Demanding more from awful Boks
19 Nov 2012
MARK KEOHANE, in his weekly Business Day column, says this has been a desperate end-of-year tour for the Springboks, and to criticise them does not make one unpatriotic.
From a distance this Springbok tour has only depressed me. Does that mean the Springboks depress me? No. Does this mean there is no hope? No.
Forget what next year could hold. Let’s deal in real time with the considerable disappointment for those of us who appreciate the potential within South African rugby and the quality of player that makes up South African rugby.
Each to his own, be it in acknowledgment or denial, but I find it an insult to South African rugby that so many are so willing to call a win a win and dismiss any dismay as disparagement of the Bok coach, management, players and just anti-South African.
Why is there such irrational and ignorant investment of energy? I can’t explain the conservatism of the Springboks’ approach — and I am referring to the coaching staff.
I expected more and rightly so. I’ll take an ugly win in the World Cup final and I’ll take an ugly win every time if it is against the All Blacks. There are times a team will win ugly, but very good teams with aspirations to be great teams mostly win with a swagger more than a stagger.
I know the Bok players have character and that they take seriously the responsibility of playing for South Africa and excelling as national players. If you have to applaud them for this then they’re in the wrong profession. It’s a given.
I understand that among the goals of the Boks between this year and 2015 is to concede the least points in world rugby and to concede the least tries. Nowhere is there talk of scoring the most points and scoring the most tries.
Christmas can’t come soon enough, and I hope the gift of introspection comes wrapped with whatever else makes its way to the home of Bok coach Heyneke Meyer and his support staff. Nothing has been gained from this tour. The Boks can tackle. The Boks can maul. The Boks have character.
I don’t want South Africa to be New Zealand. I want them to be South Africa. Good Springbok teams have always played rugby. The good ones have had more than just character, a desire to tackle and an effective mauling technique.
The good, very good and great Bok teams have trusted their basic skills and believed that the true expression of their talent is in scoring tries and points — and not in how few are conceded.
I have never understood the flippancy with which the words ‘negative’ and ‘positive’ are used within the Bok context. To condemn the Springboks’ performance in Dublin and Edinburgh is apparently a negative. To applaud the win is to be patriotic, passionate and positive. Again, each to their own.
I prefer ‘accurate’ and ‘inaccurate’ when assessing the Boks. Is it accurate to laud a win fashioned by an intercept try and supposedly brutal defence in the last 20 minutes against a side ranked 10 in the world who a week earlier conceded 50 points against the All Blacks?
To talk of being the best requires more than a PowerPoint presentation and a Vince Lombardi quote.
Heyneke Meyer, my preferred choice as Bok coach, seems convinced 2012 was always going to be a struggle and survival was a more appropriate ‘go to’ than sensation. I haven’t been floored by this defeatist attitude but I have been dazed and deflated.
Apparently to tackle is to care if you are a Bok. Apparently to attack is to risk despair.
Where’s the cheer been in this tour? Where’s the evolution?
A week ago I wrote of the fear of failure within the Boks and the restrictive approach that rewards no risk and the possibility of a mistake.
The Boks, regardless of who coaches them, should have beaten Ireland and Scotland. Both teams are inferior in every aspect. Both teams currently don’t have the pedigree of player to threaten a side with the player resource of South Africa.
I will always have an expectation of a nation with two World Cup titles. To demand anything less is to not care; alternatively not to know.
The players know it has been an awful tour in performance and quality. Perhaps more applicably it has been a desperate tour.
I won’t apologise for demanding more from the coach and the players.
A week ago I said the players should embrace the adventure. Some pounced on this as results not meaning anything. Of course they mean everything, otherwise there wouldn’t be a score and there wouldn’t be a winner. But to accept the post-match virtues of character and player pride for the Bok jersey is to accept being second best.
I won’t, and the optimist in me thinks neither will those who assess the Bok performance instead of excusing the lack of performance.
