Ken Borland

The Springbok squad for the end-of-year tour to Europe will be announced on Monday and I will be looking forward to half-a-dozen Black Africans being named in the 36-man group, all of them entirely on merit.

The Springboks will be playing against Ireland, England, Italy and Wales and will be in action from November 8-29. The final Test, against Wales in Cardiff, will be played without any overseas-based players, but from the first-choice 23 that only rules out Bryan Habana, JP Pietersen, Schalk Burger and Bakkies Botha.

Probably the most interesting aspect of the tour will be whether the Springboks can adapt the fast-paced game they seemed to have mastered by beating the All Blacks in their last match to the heavier fields of Europe. It’s important to remember that this is a dress rehearsal for the World Cup because it’s the last time South Africa will play in the United Kingdom before that showpiece tournament starts next September, so there will be limited experimentation.

I’m looking forward to Lwazi Mvovo getting a run on the wing in that Test against Wales, which could also see Western Province flyer and former Springbok Sevens star Seabelo Senatla on the bench as he embarks on the next step of what will surely be a stellar international career.

After all the speculation and comments before the game against New Zealand, there’s no doubt Teboho ‘Oupa’ Mohoje was on trial at Ellis Park and he came through with flying colours with a great all-round display. After plying his trade on the University of the Free State fields a year ago, he can now look forward to strutting his stuff on the famous turf of Twickenham, Lansdowne Road and the Millenium Stadium.

Trevor Nyakane should also be on the bench as cover for the estimable Tendai Mtawarira, while the third hooker behind Bismarck du Plessis and Adriaan Strauss will surely be either Scarra Ntubeni or Bongi Mbonambi now that Schalk Brits is out injured.

The total number of players of colour should be 11 as the Springboks slowly but surely move towards properly representing the demographics of South Africa.

Coach Heyneke Meyer has held his cards close to his chest, but what he has divulged is that the selectors met two weeks ago to discuss the squad so brilliant displays out of the blue in the Currie Cup knockout rounds are unlikely to influence the composition of the squad. The fact that the squad will be announced on Monday and not directly after the Currie Cup final is further indication that Meyer wants to move away from selections based on a fortnight of brilliance.

Nevertheless, he could well want to gather more information on key Lions players like Jaco Kriel, Julian Redelinghuys, Schalk van der Merwe, Ruan Dreyer and Marnitz Boshoff.

He has already gathered some insight into the likes of Senatla, Rudy Paige, Nizaam Carr and Mbonambi at training camps in the last month and they are all in line for their first Springbok call-ups.

Questions that Meyer will also look to get answered during the tour are:

• Is Handre Pollard still the best choice at flyhalf when conditions call for a more tactical game?;
• if Ruan Pienaar is still struggling with injury, who is the next best scrumhalf?;
• What is the best loose trio balance, both starting and on the bench?;
• What depth exists at tighthead prop and outside centre?;
• If Willie le Roux gets injured, who plays fullback?

Possible Springbok squad: Willie le Roux, Cornal Hendricks, JP Pietersen, Jan Serfontein, Damien de Allende, Jean de Villiers, Bryan Habana, Lwazi Mvovo, Seabelo Senatla, Handre Pollard, Pat Lambie, Morne Steyn/Marnitz Boshoff, Francois Hougaard, Cobus Reinach, Ruan Pienaar/Rudy Paige, Duane Vermeulen, Warren Whiteley, Nizaam Carr, Teboho Mohoje, Willem Alberts, Marcell Coetzee, Schalk Burger, Jaco Kriel, Victor Matfield, Lood de Jager, Eben Etzebeth, Bakkies Botha, Jannie du Plessis, Julian Redelinghuys, Bismarck du Plessis, Adriaan Strauss, Scarra Ntubeni/Bongi Mbonambi, Tendai Mtawarira, Trevor Nyakane, Schalk van der Merwe, Ruan Dreyer/Lourens Adriaanse.

Through Springbok call-ups, injuries or emigration, the Cell C Sharks lost 16 players between the SuperRugby and Currie Cup competitions and coach Brad Macleod-Henderson believes the players who stepped in did a reasonably good job considering what inexperienced respondents they were.

