ABs: The myth and legend
8 Oct 2012
JON CARDINELLI says the All Blacks’ perfect balance between kicking and running, as well as their high level of execution, has allowed them to become the undisputed champs of world rugby.
As if the World Cup, Bledisloe Cup, Freedom Cup, and Rugby Championship title were not enough. The All Blacks didn’t just win that Rugby Championship trophy, they didn’t just win six out of six, they once again made a statement about how the game should be played.
It’s seems an obvious thing to say about the All Blacks, but then there is more to this side than what is perceived at a first glance.
They have some of the most gifted attacking players on the planet, but many forget that a team cannot win championships without a balanced approach. If attack was all you needed to be a success, the Lions would be reigning Super Rugby champions.
Before you celebrate the All Blacks as outstanding innovators and finishers, consider how they get themselves into those scoring positions. It is through a great mix of power, intelligence, and a fair bit of trickery that they win the forward battles. It is through sharp decision making that they can switch between kicking for territory and counter-attacking. And don’t underestimate the role experience has played in the All Blacks’ 16-Test winning run.
Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer said earlier this year that experience helped the All Blacks win that 2011 World Cup, and went on to explain that it is experience that boosts a team in areas like defence, kicking, discipline and game management. You can have all the attacking talent in the world, but if you can’t succeed in these other aspects, you aren’t going to win championships.
Take the Rugby Championship finale at Soccer City as an example. The Boks were in fine attacking form early on, and that try from Bryan Habana will go down as one of the best of their season. But as flat as the All Blacks were during the initial stages, they stuck to their defensive task. They absorbed the pressure and then struck back before half-time, and then again after the break.
Meyer praised the world champions afterwards for the way they went about closing out the game. Meyer said Dan Carter was the key man for the visitors, as his decision making and execution during this period allowed the All Blacks to play the game down in opposition territory.
The stats substantiate the statement. According to ruckingoodstats.com, the New Zealanders kicked the ball from hand on 30 occasions (the Boks kicked 23), keeping 11 of those kicks in play. It was the tactics of Carter and company to put the ball behind the Boks and ask them to counter-attack. And when the Boks made mistakes or bad decisions, the All Blacks were quick to pounce.
It was another thing Meyer pointed to: this All Blacks side has made a habit out of punishing opposition errors. Again, the stats suggest that the All Blacks were better off in this department, making just four handling errors to the Boks’ 11. What those stats don’t say is how the All Blacks turned Bok mistakes into point-scoring opportunities.
Defence was an issue for the hosts last Saturday, with the Boks missing 12 tackles. The All Blacks missed 10, but that number needs to be put in perspective, as the visitors spent more time on defence (they had just 43% possession). While the Boks missed one in four tackle attempts, the All Blacks missed one in six.
The goal-kicking has been poor throughout the tournament, and again the Boks missed four of their eight attempts.
All in all, the Boks were guilty of spurning their own chances, and also guilty of providing the opposition with scoring chances. It was like two teams were playing against the Boks last Saturday: that is the All Blacks and the Boks themselves.
The All Blacks were good enough to first claw their way back into the lead, and then punish the South Africans to the tune of 16 points. That’s a hiding.
Meyer says his team has a long way to go, a statement that was later followed by Steve Hansen’s assertion that this All Blacks side can get better. The New Zealanders have won 16 in a row, and having brushed the Boks aside you’d have to expect them to breeze through Europe and overtake Lithuania for the most consecutive Test victories.
The Boks were No 2 in the world on Saturday night, but were overtaken when the Wallabies beat the Pumas in Argentina later on. Nevertheless, the Boks and the Wallabies are in the same boat in that they are nowhere near the All Blacks in terms of balance and experience.
The Boks are playing the right game, but their execution is not where it should be. I agree with Meyer that the forced introduction (because of injuries) of a number of youngsters has left this Bok side light on experience in key positions. That in turn has compromised their consistency as well as their ability to close out tight Tests.
A 16-point defeat at home is never going to be excused or be anything but embarrassing. At the same time, there has to be some perspective about where this young Bok team is in relation to what is (or at least will become after breaking that world record) the best All Blacks side in history.
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401 Comments
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8 Oct 2012, 10:57 am
HM got the job four too late. Had he been given the job in 2008, as he should’ve… He would’ve had the players he needed to execute his game plan to perfection. They would have been fresh from winning the WC (with most of them also having won SR the previous year), so confidence would’ve been high, plus they would’ve been playing under a coach they respected and trusted. We would probably have dominated world rugby for the next two years at least… Of cause Brussow, JdJ (political pressure and the unavailability of WO might’ve have forced his selection) and Keegan Daniel, and others that might be deemed not big enough, would only have made their debuts this year.