427 Comments
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19 Nov 2012, 13:06 pm
Make Flo captain and get a inside centre that can offload when his in a half gap situation.
And no kicking when we in the opponents half.
Problem solved.
19 Nov 2012, 13:08 pm
@sonofgun-70: Fokkit boet…… what games were you watching this season? Yes CJ is sub par but calling the Lions pack weak? Try again….
19 Nov 2012, 13:09 pm
@Jeraldjay-101: Half of the problem solved. After that, all players need to learn how to keep the ball alive and offload in the tackle. Then we need a Fullback worthy of wearing the green and gold jersey with attacking skills.
19 Nov 2012, 13:10 pm
@Jeraldjay-101:
That would mean a new coach, before that can happen…
It is 9 or 10 kick. 15 kick when kicked on…
That won’t happen in the near future… A really good point though…
19 Nov 2012, 13:10 pm
@sonofgun-70: I get your point about CJ, but the Lions pack shoved every single SA team around the field, week in and week out.
19 Nov 2012, 13:13 pm
@Hondo-53: Look everyone knows your mo. But that aside, even you can’t be satisfied with a scrappy win. It should have been an *** whopping by our fringe players, not a scarppy win, by our best run on side. Never fear Hondo, one of these days, your precious Meyer is going to get the *** whopping of his life. Then he won’t be able to cough up these ****** excuses he makes week in and week out.
19 Nov 2012, 13:16 pm
@rossoneri-106: For the sake of clarity, please remind us who you’re talking about when you say “our”, as in our fringe players and our best run on side.
19 Nov 2012, 13:26 pm
Another emotional article.
how can any team attack off the back of 7 scrum penalties against?
seriously Keo? you know this, why would you write anything other than this.
Jannie dup needed to be subbed if we have any ambition to beat england. SA may well have good players so you say….but please point to me another worldclass tighthead?
and, furthermore, Lambvie is even less effective than Steyn.M is when he receives slow backfoot ball.
19 Nov 2012, 13:29 pm
@sonofgun-70:
I agree, but the substitution had to be made in my opinion. We will need Jannie for the full 80 this weekend and he has already played nearly every minute of rugby this season.
SA is very short of scrummaging tightheads.
19 Nov 2012, 13:32 pm
Our problem is, and has been for years, that outside of structure we offer zilch. If it’s not a planned move or strike runner performing a planned move we’re really scraping the bottom of the barrel for ideas.
19 Nov 2012, 13:35 pm
This team is a disgrace & we must blame the coach – they play with fear & panic – look at the wild look on Heyneke’s face during the game – this is not a man in control & you can see it with the players – time for De villiers, Kirchner to go – De Villiers is Heyneke’s puppet & at beast a slow flanker.
19 Nov 2012, 13:37 pm
@Jeraldjay-101:
Will there be somebody on his shoulder to off load to?
JdJ made a break, look around for a player to off load to, saw nobody and had to go to ground.
SA players just don’t run good supporting lines for the most part. We need more 7′s players in our back line, like Ebersohn, but I guess they are too small.
19 Nov 2012, 13:39 pm
As an afterthought…..if the boks had won 44-33 for example?
Would that have been considered a better result than 21-11?
Or would every one be wanting to Can mcfarland like a couple of months back but now that our defence looks granite like it is time to can the attacking coach.
the biggest improvement required in sa rugby is withregards to the general intellect of the supporters.
19 Nov 2012, 13:41 pm
@nama1-112:
that is probably just as well considering that he can’t pass anyway?
innit?
19 Nov 2012, 13:42 pm
@Brigadier Van Zyl-113: Amen to that. I feel if we cull the thickest 50 or 60 here on keo, we’d already increase the Bok supporter’s average IQ by a significant number.
19 Nov 2012, 13:45 pm
@katman-115:
not far off the truth though is it?
19 Nov 2012, 13:45 pm
I hope that Meyer will have the courage of his convictions and select Morne for the game against England. He is stuffing up a very good, young player in Lambie by trying to turn him into a Morne clone.