Frans Steyn, Ryan Kankowski, Jean Deysel and Keegan Daniel all moved to Japan; Pat Lambie, Cobus Reinach, Tendai Mtawarira, Bismarck and Jannie du Plessis, Marcell Coetzee and JP Pietersen were all called up to the Springboks; Anton Bresler (Edinburgh), Charl McLeod (Grenoble) and Wiehahn Herbst (Ulster) also decided to play overseas; and Pieter-Steph du Toit and Willem Alberts were unable to play due to injury.

Nevertheless, the Sharks managed to finish third on the Currie Cup log before going down 50-20 to a rampant Lions team at Ellis Park last weekend. The likes of centre Andre Esterhuizen, scrumhalf Cameron Wright, prop Thomas du Toit, lock JC Astle and loose forwards Ettienne Oosthuizen, Khaya Majola and Tera Mtembu all made big strides during the campaign and experienced players like SP Marais, S’Bura Sithole, Lwazi Mvovo, Kyle Cooper, Lourens Adriaanse, Stephan Lewies, Marco Wentzel and Jacques Botes stepped up to the plate as well.

“I’m reasonably happy with the season, we had quite a few young guys in the team and we had to bounce back from a rough start. We were playing some nice rugby towards the end, winning in Pretoria and Cape Town is always going to take some doing, but unfortunately we didn’t play anywhere near to our potential in the semi-final. But credit to the Lions, who dominated us in all phases and, although there was a glimmer of hope in the second half, they took it to a different level at the end of the match,” Macleod-Henderson told The Citizen yesterday.

With director of rugby Jake White leaving the Sharks four weeks ago and no replacement yet named, Macleod-Henderson was unable to answer questions about his future but he did feel several players had shown in the Currie Cup that they can perform at SuperRugby level.

“The Currie Cup was a great opportunity for guys to show their quality – players like Tera Mtembu, who was outstanding as captain and eighthman, an older head like Marco Wentzel showed he still has the attitude and heart to succeed at that level, and Kyle Cooper, who didn’t get as much opportunity in SuperRugby as he would have liked.

“The Currie Cup players have shown what they can do and SuperRugby is a very tough competition, 16 matches and then the knockouts, a real marathon,” Macleod-Henderson said.

The coach said questions over the Sharks’ defence, the number of unforced errors they made, and the scrum, which was badly exposed by the Lions, will need to be answered before the next SuperRugby campaign.

An announcement is expected in the near future as to White’s successor, with Gary Gold, the former Springbok assistant coach and head coach of London Irish, Western Province, Newcastle, Bath and Kobelco Steelers, still the favourite to be appointed.

Western Province won’t need an informer inside the Vodacom Blue Bulls camp to tell them how their Absa Currie Cup semi-final opponents will approach Saturday’s game at Newlands after the visitors yesterday named Handre Pollard at inside centre.

Pollard is perhaps the most incisive flyhalf with ball in hand in South Africa since Henry Honiball and the Western Province defence will be on red alert every time the Bulls visit their 22, with the new Springbok sensation proving lethal in recent weeks every time he has run at the opposition line.

But Western Province will not only be under threat from Pollard’s running skills. They can expect an aerial bombardment from the Bulls as well, with two accomplished tactical kickers lining up at 10 and 12 in Jacques-Louis Potgieter and Pollard, and wing Bjorn Basson, seemingly back at his best, giving chase.

“The unfortunate injury to Burger Odendaal gave us this opportunity to play Handre at inside centre, even though his first choice is flyhalf. He played a lot of his rugby at 12 last year and he will definitely bring something different. We feel confident with the options it gives us, we have two decision-makers at 10 and 12 now, they’re more than just kickers but they can also release pressure with the boot or produce attacking kicks,” Bulls coach Frans Ludeke said yesterday.

If the Bulls can get their fair share of front-foot ball from their forwards, then they certainly have the weapons to put Western Province under pressure.

“It’s definitely going to be a collision game, both teams have good packs and that’s where the game will be won or lost,” Bulls captain and flank Deon Stegmann said. “We’ve had some good games up front in the last few weeks, and our scrum and maul are definitely strengths.”

