Ken Borland

South Africa coach Heyneke Meyer on Monday pronounced himself “very satisfied” with the Springboks’ 31-8 weekend win over Australia, but said they would have to be even more clinical to beat New Zealand in Saturday’s Rugby Championship Test in Soweto.

“It was a good performance, definitely the most satisfying of the year. We were clinical at times, but we’ll need to be even more clinical against the All Blacks and, if the game opens up, probably use the ball even more,” Meyer told reporters in Johannesburg on Monday.

“That was the type of rugby we want to play. This is a very special group of players, they’ve only had seven weeks of coaching and there’s a lot of youth in this team.

“I always knew this first year would be tough, but winning all of our home games was one of our goals,” the new Springbok coach said.

While Meyer, who firmly believes in continuity in selection, would like to choose an unchanged team for the match against the All Blacks, injuries could disrupt the much-improved backline.

Flyhalf Johan Goosen, who added a much-needed spark at flyhalf, is struggling with a bruised heel, while fullback Zane Kirchner’s hip was injured when Wallaby centre Adam Ashley-Cooper knocked himself out on it in tackling the dreadlocked player into the touchline to prevent a try on the stroke of half-time in Pretoria.

“I have a long-term plan and it’s important that I show the players that I believe in them and reward their good form.

“But we kept Johan out of training today. It’s important that he’s 100% on Saturday because, to beat the All Blacks, you have to kick at an 80% success rate and our kicking hasn’t been great this year,” Meyer said.

The coach also praised scrumhalf Ruan Pienaar for doing much to help Goosen in his first start at flyhalf.

“Ruan was great in taking the pressure off Johan. His tactical kicking and his service was awesome and it’s important for us that our scrumhalf plays well,” Meyer said.

The midfield combination of captain Jean de Villiers at inside centre and new cap Jaco Taute outside him is likely to stay as is because Francois Steyn is being sent for surgery on Wednesday.

Springbok team doctor Craig Roberts described the surgery as “the right thing for his long-term career prospects”.

“Frans has quite a few loose pieces of bone in his ankle and every now and then one of them gets lodged in the joint, causing him excruciating pain. As a long-term solution, we’re sending him for surgery to have it cleaned out on Wednesday. Unfortunately that means he will be out for three months and he will miss the end-of-year tour,” Roberts said.

Prop Coenie Oosthuizen, who was initially named on the bench for the Test against Australia after just 35 minutes of action following a neck injury, will see a specialist for a second opinion on his fitness on Tuesday.

“Again, we want to ensure we make the right long-term decision and I’m not happy with his neck, he still has some quite significant symptoms, especially stiffness,” Roberts said.

Flank Jacques Potgieter has also been released due to an abdominal strain and Meyer has called up the uncapped duo of Lions centre/wing Lionel Mapoe and Bulls loose forward Arno Botha.

Meyer said the statistics from Saturday’s win show that territory does still trump possession in terms of value.

“At this level you need to play a tactical game and we only had 45% possession against Australia. Our defence was also the best it’s been the whole year, we made 178 tackles compared to their 109, and we had a 96% completion rate, we only missed seven tackles,” Meyer said.

“Our lineout was also great and I’m very happy with our forwards, especially our loose forwards who are working very well together.”

Meyer said the Springboks’ whole game plan against the All Blacks would be geared towards stopping them from launching their fast-paced, expansive strategy.

“Playing at home, there’s always more pressure to run the ball, but that’s what New Zealand like because it gives them turnovers and they punish you. You will never beat New Zealand at their own game, you’ll never out-run them. You have to put pressure on them, especially at the breakdown, in defence and with your kicking game,” Meyer said.

New Zealand have already clinched the inaugural Rugby Championship title, but they would love to complete an unbeaten campaign by beating South Africa in Soweto on Saturday, according to two of the All Blacks forwards.

The All Blacks sealed the Rugby Championship crown with their 54-14 drubbing of Argentina in La Plata at the weekend, taking them to 21 points on the standings.

The second-placed Springboks rebounded from disappointing results on the road to hammer Australia 31-8 in Pretoria and go to 12 points.

“We’ve won the Rugby Championship, but we’ve parked that and we’re now focused on winning in South Africa. If you talk to the older guys, they’ll tell you it’s more rewarding winning here than beating the Springboks at home. The guys that have been around a while really love testing themselves against the best here, it’s one of the toughest places to win,” loose forward Sam Cane told reporters in Johannesburg on Monday.

