?
21 Aug 2012, 11:34 am
Strauss, while not in Bismark’s class is a good player.
I’m more concerned about Strauss’ replacement.
21 Aug 2012, 11:35 am
Bismarck’s injury could lead to Deysel returning to the bok fold at 7.
Like Bismarck, he does contribute to the turnover. It could help offset this loss, while his form against the Lions was good.
Oz leg loose trio?
6: Coetzee
7: Deysel
8: Alberts
Maybe a tad bit on the slow side, but at least retains physicality while adding a bit of groundwork.
21 Aug 2012, 11:35 am
12….well, puff divies running game of 2008 with a vastly superior set of players in 2008 wasnt to flash was it. In fact, the only reason we stayed in the games in nz was because we kicked more in those games.sure we crushed the ozzies in our lat match but the ozzies already had their away win and were lining up the kiwis for the trinations decider the following weekend with us playing for pride. Teams playing for pride at the end of a tournament almost always get the win.
21 Aug 2012, 11:36 am
@stew-17:
Stew, I assume you just asking my opinion, because I never said Bismark was key to us winning anything.
Bismark is a huge loss. It’s like you guys losing McCaw.
21 Aug 2012, 11:37 am
@mshiniwami-12: mostly agree, I think the old school Meyer gameplan could maybe have worked if SA had all their best forwards available but as you intimate an injury-free pack at test level is unrealistic so it’s ultimately doomed to fail.
@londonshark-11: yeah bottom line is his gameplan has to change, but I’m not sure Meyer is capable of coaching in any other way.
21 Aug 2012, 11:38 am
this bok pack cannot get any smaller.
or rather should not.
21 Aug 2012, 11:39 am
@ali-21:
Heck no
We would get murdered on the deck, even more so with Bismark gone.
With the players we have in Arg, I would play Coetzee at 8, with Alberts and Kolisi on the flanks.
21 Aug 2012, 11:40 am
@stew-17: Intergral part of the tight five where one would like to dominate in order to create pressure and thereby creating oppertunities to score. So yes he is a big loss…..class dismissed.
21 Aug 2012, 11:41 am
@ali-21: Hooper will have a free lunch at the breakdown…
Players like Marcell Coetsee and Kolisi are wonderful prospects….at 7 or 8…
They are being used out of position at Boks, Stormers and Sharks….
Brussow, F Louw are ‘ real ‘ opensiders….1 of them should be in Bok mix at all times….regretfully Steggmann seemed to struggle taking the step up…
21 Aug 2012, 11:42 am
@londonshark-23: No was just stating the obvious – and imo i dont think Bismarck is as crucial to the Boks success as McCaw ( Bismarck has a long way to go) … I am sure he will get there god willing but at the moment you do have good replacements
21 Aug 2012, 11:43 am
@KWAGGA ROBERTSE-27: But you have adequate replacements
21 Aug 2012, 11:44 am
@londonshark-26: @grant10-28:
Understand the distinction, and yes it would be a free lunch for the opposition at the breakdown. But in terms of Heynecke’s preferences, it could happen.
21 Aug 2012, 11:47 am
@stew-29:
Cool cool.
I think he is as important to us. He’s the best hooker in the world by a country mile, and effects more turnovers than most full time fetches.
Off topic, I’ve been very impressed with how McCaw has changed his game. He’s a much stronger runner with ball in hand these days. Should keep him in the side for at least a few more years.
21 Aug 2012, 11:49 am
And stop pining for Du Preez Matfield etc ITS F*CKIN OVER..They were well below their powers last year,and the fact Matfield didnt return and Fourie refused as well is tantamount to them KNOWING they arent good enough to recreate those performances.
So trying to recreate their “clones” in players with a COMPLETELY different skillset in Bekker & Hougaard is not only FLAWED,its downright COMICAL.
21 Aug 2012, 11:50 am
@ali-31: I am not sure what Brussow has done to warrant this ‘ shunning ‘ from HM…..HM always had Steggmann in the Bulls mix….not sure why he seems to have this new found Damascus Road experience that now seems to see him shying away from the classic opensider….especially when Hansen and Deans are going the exact opposite route…
I remember in 2009 when Deans said that the Boks were a completely new threat with Brussow there….
Also Brussow has won 4 matches he started against Kiwis….
Look at his impact against Sharks at the Tank…and in Bloem against Stormers….he murdered the opposition….never heard Marcelle or Kolisis name those games…..
Crazy to leave him out…..
21 Aug 2012, 11:51 am
Look so long as refs don,t blow pockcok or mccaw for any illegal play at the breakdown, as far as i am concerned….the debate concerning an out and out opensider is irrelevent.