Why not select the original then? He is there, he is available and he had his “mental break” now.
It’s like buying a CD of Jan de Wet singing, “The Best of Pavarotti” when you could’ve bought the original.
So, let it be MORNE this coming Saturday, please!!!
19 Nov 2012, 13:47 pm
@nama1-117: Please god no. Sainsbury’s is making enough money off me on wines as it is every Saturday.
19 Nov 2012, 13:48 pm
with the new scrum laws you need 2 worldclass tightheads in your match day squad. And I’m talking scrummaging tightheads not specifically highwork rate props…SA has any number of those.
How is wp nel..is he any good? I cannot think of anyone outside of jannie dup.
time to call up eddie andrews? lol
19 Nov 2012, 13:50 pm
@Brigadier Van Zyl-113: Our defence was good because we now have the Stormer players in the team running the “D”. We also had Lambie at 10 the past 2 weeks, and the kid really is solid as all hell in his channel on “D” (which makes a huge difference in overall ‘D’ success). Fuckall to do with shattered glass McFarland….
19 Nov 2012, 13:51 pm
@nama1-117:
yes,yes… no doubt Meyer is telling Lambie. “Stand around and look lost, stand really deep, don’t think of passing, kick every ball away, especially quick ball that is the best to kick away.”
ja right
19 Nov 2012, 13:52 pm
@Brigadier Van Zyl-109: Meyer selected CJ who had a nothing season for the Lions…fail on his part!
even Brok Harris – can’t believe i’m saying this – is better than serial turf muncher CJ…
19 Nov 2012, 13:52 pm
@katman-115:
Most left on their own accord anyway.
19 Nov 2012, 13:53 pm
@Brigadier Van Zyl-114:
He can’t pass or is his passing just not that great?
Are you going to only concentrate on a supposed weakness of the player, something he can improve on btw, or are you also going to give him credit for the positives he brings with him?
You know that a guy like Joost played international rugby for more than a decade as SH without a great past to his right hand side?
19 Nov 2012, 13:54 pm
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-120:
if it has fckall to do with mcfarland…..why were you wanting him canned when the boks were conceding a couple of months back?
Like I said, biggest hinderance to SA rugby is the lack of brain among supporters.
19 Nov 2012, 13:55 pm
@nama1-117: You know what I reckon. Most Bok fans would respect this tellytubby more if he just had the tennisballs to come right out and say to the public:
We will only be playing this way.
“I only want Steyn at 10.
I only want big, strong and thick fellas in the backline as I find any sort of backline play overrated.
FuckyouSA rugby public, journalists and ex Bok coaches – let me select who I really want to, and let them play my way and judge me on that.”
Shadow boxing the way he is currently is what p # ss es folk of.
19 Nov 2012, 13:56 pm
@Transformation-122:
true, but as I said, who else to select. You say brok harris but that is a very short term pick and to be fair CJ is a seasoned international and has been the past 2 bok coaches default bench prop.
19 Nov 2012, 13:57 pm
@Brigadier Van Zyl-121: These WP supporters truly believe that.
19 Nov 2012, 13:57 pm
@Brigadier Van Zyl-125: I know mate. 10 Meyer worshippers time sharing a one brain cell chalet is tragic.
19 Nov 2012, 13:58 pm
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-126: Keep telling yourself that.
19 Nov 2012, 13:58 pm
@mikeybrass-118:
Morne or no Morne.
You are fucked either way.
@Brigadier Van Zyl-121:
So, you are saying that Lambie had been playing his natural game for the past two weeks?
19 Nov 2012, 13:59 pm
@nama1-124:
why not, that seems to be what everyone else does on this site is it not?
19 Nov 2012, 14:00 pm
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-126: The supporters sommer do it for him.
19 Nov 2012, 14:01 pm
@Nikita-123: Perhaps, but there are a number of very persistent bottom feeders still lurking. You’re our gal on the inside. Can’t you help us here? Can’t you eject them from the keo sewers?
