Talking Sports like gals do shopping

Blue Bulls – Victor Matfield, Danie Rossouw, Bakkies Botha, Wynand Olivier, Morne Steyn, Fourie du Preez, Pierre Spies
Sharks – John Smit, Bismarck du Plessis, Tendai Mtawarira, JP Pietersen, Adi Jacobs
Western Province – Schalk Burger, Jaque Fourie, Bryan Habana, Ricky Januarie, Andries Bekker
Free State Cheetahs – Juan Smith, Heinrich Brüssow, CJ van der Linde

Above is a list of contracted Boks that was given a 4 or 5 week break. What’s so amazing is that I can’t even make a proper team (let alone a competitive one) with these Springboks. If you take out John & Victor (needing a longer rest), leave out Andries & FdP coz of injuries this is basically what you’re left with:

1. Tendai Mtawarira 2. Bismarck du Plessis 3. CJ van der Linde 4. Bakkies Botha 5. Danie Rossouw  6. Schalk Burger 7. Juan Smith 8. Pierre Spies 9. Ricky Januarie 10. Morne Steyn 11. Bryan Habana 12. Wynand Olivier 13. Adi Jacobs 14. JP Pietersen 15. Jaque Fourie

So lemme break it down..

As you can see we’ll basically be playing with two “traditional no.4” locks, an out of form 8, 9 & 11, a player playing above his level (Olivier) a player that I cant recall have touched a rugby ball this season (Adi) & a player playing out of his normal position (Fourie). I was tempted to move Juan to nr.8, Brüssow to 6 & Burger to 7 but felt that Juan really balanced the backrow when he played so I’l keep him there. And these guys better not get injured on the field coz we’ll only have Brüssow to replace anyone of them but I’m sure we can get a couple of players that can keep him company on the bench.

But let’s just keep that first 15 as they are and compare them to MY form players in the currie cup which are.

1. Pat Cilliers 2. Deon Fourie 3. WP Nel 4. Steven Sykes 5. Anton v Zyl 6. Pieter Louw 7. Ryan Kankowski 8.Duane Vermeulen 9. Francois Hougaard 10. Elton Jantjies 11.Bjorn Basson 12. Jean de Villiers 13. Juan de Jongh 14. Lwazi Mvovo 15. Hennie Deniller

Now I know there are people out there that are saying: “But what about??” So here we go again:

1. Coenie Oosthuizen 2. Adriaan Strauss 3. Brock Harris 4. Flip vd Merwe 5. Franco vd Merwe 6. Keagan Daniel 7. Willem Alberts 8. Ashley Johnson 9. Jano Vermaak 10. Pat Lambie 11. Gio Aplon 12. Droppies le Grange 13. Wallon Murray 14. Michael Kilian 15. Louis Ludik

Bench

16. Craig Burden 17. Brok Harris 18. Alistair Hargreaves 19. Francois Louw 20.Charl McLeod

21. Willem de Waal 22. Zane Kirchner

Now did I just name 37 players that can tour with the Boks tomorrow if asked n wont let themselves or the Boks down?? I think I just did..

AAAAAND there are still players like Guthro Steenkamp & Dewalt Potgieter (who isn’t playing CC for some reason) Jaques Botes, Gary Botha, Jongi Nokwe,Deon Stegman, Jaque-louis Potgieter, Dewalt Duvenage, Derick Kuün, Meyer Bosman, Conrad Jantjes, Riaan Viljoen, Chilliboy, Werner Kruger & Sarel Pretorius who can all play some good footy.

With ou Pietertjie staying on as head coach, I think he would steal a lot of Bok fans’ hearts if he’ll only tour with the contracted Boks that hasn’t played a lot of rugby (Super rugby, incoming tests & tri nations) like Juan, Bakkies, Brüssow, Beast, Bismark, CJ & JP and the rest of the squad can be made up of some of the players I mentioned above..