Western Province can expect plenty of ferocious ball-carrying from the Bulls, with Dean Greyling, Bongi Mbonambi and Werner Kruger named as the front row, while there will be explosiveness from the bench with Marcel van der Merwe, rotated scrumhalf Piet van Zyl, the returning Sampie Mastriet and Jesse Kriel lurking there.

Ludeke praised Western Province as a top-class side, but said his team had developed a considerable amount of momentum from a winning run under pressure.

“Western Province deserve to be top of the log, they have played great rugby this season and are deservedly hosting a semi-final. But whatever team takes their chances best on Saturday will win and we’ve seen now what our guys do in tight situations. It brought the guys together, they lifted their game, and the decision-making was excellent, like the way they handled the last few minutes of the must-win game against the Free State Cheetahs,” Ludeke said.

Blue Bulls team – 15-Ulrich Beyers, 14-Akona Ndungane, 13-William Small-Smith, 12-Handre Pollard, 11-Bjorn Basson, 10-Jacques-Louis Potgieter, 9-Rudy Paige, 8-Jono Ross, 7-Jacques du Plessis, 6-Deon Stegmann, 5-Grant Hattingh, 4-Paul Willemse, 3-Werner Kruger, 2-Bongi Mbonambi, 1-Dean Greyling. Reserves: 16-Callie Visagie, 17-Marcel van der Merwe, 18-Nicolaas Janse van Rensburg, 19-Wiaan Liebenberg, 20-Piet van Zyl, 21-Sampie Mastriet, 22-Jesse Kriel.

The teams that supposedly did not have a prayer in SuperRugby this year were the most impressive South African sides in a rather depressing seventh round over the weekend.

While the Cheetahs claimed their fourth successive victory and climbed into the playoff places with their comprehensive victory over the Melbourne Rebels, and the Southern Kings once again shone in defeat, both the Bulls and Stormers paid the fee for terrible set-pieces and slumped to defeat against the Brumbies and the Crusaders respectively.

The Cheetahs are really beginning to bloom and their 34-16 win over the Rebels featured five tries, all scored by backline players – fullback Hennie Daniller, left wing Raymond Rhule, right wing Willie le Roux, outside centre Johann Sadie and replacement wing Rayno Benjamin.

The Rebels were far stronger opposition than they were last weekend against the Sharks and, apart from the manner in which the Cheetahs put them away in the second half, the other impressive feature of their victory was that they had just arrived from overseas.

“The guys had jet lag and we needed to start fresh after our success overseas, so I would have been happy with just the victory,” coach Naka Drotske said.

The Cheetahs started the match energetically enough, going 3-0 up inside the first 10 minutes, but they then fell asleep and allowed the Rebels to dictate terms and take a 6-3 lead before the last 10 minutes of the first half, when Le Roux’s exquisitely-timed pass allowed Sadie to burst through a gap and put Daniller away for the try.

The Cheetahs had spurned two clear try-scoring chances a few minutes earlier, so it was necessary for them to really switch on in the second half.

They did that and the backline were superb – Le Roux, inside centre Robert Ebersohn, Sadie and Rhule looked lethal every time they had the ball. Credit should also go to Burton Francis, the Cheetahs’ third-choice flyhalf, who gave a polished all-round display despite being rushed into the pivot position when Riaan Smit tore his hamstring while kicking before the match.

Amongst the forwards, the scrum finished strongly, hooker Adriaan Strauss had some inspirational moments and Coenie Oosthuizen was practically impossible to stop on the advantage line. Lock Lood de Jager made a few mistakes, but he had presence, while loose forward Lappies Labuschagne was once again hugely impressive.

Le Roux said after the game that he loved playing in a Cheetahs team “that has no structure”, at the same time having a dig at the structure of the Bulls and Stormers, but for all his wonderful skills with ball-in-hand, the 23-year-old from the Western Cape is clearly not gifted with the most astute tactical brain.

Rugby becomes a very difficult game to play successfully without any structure (who’s going to attend the breakdown for instance?) and the Cheetahs’ four-match winning streak – equalling their best ever in 2011 – has more to do with the huge improvement in their defensive structure than their willingness to run from anywhere.

