Ken Borland

Sharks scrumhalf Cobus Reinach has scored some tremendous individual tries in the last year, but the newest member of the Springbok squad is adamant that those are not planned and he has just had the good fortune of being in the right place at the right time.

“The tries have been a team effort, I just finished them off,” Reinach said with a modesty that was almost as impressive as some of the moments of solo brilliance he has dazzled with for the Sharks.

“It’s never about me, for me it’s always about getting the ball out, getting quick ball for the team, which is very key to the way the Springboks want to play. I’ll never try and force a gap for myself,” he added.

Reinach is the son of the late Jaco Reinach, the last man to represent South Africa in both rugby and athletics. Jaco was the South African record-holder for the 400m (45.01) from April 1983 until 2011 when it was broken by LJ van Zyl, a three-time African champion and Olympian.

So it probably wasn’t a surprise that Cobus Reinach began his rugby career on the wing, but was moved to scrumhalf when he was deemed to be too small for the back three.

“I always played wing until U13 when I was told I was too small for that position – at all of 38kgs,” Reinach recalled.

“I had to adapt very quickly and I didn’t really have any role-models who were scrumhalves. So I used to watch George Gregan and Fourie du Preez a lot and copy what they did.”

The evergreen Du Preez is injured – out for the rest of the year – which has allowed Reinach to receive his first full call-up to the Springbok squad.

“It’s an exciting, amazing feeling to be around the Springboks. I’m having a good season, which helps, but the main part of being here is to learn. Fourie, Ruan Pienaar and Francois Hougaard are all world-class scrumhalves, but if you want to be the best, then you have to compete against the best,” Reinach said.

While the Sharks, with a conservative game plan and problems at flyhalf, often relied on Reinach’s individual brilliance to spark their attacking play, the Springboks have threats across the park and the 24-year-old knows he has to concentrate on slick service and the one area of his game that has shown signs of weakness – his tactical kicking.

“There are always areas to improve. My passing from both left and right hand is fine, but I’m working on my weak foot.

“At the Sharks, we have a big tactical kicking game and if it doesn’t go your way on the day then you’re in trouble. We weren’t good enough in the SuperRugby semi-final, but the Springboks don’t play the same type of rugby – they run a bit more and they kick and exit their own half differently,” Reinach said.

Reinach junior was just six years old when his father died in a car accident, aquaplaning off the road near Kroonstad and hitting a tree in January 1997, but it is clear Jaco’s legacy lives on strongly in his son.

Apart from being a world-class athlete, denied an international stage due to Apartheid, Jaco Reinach was an exceptional wing who was unfortunate to only play four times for the Springboks. He was at his peak in the mid-1980s, but that was the era of Ray Mordt and Michael and Carel du Plessis and he played in just one series – against the 1986 New Zealand Cavaliers. Reinach snr scored two tries, one of them a memorable effort from the halfway line in the 33-18 victory at Loftus Versfeld.

When Cobus makes his bow on the international stage (it will surely be sooner rather than later), it will be an emotional time for the Grey Bloem product.

“Even though he was not there, my dad was definitely the biggest influence on my career. I always wanted to follow in his footsteps. I watched the Battle of the Giants video of the Springboks’ series against the New Zealand Cavaliers over and over and just to see him run was brilliant. I think I’m quite quick but not as quick as him, especially not off the mark!

“When I saw my name in the Springbok squad, I was so happy. But I’m going to try and keep the emotion out of it until I get in the team. After I’ve played my first game, then I think I will be emotional,” Reinach said with refreshing candour.

There are a million different ways to play rugby and, while there is a hint of contrasting philosophies when it comes to Jake White and Heyneke Meyer, Reinach welcomes all the input at this early stage of his career.

“Every coach has his own idea of how to play, so I’ve picked up a few ideas along the way. That’s how my game will grow up, that’s how I will be able to do everything. With experience and game time, my decision-making will get better and better, but I also don’t want to lose my instinctive moves,” he said.

The instinctive moments of brilliance are what most people will notice; but the best teams have scrumhalves who also do the basics faultlessly, unnoticed, much like a wicketkeeper in cricket.

Scrumhalves need to have their fingers on the pulse of play, they dictate the tempo and flow of the game.

In Cobus Reinach, the Springboks have someone with the skills to grow into that role … with a bit of magic on the side.