My Bok team for Ireland would look something like this:

1. Beast
2. Bismark
3. CJ
4. Bakkies
5. Anton v Zyl
6. Brüssow (if not – Francois Louw)
7. Juan Smith (capt)
8. Kankowski
9. Hougaard
10. Frans Steyn
11. Bjorn Basson
12. JdV
13. JdJ
14. JP
15. Gio Aplon
16. Chilliboy
17. Guthro (if not Jannie du Plessis)
18. Flip vd Merwe
19. Vermeulen
20. Jano Vermaak
21. Elton Jantjies / Pat Lambie
22. Zane Kirchner (last chance for you boytjie..)

I’m outy…

Well that certainly got your attention, didn’t it??

With the Sharks getting the full house against their bogey side (the Cheetahs) and the Bulls back in the hunt after their win against Lions this weekend, I think (and I’ll repeat, I THINK) the semi final fixtures might as well be printed out. Below I’ve worked out where the 6 top teams will end up after the last 3 rounds of the Currie Cup have been completed, starting with log leaders the Sharks:

Sharks (46 points): Lions (away), Leopards (home), WP (away)

The Sharks really showed what they are made of this past weekend. I actually thought the Cheetahs would have their number and there was a period in the game just after half time that I thought the Cheetahs might just actually steal a win here but the boys from Durban held out and got the 5 very valuable points. This weekend they facing the rejuvenated Lions in a Jozi where the Lions really brought some pride (excuse the pun) back to Ellis park – yes, I call it Ellis Park!! The Lions will be hurting and I think this past weekend’s loss should motivate (and inspire) them to a win against the log leaders. I doubt that the Sharks will leave empty handed though, getting a bonus point for losing within 7 points. Then they face the Leopards at home – 5 points there and then travel down to the Cape and even with their Boks back, I doubt they’ll beat a Province side who got to give them payback after being man-handled in Durbs a couple of weeks ago and they’ll probably rest a couple of their front line players after already securing a home advantage throughout the playoffs. They’ll get a point for the losing effort though. So come 9 Oct. the Sharks will be sitting pretty on top of the log with 53 points.

WP (38 points): Griquas (home), Bulls (away), Sharks (home)

This may be a little bit respectful towards the Griquas but Province should pick up the 5 points and move on to the game that will decide their fate for the rest of the competition: Meeting the Bulls on Loftus. My heart says that WP will beat the Bulls but my head says that the Bulls will call  on their Loftus faithful to push them through. WP will atleast collect a point for their efforts. They will also have enough in the tank to run past a Sharks team who will rest a couple of starters but no bonus points I’m afraid leaving Province 2^nd on the log with 48 points.

Blue Bulls (33 points): Leopards (away), WP (home), Griquas (away)

Beating the Lions this past weekend will give the Bulls that confidence that makes me say: Poor Leopards.. Bulls will collect the 5 points and keep on rolling past the WP, picking up 4 points and another 4 in Kimberley. This will leave the Bulls with 46 points on the log but 3^rd place is not that certain for them just yet and I’ll explain why with my analysis on the next team, the Cheetahs.

Cheetahs (32 points): Pumas (home), Lions (home), Leopards (away)

The Cheetahs have the easiest 3 rounds of the top 6 teams with the Lions the only team that pose a threat to their 3 game winning streak. Cheetahs will pick up bonus point wins against the Pumus and the Leopards but will just collect the win against the Lions leaving them with 46 points – tied with the Bulls. At the moment the Cheetahs’ point difference of 53 is superior to that of the Bulls’ 34 and considering the Cheetahs’ opponents they should add to that leaving them 3^rd on the log and leaving the Bulls in the fourth and last semi final berth.

Lions (31 points): Sharks (home), Cheetahs (away), Pumas (home)

It’s a very sad reality that even if the Lions win all 3 their games (which I doubt), it might still not be enough for a semi final berth. I think (and hope) they beat the Sharks this coming weekend but beathing the Sharks and collecting a bonus point is pushing it. After a hard-fought victory against the Sharks, the Lions will come up short against the Cheetahs in Bloem and will be unable to collect the much needed bonus point. They will finish off the season on a high collecting all 5 points against the Pumas leaving them in 5^th place with 40 points on the log.