People also forget that mccaw and now hooper sre physically large players, also an important consideration and a reason why brussouw may not be in favour. Few can deny that since the laws withregards to riding the tackle and releasing the player have change, brussouw has never been as effective as before.
21 Aug 2012, 11:51 am
@londonshark-32: I dont know how he keeps going , most mortal men would have died years ago. Yes very impressed and always makes yards which is crucial to getting on the front foot. I was also impressed with him at no8 – really does cover for Read in this position now
21 Aug 2012, 11:53 am
@londonshark-32:
McCaw is now effectively a hybrid more leaning on the side of a BLINDSIDE who is very good on the ground as well.
Tremendous ability and professionalism from him to realise his “gifts” at breakdown especially speed were dwindling either with age/change of game rules-nuances etc but he STILL is relevant as he added to his skillset.
Amazing feat.
21 Aug 2012, 11:55 am
@Big Hit-24: Indeed. Which is WHY Heyneke’s rather stubborn refusal to even contemplate a Plan B is infuckingsano. Tweak a plan to fit with the players available.
Shotputters don’t run the 100m’s for a reason…
21 Aug 2012, 11:55 am
@grant10-34: HM believes the law changes negate the role of a fetcher, unlike under the previous laws when he and Ludeke played an uninjured Steggies.
21 Aug 2012, 11:56 am
@Big Hit-24: I think he is, given he was in charge of the Stormers 1999 pack which played differently. It’s more that Meyer needs to evolve his mindset; he certainly is very intelligent for a rugby coach
21 Aug 2012, 11:58 am
@mikeybrass-39: I dont agree with HM at all….
Pocock out for 3 months….I bet the Aussies go with either Hooper…or Gill…both classic opensiders….and not bigger than Brussow…
21 Aug 2012, 12:03 pm
@Brigadier Van Zyl-35:
Current IRB Player of the Year Thierry Dusuatoir is 1.88m 100kgs.
This guy is 10 times the player 110-115kg behemoths falling over themselves in this Meyer self styled atrriction over innovation gameplan
Micheal Hooper is not LARGER by any stretch 1.82m 100kgs
Brussow 1.81m 104kgs (Pocock 1.84m 105kgs.Sam Cane 1.88m 104kgs)
3 to 4 cms is negligible
So please shelve that nonsense.
21 Aug 2012, 12:06 pm
@mshiniwami-37: Please get it right – McCaw is now effectively a god – bow down you lesser mortals.
Do agree with your analysis
21 Aug 2012, 12:07 pm
I have never seen Brussow bullied because of his ‘ inferior size’….
But hell I have seem do some bullying!
The guy turned the entire B Lions series on its head…..
And destroyed the Kiwis in 2009….
Anyway…I am sure HM will bring him back for the Aussies and Kiwi leg…
21 Aug 2012, 12:07 pm
@grant10-41: A classic loose trio consists of an annoying terrier at 6, a brute of a mamooth at 7 and a reasonable skilful yet strong-as-an-ox no 8.
That means Brussouw at 6, Alberts/Burger/Kolisi (depending on availability) at 7 and Coetzee/Duane/Daniels (again depending on availability) at 8.
21 Aug 2012, 12:08 pm
@grant10-34: Meyer never picked Stegmann. Stegmann made his Super rugby debut in 2008 when Heyneke was at Leicester. The first effective fetcher Meyer picked was Wikus van Heerden. He was probably SA’s first fetcher, but he was also a good carrier and also an extra lineout option.
Brussow in my mind is also a good carrier, good defender, but not a lineout option. Do not be surprised if Heyneke picks Brussow when he is back from injury as I think Bismark is the reason he was not picked. Bismark is not as good a ball carrier as Etzebeth, Alberts or Coetzee, but it is the best part of Strauss’ game. Now that you have a better ball carrier in the front row we can afford to play Brussow.
21 Aug 2012, 12:09 pm
@grant10-44: Give HM time. Brussouw will be back by the end of next year’s championship for sure.
21 Aug 2012, 12:10 pm
@Horings-46: Old Wahl Bartmann was our first fetcher in the post-isolation era.
21 Aug 2012, 12:10 pm
@grant10-28: First off, welcome back
Louw hasn’t played any rugby this NH season, he’s in pre-season, moreover he’s unproven at test level. Besides the Boks problem was losing possession on their own ball (due to inefficient clearing out) not winning possession – of which they won 60% against a strong Argentina pack.
21 Aug 2012, 12:11 pm
@Brigadier Van Zyl-9: the argie defence was prepped by graham henry to target our one-off runner who stupidly always want to islate themselves and crashball.
i wonder if our coaches actually watched the ab vs argie 14 final where the argies were fiery @ the breakdown and frustrated even the abs…
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