Ken Borland

Jacques Nienaber and Rassie Erasmus, the duo who became heroes by turning a Springbok side at its lowest ebb into world champions, are now trending towards zero in some critics’ eyes, with fellow World Cup winning coach Jake White the latest to take a potshot.

White, now spearheading the Bulls’ renaissance as director of rugby at Loftus Versfeld, took a thinly veiled swipe at Nienaber’s lack of coaching experience in a column he wrote for the Rugby Pass website on Thursday.

Criticising the decision to make 14 changes to the Springbok starting XV and suffering an historic first defeat to Wales on home turf last weekend in Bloemfontein, White said Nienaber should have learnt not to experiment at Test level in that fashion at junior or club level.

“Making 14 changes obviously didn’t work for the Springboks and personally, I think Jacques Nienaber missed a trick,” White wrote. “There’s an expectation that you win every time you play in South African colours and the margins in Test rugby are incredibly small.

“I’m told his rationale for picking that second Test team was because he … didn’t want them to just be playing a dead rubber in the third Test. I’d say I don’t think there should ever be a dead rubber Test when you’re playing at home.

“The job of a national coach is to win Test matches. National coaches shouldn’t use Tests to see if players are good enough, thats what A sides or training is for.

“You’re not a national coach to learn lessons. You learn that at age-grade or club level – I mean that sincerely – there’s a reason people go through a system to become national coach,” White said.

The often-outspoken coach added that Wales will love the prospect of a winner-takes-all contest in Cape Town and the situation the Springboks have put themselves in.

“What I’m expecting on Saturday is massive amounts of pressure that he [Nienaber] didn’t need. Nienaber could have won the Series and now he’s created a real cauldron in Cape Town.

“It’s at sea level, and the Welsh will be boosted by the fact they’ve contested Tests on the highveld. Wales will come brimming with confidence. I’ve coached against them, and the one thing they don’t do is go away.

“Going back to selection, when Sir Gareth Edwards, one of the greatest players of all time, said it was a slap in the face, I can’t believe it wasn’t a real motivation for the Welsh team.

“Wales won’t make changes to a winning team. With consistency comes confidence. It’s backs to the wall for the Boks and if they don’t get the proper game going, they could lose the series,” White said.

Lungi Ngidi exploited a pitch with some life in it in superb style on the opening day of the first Test against the West Indies at St Lucia, taking five for 19 in 13.5 overs as the hosts were bundled out for their lowest ever total against South Africa – a dismal 97 all out.

While the pitch continued to provide movement and there was swing in the air all through the first day, it was tremendous discipline and the many hours of skills work that Ngidi has been putting in that financed his first five-wicket haul in an innings since he took six for 39 on debut against India in January 2018.

Ngidi, like all the South African fast bowlers, bowled a superb line, sticking consistently to the channel just outside off stump, and his length was also excellent. It meant that the West Indies batsmen were unable to score easily and, with the movement on offer, any expansive strokeplay outside off-stump was very risky.

“You were never really in as a batsman, but it felt good to get a five-for because it’s been a long time since I got one. My Test spot was in doubt and it’s still a work in progress, but behind the scenes I’ve had to work very hard on my fitness and in the gym, but the most important thing was working on my skill. To be able to swing the ball away from the batsman now has been very useful.

“You can get carried away when there’s nip and swing, but my role-definition is very clear – my job was to keep one end quiet, not give them anything. I just tried to zone in on off-stump and I felt more comfortable after lunch, my rhythm clicked in the afternoon and I love the Dukes ball because it seems to still swing after a long time,” said Ngidi, who took five for nine in 6.5 overs in the second session.

Anrich Nortje was the co-conspirator in the rout of the West Indies, bowling superbly in the morning session as he took three for eight in six overs and finished with four for 35 in 11. Ngidi, employing more subtle skills than the fast and furious Nortje, said the focus of the South African attack was to work together as a unit, something they certainly achieved.

“I’ve been working a lot together with Anrich, pretty much being trying to hunt together with him. To see him take on the top-order like he did was what we hoped for and he got us off to the perfect start. I just tried to keep applying pressure. Kagiso Rabada really had them under pressure as well, which should not go unnoticed.

“Hunting together is what we’re trying to restore as a bowling unit and we’ve made the perfect start to this series,” Ngidi said.