Enter 2012, after we had been knocked out by Aus in the WC 1/4, the first black coach is hired (20 years after re-admission). He’d have been in charge of the baby boks for 7 years inherited a team with players he’d coached to world champs (I believe he would’ve won at least one more). With the likes of Bismarck, Adriaan Strauss, Chilli, JPP, JdJ, EJ, Lambie, Kolisi, Etsebeth, Pienaar, Hougaard, Keegan Daniel, Morne Steyn, Spies, Coenie, Taute, Mapoe, Goosen…. Favouring a more expansive approach, with players who are more likely to be receptive to this kinda approach. Maybe SA rugby wouldn’t be the joke it is today!
8 Oct 2012, 10:59 am
@Gumboots-182:
It’s shocking to think that changes in the Bok squad only came about after the media and public pressure and avoidable losses.
Imagine if we all just stood by and watched Meyer do as he pleased with the team?
J. Potgieter at 7
Spies at 8 if it wasn’t for injury
Morne at 10
JJ Engelbrecht
Wynand Olivier
And now J Taute in the centres, not to mention the players he did NOT choose.
Each time we’ve given Heyneke the benefit of doubt with regards to his weird selections but non of them have worked out.
8 Oct 2012, 11:02 am
meyer is starting to look as thick as a plank imo.
his wild eyed interviews have the look of a madman who is defiantly trying to justify his lack of nous.
he needs to relax a little, we will give him time but he must end this fascination with trying to moer the opposition and select players with a bit more brain power.
how the hell can our dumb f u k forwards keep on trying a pick and drive on the abs line when the abs are a player down?
and how thick is dood poe s coenie. whattacunt he is giving away penalties like candy at halloweeen after an amazingly disciplined bok performance?
he must fukkoff.
8 Oct 2012, 11:03 am
Some huge goddamn denialists in this environment
Who these bull bevok behemoths still punting Spies and M. Steyn and FdP and H. Meyer.. Who are these imbeciles.. are they as extinct as dinosaurs yet because strues njannies they are heading that way..
Anyone still punting Pierre Spies or Morne Steyn or Fourie du Preez as the Boks saviours after the last spate of goddamn re awakening by this numb skull idiot Heyneke Meyer are even thicker than he is.. and that is SOME serious kinda thickness.. make no mistake.
This Meyer moron is busy annihilating some decent talent.. he is frittering away the little bit of decent talent shining through and he is DECIMATING any hopes of ever coming out of this downward spiral of no return..
He has destroyed Hougaard as a scrumhalf.. he has given Jantjies, Lambie, De Jongh and a few others NO HOPE of ever reaching their true bok potential.. he has misused the likes of Taute and a few more in his attempt at blustering his way out of the dead end he finds his empty brain dead deficiency staring him in his brainless face.
The ONLY thing open to SARU at this stage is cut your damn losses with this clown and move the fck on because this moron is going nowhere in any hurry he is wringing the last vestiges of idiocy out of his bullbevok backside and going DOWN.. and taking the rest of the rugby country with him.. make no mistake.. this is where this dunce is heading DOWNHILL.. not Up.
8 Oct 2012, 11:04 am
@mxhosa-201: nice analysis mate.
pretty incisive imo.
8 Oct 2012, 11:04 am
@Gumboots-182:
Well we did tell them…..They chose to ignore us…….
8 Oct 2012, 11:05 am
@Gumboots-96: best post ever
8 Oct 2012, 11:07 am
@rangerman-203: You only noticing this sh y te now? If his haphazard replacement strategy on Saturday didn’t convince even the most loyal Bok fan that he is a few tablets short of an overdose, then I don’t know what will?
Time for everyone to stop blaming individual players for losses, it honestly is NOT their fault.
8 Oct 2012, 11:07 am
@Transformation-191:
Maybe the game WAS played in Soweto
8 Oct 2012, 11:11 am
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-193: who will be the incumbent 8 next year, duane of kanko?
8 Oct 2012, 11:11 am
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-208: no ruckles, there is no excuse for players falling off tackles like ours did on sat.
or shooting up out of the line like habs did.
8 Oct 2012, 11:12 am
@Transformation-210: kanko for me.
everytime.
he has the pace duanne lacks imo.
8 Oct 2012, 11:13 am
@KiaKahaNZ-207:
Kihahahaha!
How’s the hangover?
