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Schalk Burger questions if 'balance of power' is shifting for Boks
By Josh Raisey
Former South Africa flanker Schalk Burger has questioned whether Springboks head coach Rassie Erasmus will stick with a 6-2 split on the bench for the Rugby Championship, claiming the “balance of power” within the squad is shifting from the forwards to the backs.
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Erasmus has been the paragon of pragmatism in recent seasons when selecting his bench, switching between a 5-3 and 6-2, and occasionally a 7-1, split depending on the Boks’ opposition.
While the 6-2 split has been frequently deployed by the world champions, allowing them to flaunt a welter of world-class options in the pack to outmuscle any opponent in the final quarter of a match, a deepening injury crisis among the forwards combined with some returning backs has led Burger to question whether Erasmus will reassess his options.
Speaking on RugbyPass TV’s latest episode of Boks Office to be released this week, the 2007 World Cup winner looked at lock Salmaan Moerat’s limited game time against Ireland in the second Test of their 1-1 series as an indication that the ‘Bomb Squad’ might not be as potent as it has been in recent years.
With locks Jean Kleyn, Lood de Jager and Franco Mostert all out, and with backs Damian Willemse and Canan Moodie nearing returns, Burger wonders whether the Boks will soon be better suited having an extra back on the bench to change a game rather than a forward.
“I think the balance of the 6-2 split, is it something we’re still going to chase?” he said.
“You look at the Irish game, I think Salmaan Moerat only got a couple of minutes in that one. They didn’t use him at all, they didn’t empty the bench.
“The whole premise of the 6-2 split is that you’ve got the best two packs of forwards, you’ve got to use them early.
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“Obviously, having locks injured puts pressure on our squad, but also gives opportunity for development. There’s Ben-Jason Dixon, a guy like Ruan Venter, and how they’re going to be utilised.
“The main question is who is your first pick at No.10. At the moment it’s still Handre [Pollard], but you see a guy like Sacha [Feinberg-Mngomezulu] that wants to play at fly-half, he’s filling the utility role.
“Once a guy like Damian Willemse comes back, Canan Moodie, will we then go to a 5-3 split? Because then the balance of power shifts to the backs more than the fowards.”
What too many people forget are the weather conditions. In the RWC it was wet (and even raining) most of the time which proved the need for the Bomb Squad, and how well did they play! The rest of the world didn't get much of a chance to see the fantastic state of the Bok backline. Even with the four games coming up against Oz and the ABs, Rassie may be forced to go the BS(!) route in Brisbane and Cape Town because both of them can be very wet in winter. I just hope Perth and Joburg stay dry so we can at last see what an incredible running team we now have.
The current winning style of heavy contact, constant attritive gameplans favors SA with their assembly line of huge bodies. Teams, like the Blues in the Super final, have been winning tournaments playing heavy contact, one off the ruck.
For some, this style of rugby is mind-numbingly boring but more important is the impact this continuous contact has on short term injuries and especially long term health issues. Player's welfare just seems collateral damage.
Something to think about. The utility value of SFM, GW and DW will allow Rassie to pick a 6-2 bench though. But I also think that SFM must be blooded as a longterm flyhalf. Keep Pollard around to finish tight matches. I have always been for getting the youngsters in now. Give them 3 years to settle in and let the play the AB's, France etc… WLR, HP and Faf is getting on.