So was the Sharks/Stormers match an intense, gripping local derby between two powerful sides or an error-strewn bore-fest that should alarm all those concerned with the health of South African rugby?

You will find supporters for either option, and an array of shades in between, with the 12-6 victory to the Sharks proving highly entertaining for those purists who have an appreciation for Test rugby.

You probably won’t find a more brutal, physical game of rugby in this year’s competition, with the Stormers’ defence at its famous best and the Sharks not giving an inch either.

But while both defences were rock-solid and the two packs thundered into each other from close range, the two coaches, John Plumtree and Allister Coetzee, may want to consider whether they ever tried to move their points of attack away from the edges of the ruck.

Sure, the ball may have been slippery due to the humidity and the high stakes may have forced them both to play the percentages, but the overall impression was that the skills of the players (and we know they have them) were being stifled.

Never mind kicking for position, the boot was also over-used in attacking situations and, with the two sides’ similar game plans cancelling each other out, all innovation and finer skill was choked out of the contest.

The Sharks’ triumph was built on the supremacy of their scrum. Stormers fans will perhaps complain that referee Jonathan Kaplan was hard on them with a string of penalties for hinging (shoulders below the hips), but Tendai Mtawarira and Jannie du Plessis, on the auspicious occasion of his 100^th SuperRugby game, were clearly on top of their younger opponents in the Stormers’ front row.

With the result of the match hinging on just two penalties, those scrum infringements were crucial, allowing the Sharks to kick the Stormers back into their own territory.

“The Stormers hit you so hard that you can go away from your plan and then you end up on the back foot. So we just had to be patient, everything was about pressure out there and it came down to who could cope with it,” Plumtree said after the game.

If you like your rugby simple and bloody then the Loftus Versfeld clash between the Bulls and the Western Force also had much to offer.

The Bulls are famous for not playing with any airs or graces and the Force, written off by most after their stunning upset at the hands of the Southern Kings, took the hosts on at their own game and were actually better at it for long periods.

In the rarefied atmosphere of Loftus Versfeld, visitors need a kicker who can match the Bulls’ aerial bombardment and the Force had the big boot of Sias Ebersohn, a refugee from the Cheetahs.

The Force led 26-19 after the hour mark but sadly could not even hold on to gain a losing bonus point as the Bulls scored twice in the last 10 minutes.

The Bulls are a schizophrenic side at times, showing some superb attacking skills in setting up tries for Morné Steyn, in the second minute, and the impressive debutant wing, Sampie Mastriet, as well as a disallowed try by Bjorn Basson. But then for long periods they would revert back to 10-man rugby, with the boot dominating.

But in the 52^nd minute, the Bulls were sorry they didn’t take a kick at goal from a penalty right in front, opting to set up the lineout instead. But the Force defended superbly, stopping the rolling maul and then getting off their line quickly to force a turnover.

Moments later, lock Toby Lynn was burrowing over the tryline and leaving the Loftus crowd sadly contemplating defeat, conned into believing the Force were also-rans, despite the fact that they had won three of their six previous encounters with the Bulls.

Bulls coach Frans Ludeke confided to the media afterwards that he felt the first-half display had been their worst performance in five years, but he would also have been thrilled by the way his team pulled themselves together in the last 15 minutes and returned to their strengths.

Their tightly-knit rolling maul earned another impressive debutant, replacement flank Jean Cook, a try, and prop Werner Kruger then scored in the shadow of the poles in the final movement of the game.

“The way we came back in the second half, the way players adjusted on the field, that was a special effort from the team,” Ludeke said.

“Last year against the Blues we were in exactly the same situation, we couldn’t get out of that grip and tonight we got back. All credit to the captain [Pierre Spies] for the way he got us back to things that are working for us, the maul started working, we managed the high ball, we forced some turnovers and we converted pressure into points,” he added.

Converting pressure into points is exactly what the Cheetahs failed to do in the first half of their match against the Chiefs in Hamilton as flyhalf Johan Goosen continued to struggle.

He missed three penalties in the first half as the Cheetahs dominated territory and possession, and then had a clearance kick charged down early in the second half as the Chiefs extended their 10-3 half-time lead to 17-3.

All Blacks flyhalf-in-waiting Aaron Cruden then took over as he set up brilliant tries by Asaeli Tikoirotuma and Gareth Anscombe to ensure the defending champions notched a convincing bonus-point victory.