Griquas (30 points): WP (away), Pumas (away), Bulls (home)

Struggling to get a win against the Pumas at home is not a good sign for the Griquas coming up against a WP side busy changing gears for the business end of the competition. The Griquas will fall out of bus and provide Province with the much needed fiver this coming weekend. The Pumas will throw the kitchen sink at them after coming so close to beat them this past weekend but with the Griquas already out of the semis, they will give ball some air in route to a bonus point win. That will unfortunately be their last win for them and even though they’ll give the Bulls their all, the Bulls will beat them in a no-bonus point game. The Griquas will finish 6^th on the log with 35 points.

Final prediction

With the Boks back, the Bulls machine will roll into Durban and in a tight affair cause an upset and deny the Sharks a home final they deserved. In Cape Town, WP would show that reaching the Super 14 final was no fluke as they get to host the Bulls the next weekend for the Currie Cup final and this time my heart and my head says WP, behind a passionate Newlands, will lift the Currie Cup for the 1^st time since 2001.

Im outy..  

After reading yesterday’s article on the potential center crisis WP & the Stormers will have once Jaque Fourie returns, I have to say Juan de Jongh put some of my fears to rest. The exciting young centre spoke about how he privileged he is to be playing along side Jaque & Jean de Villiers and how he doesn’t mind coming off the bench if that is what the team needs.

Some of my friends (& fellow WP supporters) were actually very upset when Jean came back to Cape Town because they feel that he is going to take away a lot of de Jongh’s playing time which will slow down him gaining experience in the centre position & I for one, totally disagree with them. Earlier in the year, when only rumors were spraying that Jean might come back from Munster, I actually wrote a blog that should he come back to SA, he must make a living wearing the blue & white hops again!!

(http://blogs.sport24.co.za/djp/and-the-father-hugged-his-son-said-welcome-home) He’s been my favorite player since the early 2000’s & really became one the first players in a very long time that broke that myth about South African centers can just bash & tackle. A bit unlucky with injuries, he really only had one outstanding season (2008) where he showed if healthy, he can be the best inside center in the world, let alone SA. Now how can you leave out (or not sign) a player like that?? And lets not forget about his potent & established partnership with Bok (n now WP & Stormer) teammate Jaque Fourie – in my books, the best center combination in the world when on song. Now how can Juan de Jongh – a guy that even though a 13 can play 12 just a well – not be able to gain experience from these two, even if it means coming off the bench once in a while.

A crisis?? Are you kidding me?? How can it be a crisis having 3 world class centers on your books – 2 of them already established and 1 up-n-comer!! Jean & Juan will most likely play 12 & 13 respectively in the next couple of CC rounds, but come semis & hopefully finals, Jean & Jaque must reunite!! Alternatively, if Alistair WANTS to play all 3 players, Fourie has shown that he’s no slouch on wing & fullback either but if it was up to me, id play him & Jean together with Juan coming off the bench. He exciting style of play brings more energy on to the field & even though Im not saying he must be an impact player coming off the bench the whole time, letting him loose with 20 – 30min to spare against tired legs, can be a dangerous weapon for WP & the Boks. And with Super15 next year, how great would it be to able to rotate these guys to keep them fresh throughout the competition coz we weren’t handed any favors with a bye in the very 1^st week.

I think a potential problem for WP & Stormers is what to do with centers: Paul Bosch, Tim Whitehead & Morgan Newman. 3 talented & relatively young players who have done a terrific job in the absence of the Bok centers, especially Bosch & Whitehead. And with Whitehead the younger of the 2, one has to wonder how long WP will be able to hold on to Bosch as he knows that if he has any Bok ambitions, being a 4^th option behind 3 of the top 4 Bok centers is not the way to go.

But 2 things are for certain in opinion: Jean & Jaque must be the WP, Stormers & Springbok 1st choice centre combination & when it comes to centres, WP must be the envy of all the other SA unions.    

Im outy..

