Ken Borland

South Africa coach Gary Kirsten said on Monday that the decision to visit Switzerland for a team-building exercise before their tour of England was because spirit could prove the difference between the two squads in the Test series between the number one and two ranked sides.

The South Africans left Johannesburg on Monday night and headed for Switzerland, where they will spend four days with explorer and compatriot Mike Horn at his outdoor survival camp.

They will then arrive in England on Friday, playing warm-up matches against Somerset (July 9-10) and Kent (July 13-15) before the first Test starts at the Oval on July 19.

“It’s not an exact science, how much preparation you need, but we’ll have 17 days together as a team before the first Test and we just wanted to cover all our bases.

“We’ll be playing against a very high quality team, so we really need to connect as a unit. The series might well boil down to a couple of crucial moments and we want to make sure that we are up for those,” Kirsten told a news conference at Johannesburg International Airport on Monday.

“We’re joining up with Mike Horn, a South African adventurer of note, and we’re just going to hang out with a guy we respect hugely. I hope it creates some fantastic memories for the squad and team spirit will be very important against a very good side. We like to be creative and think out of the box a bit,” Kirsten said.

South Africa captain Graeme Smith will play his 100th Test at the Oval and will also want to continue his fine form in England, where he has scored 1083 runs in nine tests at an average of 72.20.

But Smith said beating England in the series and reclaiming the number one spot for South Africa on the International Cricket Council rankings were his prime motivations.

“I’m obviously extremely proud to have the opportunity to play 100 Tests for my country and my motivation is the same as it was on my first tour of England. But I hope we win the Test – my 100th is just a side thing – and we don’t need much more motivation than beating England in England. Hopefully this year we can take a step forward to the next level and hang on to the number one ranking, but we’re up against a very good England team,” Smith said.

Smith added that even though most attention had focused on the two teams’ bowlers, the batsmen also had a key role to play.

“I hope our attack dominates, but both sides’ bowlers are highly skilful. Imran Tahir is an asset for us because he allows us something different – an attacking spinner – but the rest of the attack also needs to perform with skill and pace.

“I know it’s more exciting to talk about bowlers hurling the ball down at 150km/h, but the batsmen also have a crucial part to play – we must have runs on the board. I believe we have enough batsmen who have done the job under pressure, they all have good records in England and those who haven’t played Tests there have played a lot of county cricket. As a whole, the top six needs to be really tight,” Smith said.

“We want to become the best in the world, that’s a peg we’ve put in the ground, but it’s not our focus. What we do every day is what’s important and we will prepare as best we can. I can promise that no stone will be left unturned come July 19,” Kirsten said.

Smith said the sense of anticipation for the tour could be felt in South Africa and had rubbed off on the team.

“Just the buzz around shows how much the tour means, we feel how much the tour means to the fans. It’s between the two top teams and the England side have proven themselves over the last couple of years to be very methodical and well-drilled. They won a big series in Australia and we expect them to be well-prepared and battle-hardened.

“We respect them a lot and the cricket will be hard, no one will give an inch,” Smith said.

Fullback Nick Abendanon scored a hat-trick of tries as England ran riot in a 57-31 (half-time 31-10) victory over the SA Northern Barbarians in their tour match at Olen Park on Tuesday.

With Abendanon making over a hundred metres running with ball in hand, and replacement wing Jonny May showing searing pace, England were an attacking threat throughout, although defensive lapses early in the second half allowed the Barbarians back into the game.

May expertly finished two tries in the 63rd and 70th minutes which settled the contest after the Barbarians had scored twice after half-time to close the gap to 24-31.

The 22-year-old May, who only arrived in South Africa last weekend as a replacement for George Lowe, came off the bench in the 26th minute after Ugo Monye injured himself in a tackle which knocked him out and damaged his neck.

Monye went to hospital for a scan, but England management are confident there is no serious damage to his neck.

Abendanon, himself a late call-up to the tour party, scored in the 19th, 32nd and 36th minutes.

Flyhalf Charlie Hodgson, who dominated the territorial battle with his boot but also sparked his backline well, missed just one kick at goals as he added seven conversions and a penalty.

Eighthman Ben Morgan and centre Anthony Allen were the other England players who scored tries, while the tourists were also awarded a penalty try in the last minute.

The Barbarians, drawn from B Division provinces, were thoroughly outplayed except in the third quarter, when scrumhalf Shaun Venter scored twice in three minutes.

Scorers

SA Northern Barbarians – Tries: Joubert Engelbrecht, Shaun Venter (2), Deon Scholtz. Conversions: JC Roos (4). Penalty: Roos.

England – Tries: Nick Abendanon (3), Ben Morgan, Jonny May (2), Anthony Allen, penalty try. Conversions: Charlie Hodgson (7). Penalty: Hodgson.

England captain Chris Robshaw will miss the third and final Test against South Africa on Saturday after he cracked a thumb in the second Test in Johannesburg last weekend, coach Stuart Lancaster confirmed on Monday.

Lancaster said Robshaw took a blow to the thumb in the first Test in Durban and then another blow in the second Test. Scans of the thumb on Monday revealed an undisplaced fracture and the medical advice was that the openside flank should not play in the third Test in Port Elizabeth on Saturday so as to avoid possible surgery.

Hooker Dylan Hartley will take over the captaincy, Lancaster told a news conference in Johannesburg on Monday.

“It’s disappointing to lose our captain and also such an influential player. Last August Chris was not even in the World Cup squad and what he has done since then has just been outstanding. He will now miss just his third game this season which, playing in such an attritional position, is amazing.

“But Dylan has always been part of the leadership group, he’s driven training, he’s the first-choice in his position, respected by the players and captain at Northampton,” Lancaster said.

Robshaw has been a tremendous force at the breakdowns, despite England’s two narrow defeats in the first two Tests, but potential replacements Thomas Waldrom and James Haskell have both produced powerful performances on tour already. Phil Dowson is also expected to return to training this week after a tight hamstring kept him off the replacements’ bench for the second Test.

Lancaster also announced the England team to play a tour match against the SA Northern Barbarians in Potchefstroom on Tuesday, with the most notable selection being that of Lee Dickson at scrumhalf.

The coach said Dickson will use the match to get some crucial game time following the shoulder injury that has forced Test scrumhalf Ben Youngs out of the tour.

Dickson has been on the bench for the first two Tests and will be competing with the experienced, livewire halfback Danny Care for a place in the starting XV for the final Test.

“It’s a useful opportunity for people who need some game time, like Lee Dickson. He’s desperate to play and he was always going to start this game. We’ll probably take him off to protect him at half-time,” Lancaster said.

Lee Dickson’s older brother Karl, who arrived in South Africa on Monday morning as the replacement for Youngs, will then replace him.

The midweek team will once again be led by lock George Robson and shows six changes from the side that beat the SA Southern Barbarians last week, including a start for British and Irish Lions wing Ugo Monye, who has recovered from a hamstring niggle.

“We want to finish with two wins this week, finish on a high. It’s important to finish on a high note,” Robson stated.

Team – 15-Nick Abendanon, 14-Christian Wade, 13-Anthony Allen, 12-Jordan Turner-Hall, 11-Ugo Monye, 10-Charlie Hodgson, 9-Lee Dickson, 8-Ben Morgan, 7-Carl Fearns, 6-Jamie Gibson, 5-George Robson, 4-Graham Kitchener, 3-Paul Doran-Jones, 2-Tom Youngs, 1-Matt Mullan. Replacements: 16-Joe Gray, 17-Rupert Harden, 18-Mouritz Botha, 19-James Haskell, 20-Karl Dickson, 21-David Strettle, 22-Jonny May.