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'I don't think Ireland poses any threat to us, neither does France': Bok legend dismisses RWC threats

(Photo by Jean Catuffe/Getty Images)

Former Springbok legend Schalk Burger is confident that South Africa can defend their Rugby World Cup crown after what he has seen on this year’s European tour.

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The Springboks lost their first two clashes in tight fashion to the world’s top two ranked sides, Ireland and France, before blowing out Italy and finishing with a dominant win over England at Twickenham.

Despite a 50 per cent return from the four tests Burger was buoyed by how South Africa played when assessing what to take from the the tour overall.

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“We want the Springboks to win every test, don’t we? But I think it’s more the way they played,” Burger told the SuperSport panel on the post-match show.

“Yes, this was sort of a tour defining game today, getting the result and shutting out England was what we wanted to see, and we did that.

“If we lost and played well, we would be disappointed.”

After seeing the way the Springboks dismantled England, Burger went as far as saying that Ireland and France don’t ‘pose any threat’ to South Africa at next year’s Rugby World Cup despite losing to them over the past month.

France completed a perfect season with 10 wins from 10 tests in 2022, capturing a Grand Slam title in March while Ireland similarly had an impressive year after beating the All Blacks at home in a historic series win.

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“If you look ahead to next year, I don’t think Ireland poses any threat to us really, neither does France,” Burger claimed.

“They are great sides, the games can go either way, we are not going to be blown out of the water.

“This team is not [going to get blown away]. So a massive positive tour.”

“We’ve been negative about referees, we’ve had some bizarre refereeing displays, but I thought Angus Gardner and his team today put up a normal refereeing display.”

The Springboks showed over the final two games of the tour a more adventurous game with more emphasis on ball movement.

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With more appetite to take on more risk, they had many wide movements from deep inside their own half against England to get the ball into the hands of Kurt-Lee Arendse, who dazzled with a stunning try on a kick return sparked by Damian Willemse.

Speaking pitch side after the win, captain Siya Kolisi said they had talked about changing and said the team decided to ‘risk it all’ before the game and try new things before next year’s World Cup.

“We said ‘we’ll risk it all, because you know it’s worth it’,” he said.

“We need to find answers before the World Cup, but at the same time, respecting them and playing in the right areas of the field.

“It’s not that much of a difference but we are seeing a lot more opportunities than we have in the past.”

On whether they can defend the World Cup title next year, Kolisi hoped that they had seen everything that will face so won’t be ‘shocked’ at the tournament.

“We’ve tried a few things but there is still a lot more we can do,”

“We are going flat out for it as a group. We wouldn’t be going if we didn’t think we were able to defend it.

“It’s going to be tough and face a lot of challenges this time, but I really think we’ve learnt so much about our team, got a lot of answers for questions.

“So going forward next year, I’m hoping there is not a lot that can shock us as a team because of all the challenges we have faced.”

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Comments

3 Comments
j
jakkie 724 days ago

England's bombsqaud what a joke Eddie!!

M
Michael Röbbins (academic and writer extraordinair 725 days ago

Aw, BS, no commentary of your own? Just pusillanimous quoting of others: we need your cleverness...

B
Brian 725 days ago

The arrogant English humbled by South Africa B ?

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JW 3 hours ago
'Passionate reunion of France and New Zealand shows Fabien Galthie is wrong to rest his stars'

Ok, managed to read the full article..

... New Zealand’s has only 14 and the professional season is all over within four months. In France, club governance is the responsibility of an independent organisation [the Ligue Nationale de Rugby or LNR] which is entirely separate from the host union [the Fédération Française de Rugby or FFR]. Down south New Zealand Rugby runs the provincial and the national game.

That is the National Provincial Championship, a competition of 14 representative union based teams run through the SH international window and only semi professional (paid only during it's running). It is run by NZR and goes for two and a half months.


Super Rugby is a competition involving 12 fully professional teams, of which 5 are of New Zealand eligibility, and another joint administered team of Pacific Island eligibility, with NZR involvement. It was a 18 week competition this year, so involved (randomly chosen I believe) extra return fixtures (2 or 3 home and away derbys), and is run by Super Rugby Pacific's own independent Board (or organisation). The teams may or may not be independently run and owned (note, this does not necessarily mean what you think of as 'privately owned').


LNR was setup by FFR and the French Government to administer the professional game in France. In New Zealand, the Players Association and Super Rugby franchises agreed last month to not setup their own governance structure for professional rugby and re-aligned themselves with New Zealand Rugby. They had been proposing to do something like the English model, I'm not sure how closely that would have been aligned to the French system but it did not sound like it would have French union executive representation on it like the LNR does.

In the shaky isles the professional pyramid tapers to a point with the almighty All Blacks. In France the feeling for country is no more important than the sense of fierce local identity spawned at myriad clubs concentrated in the southwest. Progress is achieved by a nonchalant shrug and the wide sweep of nuanced negotiation, rather than driven from the top by a single intense focus.

Yes, it is pretty much a 'representative' selection system at every level, but these union's are having to fight for their existence against the regime that is NZR, and are currently going through their own battle, just as France has recently as I understand it. A single focus, ala the French game, might not be the best outcome for rugby as a whole.


For pure theatre, it is a wonderful article so far. I prefer 'Ntamack New Zealand 2022' though.

The young Crusader still struggles to solve the puzzle posed by the shorter, more compact tight-heads at this level but he had no problem at all with Colombe.

It was interesting to listen to Manny during an interview on Maul or Nothing, he citied that after a bit of banter with the All Black's he no longer wanted one of their jersey's after the game. One of those talks was an eye to eye chat with Tamaiti Williams, there appear to be nothing between the lock and prop, just a lot of give and take. I thought TW angled in and caused Taylor to pop a few times, and that NZ were lucky to be rewarded.

f you have a forward of 6ft 8ins and 145kg, and he is not at all disturbed by a dysfunctional set-piece, you are in business.

He talked about the clarity of the leadership that helped alleviate any need for anxiety at the predicaments unfolding before him. The same cannot be said for New Zealand when they had 5 minutes left to retrieve a match winning penalty, I don't believe. Did the team in black have much of a plan at any point in the game? I don't really call an autonomous 10 vehicle they had as innovative. I think Razor needs to go back to the dealer and get a new game driver on that one.

Vaa’i is no match for his power on the ground. Even in reverse, Meafou is like a tractor motoring backwards in low gear, trampling all in its path.

Vaa'i actually stops him in his tracks. He gets what could have been a dubious 'tackle' on him?

A high-level offence will often try to identify and exploit big forwards who can be slower to reload, and therefore vulnerable to two quick plays run at them consecutively.

Yes he was just standing on his haunches wasn't he? He mentioned that in the interview, saying that not only did you just get up and back into the line to find the opposition was already set and running at you they also hit harder than anything he'd experienced in the Top 14. He was referring to New Zealands ultra-physical, burst-based Super style of course, which he was more than a bit surprised about. I don't blame him for being caught out.


He still sent the obstruction back to the repair yard though!

What wouldn’t the New Zealand rugby public give to see the likes of Mauvaka and Meafou up front..

Common now Nick, don't go there! Meafou showed his Toulouse shirt and promptly got his citizenship, New Zealand can't have him, surely?!?


As I have said before with these subjects, really enjoy your enthusiasm for their contribution on the field and I'd love to see more of their shapes running out for Vern Cotter and the like styled teams.

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