Lock Sam Whitelock also stressed the importance of the All Blacks maintaining their winning streak that now stretches to 15 games going back to the start of their triumphant World Cup campaign last year.

“It’s really nice that we’ve put the trophy away, but this weekend will be a massive challenge. It would be great to start off a new competition with a clean sweep.

“Last year didn’t go so well for us in Port Elizabeth and South Africa are always hard to beat at home. But that’s the beauty of international rugby, you have to perform week in and week out. All you need is one game to not go well and all your good work can unravel,” Whitelock said.

Whitelock admitted that the All Blacks were surprised by Argentina’s more expansive approach in La Plata, the Pumas having pushed the world champions hard three weeks earlier when Wellington reserved her worst weather for the game. But he doubted the Springboks would make the same mistake.

“We were a little surprised that they kept the ball in hand so much, having troubled us in the first game with different tactics. But then again, the weather in Wellington was pretty terrible that night.

“But we’re expecting a typical All Blacks/Springboks Test on Saturday, with massive body collisions. It will surely be physical, the body will take a bit of a hammering,” he said.

Cane was also expecting the Springboks to attack them at close quarters.

“They have a big focus on the gain line, as we all do, but they really target the cleanouts and big collisions, they bring a lot of heat there,” Cane said.

Two defeats to the All Blacks and a loss to Australia have shaken South Africans’ confidence in the Springboks, but the truth is coach Heyneke Meyer has presided over one of their better seasons in the Rugby Championship/Tri-Nations tournament.

There have only been six years out of the 17 in the tournament’s history in which South Africa has lost less than three games in a season, and one should not yet condemn Meyer because he has just started on his journey as Springbok coach. Furthermore, he has begun his tenure with the most inexperienced Springbok team since 2004.

That was the year Jake White began his reign in a similar state of rebuilding,and even though he claimed one of South Africa’s three Tri-Nations titles that year, his troubles emerged in 2006, just a year before his World Cup triumph, when public sentiment also turned against him. That was the year the Springboks were humbled 49-0 by Australia in Brisbane, and White only kept his job thanks to a one-point victory over the All Blacks in Rustenburg and a 24-16 triumph over Australia at Ellis Park.

But throughout the turmoil – and many similar criticisms as Meyer has had to face – White always seemed to have a plan, was steadfast in what he was trying to achieve, and we all know how it all came together in 2007.

So before the mob calls for Meyer to be run out of town, the current coach should be given time to build on the positive signs that have been there this season. He has not faltered in his views, for which he gives reasoned explanations, and has been consistent in selection, so he seems to know what he is doing.

An overseas tour with Tests against Ireland, Scotland and England beckons,and Meyer will have time now whilst the Currie Cup finalists are decided to ponder what changes he needs to make to his squad.

The 30-man squad that was involved in the home Rugby Championship Tests should all be having visas organised for Great Britain and Ireland, save for those that are injured like Johan Goosen, Jacques Potgieter and Frans Steyn, and perhaps CJ van der Linde, who at 32 years old probably isn’t an option for the long-term future.

Whatever other selections he makes, the debate will be all about what Meyer does at flyhalf. With Goosen ruled out for six months after knee ligament surgery, it would be a major surprise if Morne Steyn did not return.

The fact is that he will have had a break; he is the only flyhalf in contention who has experience of British conditions and the fields are likely to be heavy, prompting a kicking game; all these are factors in Steyn’s favour.

Elton Jantjies took the first steps of what should be a long international career at Loftus and Soccer City, but his experience is largely limited to mild winter days on the Highveld or summer in New Zealand, a far cry from the rain and snow that can be expected in Dublin, Edinburgh and London in November.

It is also clear after his man-of-the-match performance for the Sharks against Griquas on Friday night that Pat Lambie has a part to play at flyhalf in the future, and it would be fantastic if Meyer could throw him into the mix in that position at some stage next month.

But what makes building for the future tough for the coach is that winning against the Northern Hemisphere sides is a non-negotiable. Losing to the All Blacks is understandable, defeat by the Wallabies is infuriating, but losing to the likes of Scotland could be career-limiting.

The main area of concern is in the backline with JP Pietersen, in such inspirational form before his unfortunate hand injury, an obvious and vital returnee now that he is back in action.