19 Nov 2012, 14:01 pm
Supergees(supergeese) like Robbie says.
19 Nov 2012, 14:02 pm
@Brigadier Van Zyl-121: Then why is he doing it? Let me explain:
Lambie, like ANY other young man, wants to play for the Boks – regardless of who the dumbfuck is coaching at the time.
To do this, Lambie needs to perform in a way that pleases the coach, or, the coach will select someone who is more pleasing to him…..simples.
You think Lambie is thick enough to try and play his natural game, when doing this would be the end of him at international level? He’s doing what he has to do to survive. Also simples….
Meyer doesn’t need to ‘order’ Lambie to play the Steyn way………The message is clear enough without resorting to that.
19 Nov 2012, 14:03 pm
The Springbok brand will slowly start to suffer.
Nobody would want to buy replica jerseys and other branded products and stadium attendance will start to decrease even further.for test matches.
The title sponsors will then start to abandon ship because they not getting a return on investment.
Its not only about winning rugby is a form of entertainment.
19 Nov 2012, 14:03 pm
@Horings-130: No, I want Meyer to come right out and say it LIKE IT IS.
I would respect him more for it.
19 Nov 2012, 14:04 pm
@nama1-131:
is it beyond the realm of possibility that Lambie may not be a test calibre flyhalf?
lets face it, Lambies best performances at 10 have only ever come at CC level.
why does everyone assume that CC standard is transferable to test standard?
same old same old…blame the coach.
Goosen on the other hand had everyone sitting up and taking note after just 10 minutes of test rugby.
think about it?
19 Nov 2012, 14:05 pm
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-126:
My point exactly.
He wants Morne in the team but because of the pressure from the public he went with Lambie. Only to try and turn him into Morne Part 2.
Just select Morne then and stand or fall by your conviction that he is your go to man.
19 Nov 2012, 14:05 pm
@nama1-131: I’m trying to keep the wine tab down! Morne on the field = 2 glasses, not one!
19 Nov 2012, 14:05 pm
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-136: So Meyer should never have said to Lambie he needs to work on his tactical kicking?
19 Nov 2012, 14:06 pm
@katman-134:
We need a few bull bloggers. There won’t be anything to laugh about if we didn’t have them.
19 Nov 2012, 14:08 pm
@nama1-140: you and pedigree is in a loveley hamstermillesque harmony, please don’t stop. L-OL
19 Nov 2012, 14:08 pm
@nama1-140: Exactly. In the meantime, Goosen’s play was the complete opposite of Steyn but remember too that Goosen did this on the harder southern fields. Meyer wants a very very tight specific game up north and Lambie was adhering to it.
The Brig is fast consuming the chalet.
19 Nov 2012, 14:08 pm
@Brigadier Van Zyl-139:
and furthermore, why didn’tMeyer tell Goosen to skop the leather off the ball then.
Ah, it is a canaving tactic to make all the sharkies look dof?
right, got it?
a very cunning plan by meyer.
19 Nov 2012, 14:09 pm
@Horings-142: Like Honiball was ever any good at tactical kicking to make the Bok team.
19 Nov 2012, 14:09 pm
nobody seems to have picked up that the boks first try was awarded after obstruction with steenkamp running into a player of his team in front of him.
and for the second try even srtauss slowed down as he thought he may have been offside.
i cannot call on this.
but what i can say is that this must be the poorest springbok team in decades.
19 Nov 2012, 14:09 pm
@Horings-142: Never said that. (I was highly fuckedoff when he told Rhule that he needed to work on his tactical kicking though, when the kid himself is a ball in hand player – no question….)
What I am saying is Meyer only wants ONE type of 10. The keeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeking type. He knows it, the players know it, and the world knows it.
Why does he need to dodge the issue?
Do you people honestly not see this?
19 Nov 2012, 14:09 pm
@Jeraldjay-137: perfection is when there is nothing left to add. you did perfectly.
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