Of course, Le Roux is at his best when the game becomes open and unstructured and the Cheetahs are certainly masters at playing ad lib, while the Bulls and Stormers can become stifled by their own precise planning.

While structure has become the watchword of modern rugby, ensuring you have a solid scrum and lineout has been law since those set-pieces were introduced.

Sadly, both the Bulls and Stormers seem to have ignored the importance of those facets and, as a result, slumped into even more trouble in the competition as they both suffered their third defeats.

The Stormers were 11-0 up after 23 minutes of their crunch clash with the Crusaders at Newlands, but could score just three more points in the next hour as they were beaten 19-14.

The Crusaders, despite missing Dan Carter, Kieran Read and Richie McCaw, losing Israel Dagg on the day of the game and Owen Franks and Johnny McNicholl early in the match, played with more precision and brought more ferocity to the breakdowns than the Newlands faithful have seen all season. Young Tyler Bleyendaal stepped into Carter’s considerable boots at flyhalf more than adequately and dictated the flow of the game as he comprehensively won the territorial battle.

But more than anything else, the Stormers were condemned by their awful lineout. Retreaded flank Deon Fourie’s throwing has always been dodgy but questions also have to be asked of Andries Bekker, who was comprehensively outplayed by the brilliant Sam Whitelock, but continued to call lineout throws to himself when he was heavily marked.

Stormers coach Allister Coetzee also owes flyhalf Elton Jantjies a bit more faith. The Lions recruit was sublime last week in the victory over the Brumbies; against the Crusaders he looked a bit-player as Joe Pietersen was given the goalkicking duties and Jantjies was very seldom used as the first receiver. Unsurprisingly, he lacked confidence and was replaced midway through the second half.

Jake White is as sly a coach as you get but his Brumbies were disappointing in beating the Bulls 23-20 in Canberra, needing a controversial penalty after the hooter to beat a visiting side who were horribly mediocre themselves.

The Bulls had been typically reliant on kicking for position, but did so poorly, the Brumbies beating them at their own game. When the tourists did go wide with ball-in-hand, they had been physically dominated by the imposing Brumbies trio of wings Henry Speight and Jo Tomane and outside centre Tevita Kuridrani, leading to turnovers.

But, most importantly, the Bulls scrum had been an absolute disaster, conceding a string of penalties and ultimately a yellow card to loosehead prop Morné Mellett for repeated infringements.

Having reported on many Tests during White’s tenure with the Springboks when they failed to dominate seemingly “weak” Australian scrums, it was ironic to see a Brumbies pack shoving a Blue Bulls scrum all over the place. But White has always been a student of the game and is strong on traditional values like building a solid scrum around a powerful tighthead prop (Dan Palmer in this case).

But even though they had such a good platform, the Brumbies struggled to put the Bulls away and were clearly not on top of their game, perhaps due to the burden of travelling back from South Africa.

And it almost cost them as, on the stroke of full-time, lock Juandré Kruger ripped the ball off the Brumbies and fed replacement prop Frik Kirsten, who burst clear before outside centre JJ Engelbrecht sped away for the try. Flyhalf Morné Steyn was practically on the touchline as he provided the conversion that brought the Bulls back on to level terms (20-20).

Sadly for the Bulls, they then tried to run from the kick-off, Arno Botha taking the ball up and being penalised for holding on, even though Brumbies scrumhalf Nic White was clearly not on his feet as he played the ball at the ruck.

The slick Christian Lealiifano stepped up and kicked the penalty and there was little doubt the Brumbies deserved the win marginally more than the Bulls.

The Kings went down 46-30 to the Hurricanes in Wellington but there continues to be improvement in the rookies’ game.

There can be few more threatening attacking sides than the Hurricanes and the Kings were better in defence even though they conceded six tries.

There were three tries for the Kings and, in the third quarter, there were moments when the Eastern Cape side looked capable of winning as they closed the gap to 23-29 and had the Hurricanes under pressure in their own half.

 http://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2013-04-02-superrugby-wrap-cheetahs-stretch-winning-run/#.VGX0rfmUde8