Impressive Lions centre Lionel Mapoe is in line to travel as a replacement for Frans Steyn, while Bulls flank Arno Botha stepped in for Potgieter when he strained his groin during the week’s training ahead of the All Blacks’ game.

Meyer has already spoken of the faith he has in his current pack, and they can make another big step forward in Britain, where the conditions mean there is huge importance is placed in the set-pieces.

The unit will be kept together to grow as a whole, with hooker Chiliboy Ralepelle probably making a return and abrasive Sharks loose forward Jean Deysel perhaps gaining a recall.

For the Meyer game plan to work, the key factor is forward dominance, and the coach certainly has the makings of a dominant pack in place, judging by the showings up front against the Wallabies and All Blacks.

The potential is there, and hopefully the strategy put in place will be the right one to see off Ireland, Scotland and England.

http://dailymaverick.co.za/opinionista/2012-10-13-heyneke-meyer-have-a-little-faith-folks

New Zealand had too much counter-attacking firepower for South Africa as they beat them 32-16 in their Rugby Championship Test at Soccer City in Soweto on Saturday.

There were promising signs in the first half for the Springboks as they dominated for long stages and led 16-12 at the break.

But the All Blacks stepped up a gear in the second half to score 20 unanswered points for their 16th successive win, just two short of the world record, and completed an unbeaten run through the tournament.

Lock Sam Whitelock, scrumhalf Aaron Smith and centres Ma’a Nonu and Conrad Smith scored tries for the world champions, with flyhalf Dan Carter adding three conversions, a penalty and a drop goal.

South Africa scored a 13th-minute try by wing Bryan Habana, converted by flyhalf Johan Goosen, who also kicked a penalty before limping off with a heel injury.

His replacement, Elton Jantjies, also kicked two penalties just before half-time to give the Springboks the lead at the break but this was short-lived.

The All Blacks struggled initially to handle the Springboks up front, especially in the set-pieces, and the home side successfully pinned the visitors in their own territory for long periods.

But this did not initially bring reward as Goosen missed two early penalties, before centre Jean de Villiers and wing Habana combined brilliantly and used their years of experience together to fashion a try off a lineout move, flank Willem Alberts having provided momentum as he crashed the ball up.

The experienced duo combined well again midway through the first half, winning a penalty for the Springboks, which Goosen kicked to give the hosts a 10-0 lead and leaving New Zealand with a small hill to climb at altitude in front over 80 000 hostile fans.

But South Africa then provided the All Blacks with broken-field ball, centre Jaco Taute failing to find touch from a clearing kick, and they immediately pounced. Wing Hosea Gear, chosen for this match ahead of Julian Savea who scored two tries last weekend, made the half-break, found eighthman Kieran Read in support and he sent Whitelock storming down the right touchline and reaching over for the try.

New Zealand struck again six minutes before half-time as Habana broke the defensive line for the slim chance of an intercept, allowing Carter to break free, Gear again playing a prominent role and setting up Aaron Smith for an easy run-in.

The All Blacks’ narrow 12-10 lead was overhauled by Jantjies’ two penalties just before the break, but the World Cup holders produced some marvellous rugby in the second half.

New Zealand won possession from the kickoff, fullback Israel Dagg showing dazzling skills as he broke through the line and then found Read, whose tremendous linking play saw him win the man of the match award, with an overhead pass. Nonu was on his inside for the simplest of tries.

Carter’s angled conversion put the visitors 19-16 ahead and the Springboks had a chance of levelling the scores in the 49th minute, but Jantjies hit the post with a penalty.

The All Blacks continued to capitalise on the mistakes of the Springboks and Conrad Smith took advantage of gaping holes in their backline to score in the 53rd minute.

The defence of the Springboks did improve, keeping the All Blacks outside their 22 for a long period, before Carter slotted a drop goal to stretch the lead to 29-16.

The All Blacks were cruising in no obvious difficulty even with Dagg yellow-carded for stealing the ball illegally at a ruck, and the masterful Carter had the final say with a penalty in the 72nd minute that made the final score 32-16.

The Springboks were left to rue not only the errors that led to New Zealand tries, but also the times their own attacks broke down, with Habana dropping the ball when going for the tryline five metres out and another turnover deep inside the 22 after the home side had made good progress with the rolling maul.