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'Simple, negative, boring' - Little honour for Boks claims ex-Scotland coach

Franco Mostert /PA

Former Scotland head coach Matt Williams has lambasted the Springboks style of play and was equally critical of British & Irish Lions boss Warren Gatland for attempting to ape their ‘simple, negative, boring’ approach to rugby.

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The Springboks claimed a series victory last night, bagging a 19 – 16 win over the tourists, who were leading for much of the contest.

Writing in the Irish Times before yesterday’s decider, Williams correctly predicted the Springboks would win the game but said there would be little honour in a series win for either side.

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      Williams says that the Lions are making the same mistake that the Australian rugby union brain’s trust have made over recent decades, which saw coaches mirroring the gameplan of the New Zealand teams on the other side of the Tasman.

      “Regrettably, Warren Gatland has guided the Lions down the same dead-end path that the Australians took. The Lions game plan is failing because it is a copy of the Springboks.

      “For over 25 years the Springboks have mastered a game plan with a simple formula. Select a powerful punter who will kick the ball into the opposition half. Forge a dominant forward pack that will scrummage and maul their opponents off the park. Select a goal kicker with a success rate of 90 per cent plus. Then add a bucket of supreme physicality and bash anything not wearing a green jersey. A simple, negative, boring, yet highly effective strategy.”

      Williams correctly predicted the Lions would lose the third Test in Cape Town, by trying match the Springboks at their own game.

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      “The current Lions game plan that consists solely of physicality and kicking, is trying and failing to “out Bok the Boks”. Without major tactical change, the Lions will fail in the third Test because the Springboks do the mindless physical stuff better than any other team in the world.

      “South Africa should out-bash, out-kick, out-trashtalk and out-intimidate both the Lions and the officials.

      “There will be little honour for whoever wins. The world has viewed this series as a regrettable and grubby event, in which both the Lions and the Springboks have done rugby a grave disservice.”

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      Soliloquin 2 hours ago
      Competing interests and rotated squads: What the 'player welfare summer' is really telling us

      I don’t know the financial story behind the changes that were implemented, but I guess clubs started to lose money, Mourad Boudjellal won it all with Toulon, got tired and wanted to invest in football , the French national team was at its lowest with the QF humiliation in 2015 and the FFR needed to transform the model where no French talent could thrive. Interestingly enough, the JIFF rule came in during the 2009/2010 season, so before the Toulon dynasty, but it was only 40% of the players that to be from trained in French academies. But the crops came a few years later, when they passed it at the current level of 70%.

      Again, I’m not a huge fan of under 18 players being scouted and signed. I’d rather have French clubs create sub-academies in French territories like Wallis and Futuna, New Caledonia and other places that are culturally closer to RU and geographically closer to rugby lands. Mauvaka, Moefana, Taofifenua bros, Tolofua bros, Falatea - they all came to mainland after starting their rugby adventure back home.

      They’re French, they come from economically struggling areas, and rugby can help locally, instead of lumping foreign talents.

      And even though many national teams benefit from their players training and playing in France, there are cases where they could avoid trying to get them in the French national team (Tatafu).

      In other cases, I feel less shame when the country doesn’t believe in the player like in Meafou’s case.

      And there are players that never consider switching to the French national team like Niniashvili, Merckler or even Capuozzo, who is French and doesn’t really speak Italian.

      We’ll see with Jacques Willis 🥲


      But hey, it’s nothing new to Australia and NZ with PI!

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