8 Oct 2012, 11:14 am
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-208:
A few are still blaming players for the coach’s incompetence. It doesn’t really matter who is chooses the results will be the same. Britney would add to the laughs though… His ballerina prance is missed…
8 Oct 2012, 11:14 am
@KiaKahaNZ-207:
You guys are light years ahead of the chasing pack mate… Well done and deserved too…
8 Oct 2012, 11:16 am
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-208:
What has happened to your three Shark friends? Gone with the wind???
8 Oct 2012, 11:16 am
@rangerman-203:
@ “meyer is starting to look as thick as a plank imo.”
8 Oct 2012, 11:20 am
@Transformation-217: well he is.
and i am actually being nice.
8 Oct 2012, 11:21 am
@Dawn-213: hi Dawn, you well? Im still tired, twas a big night and finished with the sun rising, Oh the head, yeah, fuzzy.
However, as satisfying as the win was, a little disappointed the minority on here – cant be helped I guess, and is always to be expected
Does Bakkies know the laws>? Someone needs to enlighten him on the FULL rights of the tackler
8 Oct 2012, 11:21 am
@wpstormerbok-202: What a load of rubbish , Meyer has picked all the so called stars , Bekker, Vermeulen, JdV, Goosen , we still lost by far .
Maybe you should open your eyes and realise that some players like Vermeulen is simply to slow, no hands and nothing special.
8 Oct 2012, 11:22 am
@Gumboots-215: thanks mate, nice one.
You guys will be back, youre too proud not to be
8 Oct 2012, 11:23 am
@capebull-220: agreed he is too slow but other than that he is an awesome player.
he will do well on the eoyt mark my words.
but in a free flowing pacy game he is lost.
8 Oct 2012, 11:23 am
@mxhosa-201: another thing that seems to elude people’s minds is that most of the 2007 world cup winning team were woefully off-form – regardless of whether it was meyer or divvy coaching them…
8 Oct 2012, 11:23 am
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-208: Slow/Knock on Vermeulens fault , please come back Spies , or is vermeulen still getting fit , he looks to get slower.
8 Oct 2012, 11:24 am
@Transformation-210: Are you serious about Vermeulen, it should rather be Spies or Kanko ?
8 Oct 2012, 11:25 am
@capebull-155: AGREED.You will be
crucified.I really think that a composite team would have only
one Bok player.Eben.E.And then only as a sub. Louw plays same role as McCaw
despite having different numbers on their jersies.
No debate here.
8 Oct 2012, 11:25 am
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-208: No More Guppy Love
According to an article in Beeld, Plumtree has again spoken out at the way players like hooker Craig Burden and wing Lwazi Mvovo have been withdrawn from the Currie Cup, for months on end, only to carry tackle bags with the Bok side and see no international game time whatsoever. “That’s the stupid thing about keeping 30 players in the Bok camp during a test week,” Plumtree told the Afrikaans daily. “It makes no sense and will have to change, because keeping eight players out of Currie Cup rugby doesn’t work . There’s no logical reason for that and it wasn’t done that way in the past.
“Lwazi Mvovo and Craig Burden have been done a disservice and what’s more, we’re now heading into a crucial phase of the Currie Cup.”
8 Oct 2012, 11:28 am
@Transformation-227: well it is quite stupid man management.
did you see how awful liebenbergs lineout throwing was?
the oke is so k u u u u u u u u uk.
8 Oct 2012, 11:29 am
@Gumboots-216: I think they will rise shortly
It seems the fashionable thing to do now…is blame all the WP players for the Bok’s woes 
Ok, Taute, Jantjies and Coenie also taking a fair amount of beating….
No mention of the MIA Willem Alberts, the woefully out of form Hougaard, the utterly average Pienaar, the MIA Lambie when he came on…. ***classic***
Bekker, Vermeulen, de Villiers and Habana are the sole reason the Boks are kak – in case you weren’t aware of this
. Personally, I would be delighted if all the WP boys were dropped from this shameful excuse for a Bok group.
What is ridiculous, is how players are being blamed, when the coach is the real joke.
8 Oct 2012, 11:30 am
@Transformation-210:
Arno Botha, if the bulls have the balls to drop Spies.
8 Oct 2012, 11:30 am
@COUCHCOACH-158: Would prefer a Kieran Read frankly.
Failing him,Daniel or Kankowski
8 Oct 2012, 11:31 am
@KiaKahaNZ-219:
I’m OK, although I don’t do Mondays.
8 Oct 2012, 11:31 am
@Transformation-210: None of the above. Spies will get the jersey back. Kanko, eish man…..a few good games in the S15, and he is now a world beater? Betya he still fades in a tight physical contest. But I would still take him over Spies……
Who knows what Meyer wants……I just want all the WP players OUT, for their own sanity.