A lot has been said about how the Cheetahs are such a wonderful attacking side, but merely throwing the ball from side to side does not constitute great running rugby. Just throwing the ball wide is as one-dimensional as the worst fare dished up by the Stormers, Sharks and Bulls over the weekend and it was comfortably handled by the Chiefs.

The home side used their forwards on attack to suck in the defence, before going wide and the Cheetahs have to learn to earn the right to throw the ball around.

It’s all very well just hurling the ball out wide, but defences are cracked by the sort of skills Cruden and Anscombe showed in that superb try: changes of direction, great hands, scissors-movements and different running lines.

There was no sign of that sort of skill from the South African teams in action this weekend, which meant the wins of the Sharks and Bulls were greeted with no great fanfare.

Nobody is writing them – or even the Stormers – off at this early stage, but there is no doubt there is plenty of work to do for Messrs Plumtree, Ludeke and Coetzee.

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Previous results certainly won’t matter as the Sharks and Stormers go head-to-head at 19:10pm on Saturday night in Durban in a repeat of last year’s SuperRugby semi-final.

The Stormers are bound to be better than the limp outfit that succumbed to defeat in Pretoria, while the Sharks will be aware that even though they were impressive against the Cheetahs, there was still much room for improvement as they allowed their opponents back into the game in the second half.

Even if previous results did mean something, it is instructive that, since 1998, the Sharks and Stormers have met 18 times, with each side winning on nine occasions.

The Sharks will certainly go into the game as favourites at home and come into the crunch match as a settled outfit, coach John Plumtree having made just one change, Jean Deysel replacing Jacques Botes at flank.

Botes was chosen as an out-and-out fetcher against the expansive Cheetahs, but Deysel will be employed as a battering ram and strong ball-carrier against the physical Stormers pack in what should be a tight contest in Durban, the expected humidity making running rugby a tough ask.

The Stormers were described as “embarrassing” by coach Allister Coetzee after losing 25-17 to the Bulls last weekend, but it would be stupid to write off a team that has such quality in its ranks and has been the form team in South African rugby over the last couple of years.

Elton Jantjies is a top-class flyhalf, otherwise Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer would not have given him a second glance, but he suffered a miserable afternoon at Loftus. The 22 year old is a loan player trying to fit into a brand new style of play and he has had a tough time of it lately, what with his father, a major influence on his career, passing away due to a freakish bee sting.

Coetzee does at least have a second goalkicking option on the field in Joe Pietersen, who comes in at fullback after Jaco Taute sustained a groin injury. Peter Grant on the bench also provides a reassuring presence and the Japanese campaigner has a history of coming on as a replacement to great effect.

Steven Kitshoff, Frans Malherbe and Pat Cilliers are three of the most promising props in domestic rugby, but they will need to lift their game against Springboks Jannie du Plessis and Tendai Mtawarira after being tamed by the Bulls last weekend.

The Stormers will also want to make better use of the lineout, where Andries Bekker, Duane Vermeulen, De Kock Steenkamp and Rynhardt Elstadt have considerable ability.

Both the Sharks and Stormers boast wonderfully attacking backlines but, at this time of year, the weather in Durban is really not conducive to flashy rugby.

The Western Force, having lost to the rookies in Port Elizabeth last weekend, are now at Fortress Loftus and will need to be at their best to beat the Bulls.

Which, funnily enough, they usually are against the three-time champions, the ledger standing at 3-3 in the six matches they have played since the Perth franchise joined the competition in 2006.

The Force team was not yet available yesterday, but one thing is certain: they will be better acclimatised and will have put the shock against the Southern Kings behind them, looking forward instead to meeting a team they do seem to have some sort of hold over.

The Bulls are still in the process of building a new dynasty to replace those stars who won the trophy three times, but there are real signs their new generation is starting to bloom.

Loosehead prop Morné Mellett made a fantastic SuperRugby debut last weekend and Sampie Mastriet will earn his first cap on the right wing on Saturday, as coach Frans Ludeke shuffles the backline due to injuries to JJ Engelbrecht and Akona Ndungane.

“Sampie had a good Currie Cup and he is an exciting player. Throughout his career, when in broken field and space, he can be devastating. This is a great opportunity and he has been working towards this for four years,” Ludeke said.