With tri nations (finally) over, one thing is certain: New Zealand is undoubtedly the best side in the world. I actually wanted to write this blog last week with the 365 says to the RWC2011 but after the weekend’s tri nations’ result, it looks more fitting to do so now.. But this is NZ’s rugby status right now & who’s to say it will that be the case come 23 October 2011!!?? I doubt if they can get or play any better than they’re playing right now coming back the way they did against the Ozzys. Watching the game as a neutral, it was unbelievable and even darn right scary to see them pull out a win after a below average 65 minutes. But I’m STILL not convinced that its merely a formality that the RWC trophy will be theirs come end October. Yes, by the looks of it, the only side that can beat NZ is New Zealand but losing just one game in the knockouts can mean the end of a country’s dream coz that’s all it takes, one game.

Playing at home during a world cup will be beneficial to any side but the All Blacks coz world cups have not been kind to a side that has dominated rugby for such a long time, its actually unbelievable to think that they’ve only won the thing once in 7 tries. Their style of playing also doesn’t help as we all know that teams that plays percentage rugby with a very good defense wins the cups, I just can’t see them winning the whole thing running from their own 22’s where there is so much more at stake. I for one, will be really surprised if they win the RWC.

Australia, is my dark horse for the competition. This team is so young, Matt Giteau (27) was the oldest backline player that ran out against the AB’s. Even though playing similar running style of rugby that NZ is playing, they’re not afraid to play the percentages when needed. Experience is the only factor this team is lacking at the moment, but with experience campaigners like Vickermann, Palu, Mortlock (yeah him too) Robinson etc. coming back into the fray, they could go all the way next year.

Of the northern hemisphere teams, France SHOULD be there come semi final time, but my gutt says watch out for Ireland!! Wales will make some noise, but France and Ireland are realistically the northern hemisphere’s best hope.

And then there’s the Springboks. The team the IRB love to hate. Ou Pietertjie maybe the person everyone loves to hate right now but in my humble opinion, he’s right when he said there’s nothing wrong with our game plan and I’ll tell you why. Lots of years back I watch a movie called Blue Chips about a college basketball team. Just before a big game the coach told the players, he could go into opposition’s locker room right now & give them their offensive & defensive plays. He could basically tell them what kindof game they’re gonna play & his reason was: That it’s not what you do but how you do it. The Springboks’ game plan is the same as it was a season ago when we won the B&I Lions and the Tri nations: Play the percentages, keep opposition in their half, kick & chase every ball, compete for the ball on the ground and defend like Trojans – Simple but effective. Now this season we didn’t execute our game plan as well as we did last year for a bunch of reasons including: lack of commitment, tiring & out-of-form players, defense, fitness, loss of key players etc.

Everybody is so worried about the Springboks and where they are right now, but I’m not.. The world cup is just under a year from now & as evident from the Springboks’ performances the last 2 seasons, a lot can happen in a year’s time. Im not saying that our form is not concerning, coz it is but I’m just saying have a little faith coz come 23 October 2011, the Boks will be in that final. Who they will be playing & who wins it, I’m not so sure of.. Coz who is??

Ps: & this will probably sound un-sportsmanlike, but Mccaw will probably win the IRB player of the year again. Maybe he could then pass last year’s trophy to Fourie du Preez coz he sure as hell didn’t deserve to win it last year.. Having said that, Congrats to him & the AB’s for an awesome Tri nations campaign.

I’m outy…

I’ve got say that I’m really glad the tri nations is now over coz I don’t think I could handle another performance like the one I witnessed this past weekend. The Boks’ tri nations performance.. (looking for words).. The Boks’ tri nations performance.. (still looking).. The Boks tri nations performance is like that one family member that just keeps on causing k@k, you know, that “problem” in the family, the one you get embarrassed about when visitors arrive.. you know!! The one that comes back to you (us the bok fans) when they mess up, looking for support & promises us they’ll be better & work harder for us to be proud of them. & what do we do?? Well coz we love them, ofcoz we give them our support..then they surprise you by doing something so amazing, you cant help but be proud, you raise your standards about them.. ONLY FOR THEM DISSAPOINT YOU WHEN YOU LEAST EXPECTED IT!! Sounds familiar?

