Nothing soft about Soweto slaughter
8 Oct 2012
MARK KEOHANE, in Business Day newspaper, writes for anyone to claim a few soft moments was the difference for the Boks is to claim insanity.
The only thing that can save the Springboks now, said a mate of mine, is another 20 years of sporting isolation. Having just watched the match tape for a second time, for professional and not sadistic reasons, my mate may just have a point.
Damn, the Boks took a beating.
This was the most brutal of reality checks and to deny the obvious is to ask for more pain.
The Boks were second best – and by some distance. They have been for some time and there should be no comfort in being the best of those competing for numbers two to five.
The referee did not favour the All Blacks. The referee did not cheat the Boks. The All Blacks did not have an extra man on the field. Statistically all the advantage was South Africa’s, before the start and in the first quarter of the match.
The Boks were at home, playing in front of 85 000 at altitude, and against an opponent who had already claimed the tournament championship and had reached Johannesburg from New Zealand via Buenos Aires.
The assumption – at least mine – was the greater hunger for success had to be that of the Boks. Similarly, when judging the enthusiasm of the two teams.
I wrote before the match that one team wanted to win and the other had to win. I got it wrong in writing the team who had to were the South Africans.
Our boys wanted to win, but were never good enough. Richie McCaw’s men had to win to make another telling statement to those who refuse to acknowledge their achievements.
Clearly, there isn’t such a thing as a meaningless Test for these All Blacks. They set their own standards and they were done no favours by the referee who awarded the All Blacks their first penalty in the 57th minute, by which time they had already scored four tries.
I’ve seen some very talented All Black teams stumble in South Africa because of a high risk and all out attack approach. I’ve also seem some very good New Zealand teams run out of puff as altitude proved as decisive as any home team attitude.
Not in Soweto.
The All Blacks were intelligent in their approach, calculated in when to play for field position and when to trust their defensive patterns and they were ruthless on attack.
These guys played with no risk in the first 20 minutes, preferring to kick the ball back to the Boks and ask them to think. They hardly played any rugby, with the Boks making two tackles and forcing the New Zealanders to make 28.
Yet on 30 minutes the Boks trailed 12-10 and all theory about home ground advantage was secondary to the reality of an on-field beating.
I’ve seen All Black teams batter the Boks in the professional era. I’ve never seen one that appeared so easy and so emphatic as in the last 40 minutes in Soweto.
To claim a few soft moments was the difference is to claim insanity.
I don’t put much store in what coaches and players say after the game. It really is only when they see a recording of the 80 minutes that you get some sense out of them, even though Bok coach Heyneke Meyer will know that no scoreboard could do justice to the one-sided beating in Soweto.
For those of who you may challenge my view go and watch the tape again. Those last 50 minutes especially were torture and the final 10 minutes looked like the winding down of a training session.
There can be no masking the situation and there is also no gain from playing the blame game. Whether it was Johan Goosen, Elton Jantjies or Patrick Lambie at flyhalf would not have made a difference. It would not have made a difference whether the early kicks went over or not. The All Blacks would have come back just those few minutes earlier.
Each week I hear a coach, a captain and a player say a few moments cost them. If they acknowledge the problem is more complex then those few moments will hopefully decrease considerably in the next 12 months.
Questions rightfully have been asked of player performance this season. Meyer has said the season already has answered which players selected were good enough and which were not, but he needs to ask the same questions of his support staff.
How good are they? How good are the defensive structures because players don’t seem to trust each other or trust the system? What is going on with the kickers?
Hard questions have to be asked from within.
There is no need to panic because of the defeat, but I’d start to panic as a supporter if there is denial about the nature of the defeat.
288 Comments
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8 Oct 2012, 16:35 pm
@Skeppie-248: smith is not the AB backline/attack coach anymore, he is the Chiefs assistant exclusively and has been in Argentina for the past 2 weeks conducting coaching clinics.
the ABs are now manned by Shag, Fossy & Foxxy…
8 Oct 2012, 16:48 pm
I will happily have a grand against keo that we finish higher than the ABs next season.