He has also chosen the uncapped duo of loose forward Jean Cook and centre Jan Serfontein on the bench, and Ludeke will be particularly keen to see how the latter, a former IRB Junior Player of the Year, goes.

Cook is a Grey College product and he gets his call-up because of injuries to Dewald Potgieter and Deon Stegmann, forcing Ludeke to push Arno Botha and Jacques Potgieter into the starting line-up.

Having won so impressively last weekend, there is little doubt the Bulls will employ the same safety-first tactics against the Force (Aussie sides don’t really like playing that way) and Morné Steyn will once again be the key man, using his boot to pin the opposition in their own territory and then capitalising on their indiscretions with his in-form goal-kicking.

Facing the Sharks last weekend was a tough task for the Cheetahs and it only gets harder for them as they take on the Chiefs, defending champions and coming off a fantastic away win over the Highlanders. And the match is in Hamilton, a daunting venue for any visitor.

Cheetahs coach Naka Drotske has made one change to his starting line-up, Sarel Pretorius replacing Piet van Zyl at scrumhalf, and two on the bench, with lock Ligtoring Landman and utility back Riaan Smit coming in for the injured duo of Waltie Vermeulen and Elgar Watts.

Pretorius should add more attacking spark and better cohesion between forwards and backs, but a massive improvement in the tight phases will be necessary for the Cheetahs to entertain thoughts of just their second victory in New Zealand.

Flyhalf Johan Goosen had a rough first half last weekend against the Sharks, before putting in an impressive second-half display, when Pretorius was on the field. The experienced former Waratahs half-back will provide the young prodigy with someone to confide in as Goosen looks to show his brilliant SuperRugby debut season was no illusion.

The Chiefs have lost two players who were integral to their triumph in 2012 – Sonny Boy Williams and Sona Taumololo – but their new arrivals, headed by Gareth Anscombe at fullback, have been able to fit in well.

It will take an upset as incredible as the one in Port Elizabeth last weekend for the Cheetahs to win in Hamilton. DM

Teams

Cheetahs: Hennie Daniller, Willie le Roux, Johann Sadie, Robert Ebersohn, Raymond Rhule, Johan Goosen, Sarel Pretorius, Philip van der Walt, Lappies Labuschagne, Frans Viljoen, Francois Uys, Lood de Jager, Lourens Adriaanse, Adriaan Strauss, Trevor Nyakane. Replacements: Ryno Barnes, Coenie Oosthuizen, Ligtoring Landman, Boom Prinsloo, Piet van Zyl, Riaan Smit, Ryno Benjamin.

Bulls: Zane Kirchner, Sampie Mastriet, Lionel Mapoe, Wynand Olivier, Bjorn Basson, Morné Steyn, Francois Hougaard, Pierre Spies, Arno Botha, Jacques Potgieter, Juandré Kruger, Flip van der Merwe, Werner Kruger, Chiliboy Ralepelle, Morné Mellett. Replacements: Willie Wepener, Frik Kirsten, Grant Hattingh, Jean Cook, Jano Vermaak, Louis Fouché, Jan Serfontein.

Sharks: Louis Ludik, JP Pietersen, Paul Jordaan, Frans Steyn, Lwazi Mvovo, Pat Lambie, Cobus Reinach, Ryan Kankowski, Jean Deysel, Marcell Coetzee, Franco van der Merwe, Anton Bresler, Jannie du Plessis, Craig Burden, Tendai Mtawarira. Replacements: Kyle Cooper, Wiehahn Herbst, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Jacques Botes, Charl McLeod, Meyer Bosman, Odwa Ndungane.

Stormers: Joe Pietersen, Gio Aplon, Jean de Villiers, Damian de Allende, Bryan Habana,  Elton Jantjies, Nic Groom, Duane Vermeulen, Rynhardt Elstadt, Siya Kolisi, Andries Bekker, De Kock Steenkamp, Frans Malherbe, Deon Fourie, Steven Kitshoff. Replacements: Martin Bezuidenhout, Pat Cilliers, Don Armand, Nizaam Carr, Louis Schreuder, Peter Grant, Gerhard van den Heever.

Other fixtures (all on Friday): 8:30 Blues v Crusaders (Auckland); 10:20 Waratahs v Rebels (Sydney); 12:20 Reds v Hurricanes (Brisbane). Byes: Highlanders, Brumbies, Southern Kings.

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