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'I'm not sure he's up to it': Ex-Bok heaps pressure on Sam Cane

(Photo by Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images)

Former Springboks second row Victor Matfield has heaped the pressure on All Blacks skipper Sam Cane ahead of Saturday’s Rugby Championship opener in Nelspruit. Ian Foster’s New Zealand have arrived in South Africa with just one win in their last five outings, a run of results that has attracted an avalanche of criticism in recent weeks.

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In the days following the 1-2 series loss to Ireland, there was even speculation that Cane, the All Blacks skipper, would be relieved of his duties after his pack of forwards failed to deliver the expected results.

In the end, Cane was named by Foster as the captain for the two-game trip to South Africa but that vote of confidence hasn’t ended the questions over the current form of the 30-year-old back-rower, Matfield becoming the latest to question what has been going on with a seasoned player who has been on the Test scene since his 2012 debut.

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Speaking to BokSquad, the official supporters’ club of South African rugby, Matfield, the SuperSport commentator and analyst, said: “The New Zealand defence has been one of the slowest in terms of coming off the line. That is what gave the Ireland attack a lot of opportunity over the course of that series.

“If South Africa was playing against Ireland, for example, they would come off the line a lot quicker to shut down the options. Ireland would probably struggle to get more than one or two passes away. As a result, Ireland would probably be forced to kick a lot more.

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“New Zealand don’t have the best defence at the moment. The Boks can run at them – and I’m not talking about running from deep within our own half. If we get into their half, we can build through our forwards and we can come round the corner. Once we set the platform, we can play a few options. That is how you can build momentum against them.

“They are still struggling to decide on their best loose-forward combination. Sam Cane is the captain, but I’m not sure he’s up to it at the moment – in terms of getting over the ball, stealing the ball, slowing it down… all of that contributes to a team’s defence. They are not really stopping the opposition from getting quick ball. They are allowing the opposition to get a quick recycle at the ruck and to launch a multiphase attack.”

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3 Comments
P
Paul 846 days ago

He's just a sh1# Richie McCaw! Country Boy O'Mahony told me so!

J
Jamie 2 846 days ago

I hope the the South African's keep up the negative commentary about Cane, if nothing else will rile Cane up it's aspersions on his ability and their lack of respect, some seem to forget Cane's knee injury which could have ended his season the fact he is back in action is testimony to his motivation as a player, and obviously he wants to be selected as captain for the RWC next year.

l
les 847 days ago

Springboks due a large score, will it be against the ABs, here's hoping !

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JW 3 minutes ago
'Let's not sugarcoat it': Former All Black's urgent call to protect eligibility rules

It's as relevant as long as you want to make it relevant.


I think you need to take a step back and look at why it's there. That rule was put in place simply to ensure players knew where they stood when it comes to selection, it is a 'were not going to go to all the difficulty of including you if you leave' understanding, 'were not going to give one AB special treatment over any other'. It has only morphed into a concept of using it as a means to keep the game alive in NZ as an afterthought.


You also don't seem to understand who he is talking to. He's not saying players aren't able to be an international level without loyalty or sacrifice, he's addressing the public and telling them, 'look, you just have to accept you need to make a sacrifice to be an All Black, don't feel entitled in wanting to see Mo'unga playing before he returns to New Zealand' etc. As you suggest, we would not have the same view if the game here was in as perilous a position as South Africa's was.


Closing borders is historically a silly economic idea, why should it be any different in national level sports?

The current stance is actually the opposite of that. They are increasing the value of their domestic product in order to gain the most economic advantage globally.


If you want to actually analyze the concept, think about what SA is having to do and ask yourself whether it's worth it. For example, Mo'unga would only have a few weeks off a year if it was to both play in the NH and for the AB's, so that isn't obviously going to happen. He would most likely need to abstain from the Rugby Championship (being between the start and end of each of his club season) or parts of it, so the All Blacks wouldn't want to select him for the International window before that, as they want to give their 10 who will be playing in the RC time to hit peak performance, along with this team. I quite like the idea of having 3 to 5 'World' spots outside the team for players to come in for and they can be a part of the team helping the youngsters etc, it is still mainly a holiday for them but they can play in the case of an emergency etc.


Isn't it such a beautiful sport because of aspects like these Keith? Otherwise, wouldn't it be exactly like football as you suggest?

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