8 Oct 2012, 11:32 am
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-229: i think the whole team has taken a beating ruckles.
but jdv is clearly past it.
duanne is slow and so is alberts and so is flo.
bekker was terrible. he doesnt tackle and is about the longest yard of wet tripe i have ever seen masquerading as a bok lock.
habs was sh it.
end of.
8 Oct 2012, 11:32 am
@Transformation-223:
Meyer would’ve coached them back to form, like he did with Habana, lol.
8 Oct 2012, 11:33 am
@mxhosa-230: That’s the name
Botha…. But the Bulls are not going to drop Spies my friend – forget it. I think they believe God will punish with with thunder and lightning if Spies is scorned.
8 Oct 2012, 11:34 am
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-233: that “tight physical contest” thing is such a load of balls.
duanne fades in anything apporaoching a running game.
8 Oct 2012, 11:36 am
@rangerman-234: Give me their replacements? Seriously. On form, drop me your Bok team. Leave out overseas players, injured players etc – your EOYT Bok team.
8 Oct 2012, 11:36 am
@rangerman-234:
We get the message
All WP players were horseshit
8 Oct 2012, 11:37 am
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-238:
Gonna be Sharkies!
8 Oct 2012, 11:37 am
@rangerman-237: EOYT team please. In NH conditions……when the running game might clearly not be on.
8 Oct 2012, 11:39 am
@Dawn-240: Sharkies, Lions and Cheetahs to play in the NH conditions indeed. I’m waiting for the team…….
Slow pitches etc etc.
8 Oct 2012, 11:40 am
@rangerman-211: Kanko has greater speed,can take lineout ball,has a far superior skills set and vision.and adds as much grunt asDV Also offloads well.
Bring on the hammer and nails.
8 Oct 2012, 11:41 am
@rangerman-197:
agreed on habana,
but if asked to choose between the two based on saturdays performance…
i would take goosen with a swollen ankle over elton atm.
8 Oct 2012, 11:45 am
@ryecatcher-243: Kanko has also had more than 6 years to make the step up to the Boks, and has been given numerous opportunities that he has failed to take.
Yes, he was in sublime form in the S15……but he wasn’t even 1st choice for the Sharks?
This is what I don’t get, from the Sharkies……Lambie punted at 10, Kanko punted as starting 8 – when Plumtree clearly felt otherwise, and that in a provincial tournament? Should you fellows not questioning your provincial coaches before you insist on these players starting for the Boks?
Serious question.
8 Oct 2012, 11:46 am
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-238:
firstly i would have JdJ at 12 (til frans gets back then he can go back to the bench) and keep taute on at 13.
i would play keegs at 8 any day, any time, any opposition. we have flo to scavenge and willem to carry the ball up but we lack pace off the back of the scrum/maul and in general cover defense.
juandre kruger ahead of bekker. etsebeth can stay but needs to up his workrate or get fitter imo.
habs can stay, his poor game was just that, a poor game.
JPP on the opther wing will make a big difference imo.
hows that?
8 Oct 2012, 11:49 am
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as og food-241: Yes I would have DV in NH conditions,where weather
would compensate for his lack of pace.A la Danie Rossouw.
As for Kankos “A few good games”Deanne was not exactly brilliant.
Like you I do not like HM.Feel that he succumbs to media pressure.
8 Oct 2012, 11:50 am
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-241: as i said, duanne will probably do fine on the eoyt but he is too slow for a fast paced game especially in a loose trio that has no real pace to speak of.
you think i am being spiteful towards duanne?
i am not, its simply my observation. use it, dont use it.
@ryecatcher-243: haha, this will get some people hot and bothered.
the perception that kanko is soft is laughable. he was unreal after a long injury break in this years s15 and ran our lineouts. he made a mistake going to japland for sure.
8 Oct 2012, 11:50 am
@KiaKahaNZ-219:
your filthy lot wouldn’t know what the ‘laws’ of the game are even if i printed out 350
pdf copies of the laws, regulations and all ammendments, stuffed them all into a
bodybag, scribbled all over the bodybag in big bold red ink: ‘LAWS, REGULATIONS
AND AMMENDMENTS OF THE GAME’ and dropped them on your flippin heads one
by flippin one…..
8 Oct 2012, 11:51 am
@ryecatcher-247: agreed, like danie duanne has value in a horses for courses selection scenario.
but his lack of pace will increasingly be shown up and its not like he is getting younger.
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