Morné – Deserves a Rest
September 27, 2012 in Uncategorized
Good day to all,
Under fire and very criticized Springbok pivot Morné Steyn has been dropped from the coming weekend’s Springbok squad to face the Wallabies at Loftus. After a lengthy run, non-stop if I may add, the man can finally get some of the pressure lifted from his shoulders. Love him or hate him, the man is a great servant to SA Rugby. A dip in form is expected from any player if not all…
He normally played second fiddle to “Liefling” Derick Hougaard at the Bulls, but since the latter’s departure, Steyn took over the reigns and did so brilliantly. The success he enjoyed with the Bulls was finally rewarded in 2009 against the British & Irish Lions’ Tour Of SA. He came on in the second test played at Loftus and kicked the infamous 53m penalty which gave the Boks a 28-25 victory. On the 1st of August 2009, Steyn had a game which many can only dream of! The Boks beat the All-Blacks 31-19 in a great test match of which Steyn scored all 31 of the Boks’ points (incl 8 pen and converted his own try).
Since he took over as the no.1 choice fly-half (both for the Bulls and the Boks), the records started to scatter in front of him:
- World record for most points scored by a player who has scored all their team’s points (31).
- Most points scored against New Zealand (31) in a single test
- South African record for penalties in a test (8) – beating the seven achieved twice by former fullback, Percy Montgomery.
- All of the above records achieved with his 31 points scored in the Tri-Nations 2009 match against the All Blacks in Durban on 1 Aug 09
- South African record for most points in a test against Australia.
- Fastest 100 points by a Springbok (8 Test matches, 3 as replacement)
- Fastest 200 points by a Springbok (16 Test matches)
- Fastest 300 points by a Springbok (24 Test matches)
- Fastest 400 points by a Springbok (33 Test matches)
- Most drop-goals in a Super Rugby season (11).
- Most points scored against the All Blacks for a Springbok (31).
- Most points in a Tri-Nations match (31).
- Most drop goals in a Super Rugby game (4) (in the 2009 Super 14 semi-final against the Crusaders)
- Most drop goals in Super Rugby (22)
- Most drop goals in a Super Rugby season (11 in 2009)
- Most penalties in a Super Rugby season (51 in 2010)
- Most points in a Super Rugby season (263) – Beating Dan Carter’s record of 221 set in 2006.
- Most points by a Bulls player in Super Rugby history (1,201)
- Most points by a South African and first South African to reach 1,000 points in Super Rugby (1,201)
- Steyn also holds the record for most consecutive successful kicks at goal in Test play since statistics for that category were first kept in the late 1980s. He had a streak of 41 successful attempts that ended on 6 November 2010 against Ireland. The previous record was 36, held by Chris Paterson of Scotland.
Unfortunately we as the rugby public tend to forget all great things in the face of non-performance! Every player goes through a dip in form in his career, so rather for us to ridicule the man, rather support him. I am the first to admit he is going through a bad spell and that he seriously needs to get his confidence and hence form back. Looking at everything he has accomplished, it’s not really fair to refer to him as a”loser’, “tosser’, “idiot” etc… We as rugby fans obviously want our teams to win, myself included, but I wish we could support our out of form players. If Goosen, Jantjies etc is to be injured we will need these guys back and in good shape. Public support helps morale quite a lot!
But all this said, I am very excited to see what Goosen can bring from the get-go! He is a hot prospect and will almost certainly put pressure on Steyn for the coveted no 10 jumper! All the more reason for Steyn to rest, get his head clean, play some Currie Cup and regain form. I think the majority of rugby fans will agree with me on this…(hopefully)…
Cheers…
gertbloues said on September 27, 2012
I really couldn’t fathom the things Morne Steyn was called just because he missed a few kicks. I just hope Goosen can come good. Imagine if he starts getting the same abuse in two years’ time while he is only 22 years old.