8 Oct 2012, 16:52 pm
@DEE DAH-252: you mean the yeah the ABs will be without McCaw, Carter and Nonu?
i reckong we will take them too
8 Oct 2012, 16:58 pm
McCaw only missing until June, Carter will also be there sorry youll have to wait until after 2015
8 Oct 2012, 17:04 pm
I have not read any of the other posts so i make no comments against anyone,but my own take of the game was men v boys.The two AB centres smith and nonu carved us up the whole game,taute was out of his depth and ou tjoppie de villiers is finished at test level.The whole forward pack was very average today,and for all the ones who were saying vermeulen is the next bok No8 please think again as he is a bloody donkey and it showed against the AB`S,oh for a reuben kruger or an andre venter at flank,and we badly need another os du randt at prop as beast and du plessis are powder puff and i have written enough i could go on and on .The AB`S showed on saturday they are the best rugby team on the planet.
8 Oct 2012, 17:11 pm
@Kaizan-189: Excellent post. Well said.
8 Oct 2012, 17:12 pm
@cane-234: He just carries on like one….
8 Oct 2012, 17:13 pm
@NZINCHINA-254: oh, so they’ll be there for RC 2013?
NICE
8 Oct 2012, 17:15 pm
@blueboy-255: i bet you think spies is the answer @ 8
8 Oct 2012, 17:20 pm
@Transformation-251: It’s Shag, Fossie and Aussie. Foxxy is just a selector as far as i know
8 Oct 2012, 17:51 pm
Keo the Predictor strikes again!. Should become a movie, serial comedy off course.
8 Oct 2012, 17:58 pm
@NZINCHINA-217: That is a VERY realistic goal.
Did the ABs stop believing they can win a RWC over the 24 years? Even though they got knocked out time after time? No? Exactly.
SA has the players and the potential to beat NZ EVERY time, so 50% is very realistic. The correct, natural order of world rugby will be restored and the Boks will regain their positive win record against all nations.
1 or 2 things holding the Boks back, if they are corrected, then let the games begin
Enjoy the gloating while you can. The ABs are brilliant right now, but it wont last forever
8 Oct 2012, 18:36 pm
A player the Boks really miss is Juan Smith. Alberts is not an 80 min player. I would play him off the bench. Can Pieter Steph du Toit develop into a quality blindside flank?
8 Oct 2012, 19:26 pm
@gonzo-260: quite right, aussie is the third spoke in the wheel…foxxy is indeed a selector…
8 Oct 2012, 19:42 pm
Sonny Bill was not even playing on Saturday. How lucky were the Boks!!!
8 Oct 2012, 20:10 pm
The “out of the blue” selection of Taute at centre was a ridiculous mistake reeking of bias. The JdJ/JdV combo would have been way more prepared for the AB’s. The Stormers combo proved that in S15. Size or no size. None of these youngsters should have been bled in the Championship, bat Etzebeth who was initiated against England. Lambie’s experience and intuitive coolness was missing too. There are just too many contradictions in HS’s statements. A bit like Mitt Romney IMO. Blinded by the Light.
8 Oct 2012, 20:17 pm
Can somebody not just cull this impostor out of his goddamn blind alley delinquency already.., this moron is leading the Boks down the slippery slope of nonentity to the goddamn bottom of the ocean and nobody is batting a damn eyelid about it yet.
8 Oct 2012, 20:47 pm
@fitz1ella-267: Worst goddamn coach known to mankind: Heineken Mania, aka, the kamikaze minesweeper.
8 Oct 2012, 20:50 pm
@Peter Mkata-265: yhey ungayithethi lonto…if sbw was @ soccer city yoh yoh bekuzakunuka irhuluwa!
8 Oct 2012, 20:51 pm
HM and JDV should be shown the door. Mallett to come in and sort this sh it out.
8 Oct 2012, 20:57 pm
@garth-270: Amen. But realistically, we can only dare to hope that he replaces his coaching team or pressure is put on him to do so.
8 Oct 2012, 23:05 pm
@bokfan1-262: what do you mean it wont last forever – it already has
8 Oct 2012, 23:33 pm
@wpstormerbok-118: and this is the exact technique the Boks used to protect the ball right through the first half, blatantly flopping on and over the tackled player. First time the AB’s do it, at about the 27 min mark, you hear a little Bok forward squeeking to the ref “Sealing off sir!”. Classic – he should know, cos his team had done it about 8 times by that point, all penalizable!