If someone had told us fans this time last year that this year we’d be champions of the wooden spoon, you probably would’ve laughed in their face & not give any time of day.. I know I would’ve!! Hell, before the tri nations started I thought this is probably our best of the 3 chances we had to defend the title & who could blame me?? Gaad damn, we sucked @ss.. & when I say we, I mean everyone involved: From the head of rugby, to the coaches & captains right through to the players even coming from the bench!! All of them are to blame for the Boks dismal performances and all of them should take responsibility & do something about it. It could be so easy for me to just blame ou Pietertjie (and he makes it so easy doesn’t he) but he didn’t concede 20 – 30 points in 30minutes of play now did he?? Then again, I could blame Smit & the boys for their poor defensive display, but surely can’t blame them for poor selection & game strategies now can I?? I cant, so I’ll blame EVERYONE!!

& Jake, Jake.. Jake.. Blabbering things like he can rescue to Boks & this pains him to see the Boks perform the way they do.. Jake, I know you probably mean well, but uhm.. your record in the year prior to the World Cup tournament didn’t look so rosy either.. In fact, I got those records for you right here sir:

Amazingly or unbelievably, P-Divvy (as poor as we all say he is) still has a better record than you excluding the End of Year tour.

Considering our opponents for the Grand Slam, I THINK the Boks record for the year of 2010 would look like this – with Ireland the only team of the 4 beating us.

& can you imagine how our 2007 WC would’ve turned out had you quit or was fired in ’06?? I doubt that trophy would’ve been in our cabinet.

It’s amazing how similar the years 2006 & 2010 are & I know it’s not healthy to think everything will be hunky-dory next year because of our history but it is comforting to know that we’ve been here before & we know what we’re capable of achieving with coaches & players all on the same page, using tried n tested structures, believing in those structures, a little bit of luck & going out to reach a common goal: Winning the RWC!!

SARU can do one of 2 things: Give the Bok coach (& coaches) the boot, appoint someone new & basically start all over OR come hell or high water, say these are the guys that’s going to be at helm come RWC2011 Point!! It’s as simple as that!! Forget about money, contracts & politics (well cancel the latter coz this is South Africa we’re talking about here) because a country’s pride & reputation is at stake here.

On the other hand Darren, NOW the Currie Cup can really start!! N big ups to the Lions!! They really played with (and for) pride (excuse the pun) Friday night and gave my WP a real rugby lesson. I’m just so happy de Jongh will be back in a WP jersey coz how & why P-Divvy couldn’t use this guy in ANY of the 2 matches is something only he will know. Mind you.. Jaque & Jean played well, but de Jongh’s fresh & sidestepping legs could’ve buried an Ozzy side in the last 10min or so.. Maar nou ja.. Wat kan a man NOU maak?? Back to the CC which I think is still anyone’s tournament. Yes, at the moment the Sharks look favorites but how in the hell can you not mention the BMT Bulls. The Cheetahs have always been in a huge a threat in this competition & the Sharks will be weary of them. Province, who I believe will get back on the winning track even if it is against the Leopards & Pumas, SHOULD also be in the home semi-final talks & if the Griquas or Lions should make the semis, it will be feel good story that South African rugby needs right now. Just to put my neck on the line (or maybe get some tongues wagging hehehehe) – I say it will be Sharks – Province final with WP taking it..

I don’t wana talk too much.. or actually, I don’t wana talk about the Grand Slam tour at all in fear of who might be selected (ala Smit, Habana, Spies, January etc) & even worse, who might not get selected (ala Vermeulen, Lambie). So we’ll just have to wait & see..

I’m outy..

“When days are dark, friends are few” That couldn’t be any further from the truth when it comes to us Bok fans. When a someone like Francois Hougaard plays the rugby he’s playing right now, we grovel at his feet but when someone like Bryan Habana plays the rugby he’s playing right now, the only feet we wana see is his running for the Bok exit door.