I guess it is inevitable. Goosen will be called a d@@s somewhere down the line. That’s just how we role.
henkj said on September 27, 2012
I support Goosen and believe that he will come good, but as Met Uysh accordingly commented below, we need to rotate all our talented young players!
Met uysh said on September 27, 2012
Agree Bloues. Calling Morne names is incalled for. I may have been critical of Meyer but getting personal is not on.
Met uysh said on September 27, 2012
On Goosen being called a d00s, I’m also concerned about that and you could see the impact on Morne emotionally of how the public turned on him. Hopefully Goosen will have the support behind him when things turn against him, which as you say, will somewhere down the line.
powa said on September 27, 2012
2 years time they’ll call him D–sen if he doesn’t perform like a robot
henkj said on September 27, 2012
I didn’t even realize it, but you’re right, he’s got a pretty k@k surname for the days he won’t perform…d00sen…eina!
Met uysh said on September 27, 2012
Yup! Have to agree, he deserves the break. Did you know he’s played all but 2 of the Springbok’s tests since he made his debut? And I think he played all the Bulls Super Rugby games on top of that.
I wrote a post about Morne being fatigued last year already. The problem with SA coaches are they play the guys into the ground, rather than managing the players. Jantjies and Lambie could have been rotated for some time with Morne…but then there is the public demand for winning, winning, winning, and coaches become too scared to take risks.
I sincerely hope that Meyer won’t fall into the same trap now with Goosen. He needs to establish himself, yes, but don’t let him play 40 consecutive tests along with all the Cheetahs Super Rugby matches. We have Jantjies, Steyn, Lambie and Goosen who can all fulfill the flyhalf role, there is no need to drain any one of them.
henkj said on September 27, 2012
I remember that post. 100% on the rotation of players. We have so much potential in key positions, to rotate them won’t be to difficult and shouldn’t unsettled the side too much.
If you rotate them often, you can build experience much faster amongst the youngsters, especially with all the talent they’ve got!
powa said on September 27, 2012
Problem lies with SARU system. No central contracts so players get used and abused. Hence the high injury count
kedafie said on September 27, 2012
Ja I agree he needed to be managed. The exact thing happended to De Wet Barry and Marius Joubert, They Played I think for almost 2-3 years none stop and just before the world cup year the lads lost form and never seen in a springbok jersey again. Just look how well the Proteas manage Jacques Kallis.
Met uysh said on September 27, 2012
Your blog is now Captcha free! Congratulations!
henkj said on September 27, 2012
Thank goodness. Always hated that shite!
Lekker dag vir jou my maati!
powa said on September 27, 2012
Now we need Baylion to do the same
Greg Aries said on September 27, 2012
Mornè is a legend and I sincerely hope that he bounces back up again with a vengeance. He has unfortunately also been targeted as the proverbial “escape goat”. People must stop pointing finger at him and look broader. Other players like Ruan Pienaar (pathetic – bokke always lose when he plays), Bryan Habana (over the hill – gets hurt too easily), Dean Greyling (aka Rocky Balboa) and a few more are also to blame.
Percy bounced back and I’m sure Mornè can too!
H&P said on September 27, 2012
And to think he accomplished all that while being the most one dimensional nr 10 since Braam van Straaten
The Green Man said on September 28, 2012
I still think Morne is a D**s. But not for the reasons you think. He’s a d**s because he went to play his rugby in Pretoria when the Cheetahs could have used his talents in that time
Other than that, I agree 
The Green Man said on September 28, 2012
PS. Have I never commented on your blog before? Or do you still moderate every comment?
henkj said on October 1, 2012
Hi.
This is the first time you commented on my blog since the new wordpress stuff.
It should be fine now
Cheers
valboo said on September 28, 2012
well I dont know much – I enjoy the game have my opinions however, we dont seem to have “seasons” for sport anymore! Cricket is months and months and rugby seems to be throughout the year – its no wonder the players are exhausted! how can anyone give of their best week in and week out and at this competitive level???
)
Rest well Morne and hurry back! ps Im a Sharks supporter!