When you are you guys going to open your eyes and see that your own team infringes just as much as any other team, AB’s included? I counted 17 Bok infringements in the first 27 minutes of the test, none of which were penalised and some of which preceded penalties awarded against the AB’s. For the first 60 mins of this game the referee was only watching one side – the All Blacks – if he had been reffing your side as well the All Blacks would have put 60 points on you in this game.
The fact is that you guys had the benefit of the most biaised referring performance since Barnes in 2007, home advantage, altitude advantage, and an All Black travel schedule that you said would show us how tough it was to be the Boks. Yet despite all that, you got a thrashing.
You are deluding yourselves if you think the ref had ANYTHING to do with the loss. But carry on for all I care, because it seems to be distracting you from what you need to do – improve your rugby skills, coaching and management.
8 Oct 2012, 23:38 pm
@gonzo-260: Aussie McLean was the ugly guy in the coaches box, Wiki says:-Brian “Aussie” Mclean is a professional rugby union coach, and the current defence coach of the All Blacks.
[edit] Coaching careerMclean has had more than 20 years coaching experience from club to international level, most recently as Assistant Coach of Samoa at the 2011 Rugby World Cup. He lead the New Zealand Under 19 team to five world championships, including three victories, won titles with Canterbury in 2001 and 2004, provided analysis and coaching for the Crusaders (1999–2000) and was Assistant Coach with the Hurricanes (2006–2008).[1]
He was appointed as the All Blacks defence coach in 2011, following the appointment of Steve Hansen as head coach. He had worked with Hansen in 2001 winning the NPC title (now ITM Cup) and retaining the Ranfurly Shield.[2]
8 Oct 2012, 23:44 pm
All Wiki has on Ricardo is this:-Ricardo Ian Peter Loubscher, born 11 June 1974 in Colesberg (South Africa), is a South African rugby union player, who has played for South Africa since 2002, and for the Sharks in Super Rugby.
He plays as a back (1,80 m and 83 kg).
He has played provincial rugby in the Currie Cup for Natal Sharks
No mention of any coaching pedigree at all. How come he got the job? Is it a political appointment?
9 Oct 2012, 00:42 am
@Transformation-251: Actually Fox is just a selector. The coaches are Hansen, Aussie McLean, and Ian Foster.
9 Oct 2012, 00:49 am
@bokfan1-262: Agree with all but your second paragraph. SA doesn’t currently have the players to beat the AB’s everytime they play. That is not to say that you can’t beat NZ, as any team can lose on the day including the All Blacks, but the current AB team is so strong that it could be expected to beat the Boks at least 3 out of every 4 games.
Nex year and the year after are different stories, and I expect 2014 to be a particulary difficult year for the All Blacks.
Andrew
9 Oct 2012, 01:03 am
From an All Black supports point of view,
I don’t think the boks are that far off the pace,just need to change a few players around,i do apologize if i have miss-pelt some of these names,
here are some players that i would have in your team,
6.Schalk Burger(once back from injury)Sensational player at the breakdown confrontation
7.Heinrek Brusouw
I rate this guy in the top 6 over the ball fetchers in the world Rugby,it astounds me he is not in boks squad at the least
8.Keegan Daniel
Not very big,but in terms of mobility and skill level,no question
Hougard a waste on the wing,he would be a better option at halfback,one player i was really impressed with at Super rugby level was Willie Le Roux,looked a real find on the wing,Lambie or Tate would be a much better option that Kurshner at fullback,De Jong to parnter De Villiers in the centres.
And just finally i would stick with Johaan Goosen,depending on his injury,he reminds me very much of a NZ first five,not afraid to take it to the line,to beat a team like the All Blacks,you have got to attack them,the Morne Steyn high kick game may work 1 in 10 times,but your outside backs are never going to develop,I cant believe the criticism of Bryan Habana,i would hate to think how many more tries he would have scored on the end of an all black back-line,he is a sensational player,put it this way,imagine if he had not been in the boks in the last 4 years,scary thought really,which player would have replaced him..?,i cant think of one.
Besides.if the Argentina can get Graham Henry,Why not Chase Wayne Smith as a back-line coach.
9 Oct 2012, 01:20 am
@All Black DNA-278:
Besides.if the Argentina can get Graham Henry,Why not Chase Wayne Smith as a back-line coach.
because Smith will not coach the Boks, period.