I’ve never been a huge fan of Mr. Jetshoes but I know he has something few players have. I’m sure we’ve all seen our pacy & electric backs in our time but you cant help but to give your full attention when Habana is on the run. It’s just like that in cricket: You know what you gonna get when Kallis comes to the crease but you can’t wait to see what Gibbs or De Villiers is going to do with a ball. Or in soccer, who would you rather wana watch? Jermaine Defoe or Lionel Messi?? Some players just have something that others don’t and Habana is one of them.

But like I said before, I’ve never been a huge fan of the guy, I thought he didn’t deserve the IRB P.O.Y 2007 for one and in his early years was just a winger that could finish. Shooting off his defensive line has been very profitable for the winger leaving him just to intercept an opposition’s pass & running the distance to score but of late it’s became kind of a curse & loss.. most recently: Mccaw scoring the game – tying try which never should’ve happened anyways if the referees caught Dagg’s forward pass.

But what I’ve learned is that it’s not all Habana’s fault. In an article I read this morning, Bok back coach Dick Muir was quoted saying:  “I’ve encouraged Bryan to come off his wing and look for work, and he’ll be rewarded. If he makes one glaring mistake, everyone jumps to conclusions that he’s off form.” Last night, I watched a special on John Smit and Hugh Bladen talked about a match where then Bok coach Harry Viljoen told the boys that they mustn’t kick the ball. And there was an incident when Percy was standing behind his tryline waiting for the ball to come from the scrummy and Jake White (then an assistant coach) standing on the sidelines, told him to kick the ball out & Percy told him, he cant coz the coach would be pist. Jake basically had to use some “baie mooi woordetaal” to convince Percy to kick the ball out which he did and which was the best & logical thing to do.

So who really must take the blame for Mccaw’s try? Dick the coach? Or Habana the player? I say both but that’s just me.

Now players like Aplon, Basson, Van der Heever, etc. must really be livid with the Bok selectors, coz how can a guy that’s so off-form still be playing?? But I have to defend Bryan for the Ozzy game. The rugby gods was really against him in that game. He drops the ball, the opposition scores, he was there to finish Morne Steyn’s run a second too early only for Frans to gobble up the try. There was a break Jean de Villiers made & had he looked right instead of left, he would’ve seen a flying Habana coming through just waiting for the pop pass & who knows what could’ve happened with the Ozzy defense scrambling and apart from these incidents, he still had an above average game. This guy is still a Bok guys & a very good one at that. Yes he haven’t scored YET in the tri nations, yes he made a couple of defensive blunders but he’s a very good player off form rather than a good player not playing well at the moment. We can not forget what we have in this not-even 27 year old and the tables below will hopefully be reminder.

Wingers used in this year’s Tri nations

It’s obvious to see that Habana & Rokocoko are well above their peers in the tri nations when it comes to scoring tries and the rate at which they do it in. The kid will come right folks!! It’s just a matter of when. And lets not forget, Smoking Joe haven’t been that smoking the last couple of seasons & just look how he’s playing at the moment.

South Africa’s top 10 try scorers of all time

If Habana doesn’t break SA’s record this weekend he’ll do it next year (pending he gets rested Grand Slam tour) Of the top 10 players, the great Danie Gerber is the only player that has a better strike rate than him. Stats don’t lie and the stats show that he’s SA’s greatest wing ever produced. It’s either him or Stefan Terblanche??

^{Rugby Union all time try scorers with the best strike rate}

^{* 38 is the lowest nr of tries scored}

As illustrated on the table above it shows that Habana’s is the 9^th leading strike rate OF ALL TIME when it comes to try scoring and it also shows Habana can run with the Rugby Union’s ALL TIME leading try scorers and hold his own. Of the players listed, only him, Rokocoko & maybe Williams & O ‘Driscoll can move up that list with gap between him & Latham being only 2 tries.

I hope we all get behind him one last time as Bok fans!! The guy gave us some gems when it comes to scoring tries and he’not done.

I truly believe that not only Habana but all the Boks want to do their best for their country, their team and themselves. And they want to win coz what’s the point of competing then??  So go Habana!! & go Bokke!!

Im outy