GH had a soft spot for the Argies, I dont think Smith has a soft spot for SA
9 Oct 2012, 01:41 am
look we did get found out….BUT we need to stay the course. Please don’t panic and revert to the “old ways”
9 Oct 2012, 07:43 am
Couple of points:
-need more mobile pack (we were 50Kgs heavier! than the AB’s); Good for 10 man game, but are we still playing that?
-I believe we run too fast into contact, making passing/adjustment/offloading really hard. Start a bit slower, have acceleration to go to (JDV is a good example of having 1 pace- flat out)
-Marcell=smaller JPotgieter. Do we need this type of player? Apart from Willem from time to time, has this type been effective at all over last few years
-Little team work – remember Ruan making a line break in the 1st half and having only Fourmeters Daylight to pass to? Where’s the teamwork? AB’s greatest strength is their teamwork, s’tru
-Constant hulk smash(!) makes the guys tire easily and injury prone. Use that when needed, not as default
-our national coaches need to have the opportunity to finally learn a new style (Hopefully HM and his bosses can acknowledge this, not panic and revert, fire, or make wholesale changes). Our coaches were the hardest hit by isolation imo
-kicking accuracy will come; but lets not rely on that – else we end up with a
retardedbackline with learning disabilities9 Oct 2012, 10:40 am
A major problem is the ingrained mind set that the SA’n style is fundamentally superior to the “high tempo” game played by NZ and Australia.
In the week or so leading into the Dunedin test, all was doom and gloom. Much like the atmosphere being experienced by Bokke supporters today.
Unexpectedly, the Bokke put up a much bigger challenge than expected and then followed it up with a resounding win over a crippled Aus.
The mood change was enormous. Gone was the pessimism, replaced by rampant confidence.
All you folk clamoring for a change in the way the Booke play will without a single doubt in my mind, all change your tune if they stroll through the EOYT unbeaten.
The loss on the weekend will be dismissed as a mere speed bump on the way to sure and certain glory.
9 Oct 2012, 11:15 am
@KiaKahaNZ-272: Haha – and Springbok fans are so arrogant? 2009 was THAT long ago. I will rather speak to the more balanced Kiwis on this site (the few that there are).
9 Oct 2012, 11:16 am
@j59-281: Fourmeters Daylight?
9 Oct 2012, 22:38 pm
@bokfan1-283: what a sensitive plonk you are.
For about a hundred years, give or take a few blips along the way, NZ have always been the team to beat. The fact this is echoed throughout the rugby world reinforces that statement.
This is neither arrogance nor is it ignorance.
SA too have had their moments, but in the last 15 years, they have become beatable than what they used to be – especially at home
Your losses to Scotland and Ireland put all of this into perspective.
10 Oct 2012, 07:59 am
@bokfan1-284: yeah – there was 4 meters of daylight behind him, no support players (not entirely true – looked at tthe game again, and Strauss and Beast did arrive)
Sheesh – just looked at the tackle stats from the game on rugbystats dott comm – that Suarez made 16(!) (18/2 missed) tackles, then Frank Louw with 12(14/2), then kieran read with 11 (13/2)
Alberts attempted and made 2 in total
Hougaard appeared to have a shocker tackling wise – 8 attempted, 3(!) made, 1 ineffctive, 4 missed
But then again, I haven’t counted the stats myself
11 Oct 2012, 16:35 pm
@KiaKahaNZ-285: not sure where I was being “sensitive” but anyway…
For most of those 100 years the Springboks were in fact the best team in the world and the team to beat. Perhaps you are very young or new to the game? (Although I am young but have read up on rugby history).
SA held most of the records for rugby then (grand slams etc) and brought in innovations like the 8-man scrum, dive pass and others now considered integral to rugby.
SA had a positive win record against all nations including NZ.
While I do agree that SA has been mostly disappointing since re-admission in 1992 (besides 95, 97/98, 99, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2009), before that they were the best in the world.
And one day they will be again
11 Oct 2012, 16:42 pm
@j59-286: Understand – I thought “Fourmeters Daylight” was a nickname for a player
What site do you use for the stats?
rugbystats dott comm doesnt seem to work…
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