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The great strength that makes the Springboks the envy of the world
Let’s start with the players who are absent. Siya Kolisi, the most inspirational leader in world rugby and one of the most dynamic loose forwards from broken play. Handre Pollard, a World Cup winning fly-half who returned from injury and steered Leicester Tigers from eighth to third in the Premiership within three weeks. Kurt-Lee Arendse who now has ten tries from eight Tests. Evan Roos, the URC’s inaugural player of the season. Robert du Preez, the forgotten fly-half who ran the show as Sale Sharks kept pace with champions Saracens. Ivan van Zyl, the forgotten scrum-half who was recognised by his Saracens peers as the club’s best player across their successful campaign. Raymond Rhule and Dillyn Leyds, two forgotten wingers each with a pair of European Cup winners’ medals. Trevor Nyakane, Jesse Kriel, Marvin Orie, Jean-Luc du Preez, Jean Kleyn, Jaden Hendrikse, Ox Nche, Deon Fourie, Canan Moodie, Elton Jantjies, Hersschel Jantjies …. You get the idea.
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You might scoff at some of the names mentioned above. You might think the Springboks are better off without them. But Jacques Nienaber and his coaching staff would present a strong rebuttal. Most of these men have been tested by this current regime and those who haven’t wouldn’t be out of place in a squad bursting with talent.
This is what is meant when fans and journalists wax lyrical about the Springboks’ depth. They’re a team that is fuelled by its own self aggrandising image, by an inflated sense of purpose and by perceived slights and grudges that serve as grist to their endlessly grinding mill. But where hardened muscles collide in the close quarters of a Test match, pragmatic reasons lie at the heart of what makes this team a force to be reckoned with.
Let’s now focus on the bench named for the Rugby Championship clash against the All Blacks this Saturday. As the South African journalist Dylan Jack noted on Twitter, this isn’t a Bomb Squad, this is a ‘Nuke Squad’. Drop those eight players in tracksuits on a city from a B-29 and see what happens. Instead they will enter the scene in Auckland with fresh legs and a point to prove.
Malcolm Marx is arguably the best hooker in the world. Vincent Koch is certainly in the running for best prop in the world. Pieter-Steph du Toit was World Rugby’s player of the year not long ago. Duane Vermeulen’s moniker is Thor. Hyperbole aside, it’s worth asking if any other international team could unfurl such a monstrous weapon once their starters have emptied the tank. Could the British & Irish Lions – a composite team of four of the top nine countries – name a bench the equal of the Boks’?
None of this has happened by chance. South African school and university rugby remain productive talent factories and, despite the laser focus on the four wealthy franchises that represent the country in the URC and Europe, the Currie Cup still has a beating heart. The previous two winners – the Pumas and Cheetahs – are excluded from the elite table. So too are Griquas who lost at the last hurdle in 2022. This is proof that the game is healthy below the apex of the pyramid.
Rassie Erasmus’ decision to incorporate foreign based talent into the fold back in 2018 has also bolstered South Africa’s depth. For the past five years, the location of a Springbok hasn’t been a barrier to their inclusion. If they’re good enough they’re in. Not only has this deepened the player pool but also sharpened the minds and bodies of those already in the mix.
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It is interesting to note that seven of the players in the recently named match-day 23 also featured in Allister Coetzee’s last game in charge in 2017. Eben Etzebeth reprises his part as captain and Lood de Jager’s second row partner. Steven Kitshhoff starts again but this time Marx and Bongi Mbonambi switch roles with the latter wearing 2 on his back this time round. Lukhanyo Am and du Toit also featured, as did Kolisi, Pollard and Kriel.
The point is the evolution of the individuals from the Coetzee years has often been overstated. Erasmus did not make wholesale changes and Nienaber has largely kept intact a cohort that has been developing for some time. This is obviously a happy camp with a cohesive core at its centre. Apart from Roos (23), Hendrikse (23) and Moodie (20), every other member of the 41-man squad for the Rugby Championship is over the age of 25. Fifteen players have more than 50 caps. Three – Vermeulen, Etzebeth and le Roux – have been playing for the Springboks for more than a decade.
Continuity breeds success. The 2015 All Blacks were a better side than the one that lifted the 2011 World Cup. Four more years together had hardened any soft edges that existed. When Richie McCaw lifted the Webb Ellis Cup for the second time, he did so at the helm of the greatest team the world had ever seen.
The Springboks aren’t there yet. Even if they defend their title in France they won’t eclipse Steve Hansen’s All Blacks. But Nienaber has a golden chance to at least replicate their feat of back-to-back triumphs. This is a team peaking at the right time. Their demolition of Australia showed that they’re part of a select few considerably clear of the chasing pack. They should have beaten France last Autumn and ran Ireland close on their own patch. A different bounce of the ball and they could have won both encounters.
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Saturday will be revealing. The All Blacks will be buoyed by a thumping win of their own over Argentina and will be desperate to prove that they deserve their higher place on World Rugby’s rankings. Both camps will have an eye on the World Cup but a victory at the Mount Smart Stadium will not only secure the truncated Championship but also serve as a springboard for a tilt at the main prize in two months. But even if the Springboks lose, they can take solace in the fact there are more than capable recruits in reserve.
Hilarious
Understated* And I wouldn't even state that, you (the author) would be one of _few _ive seen (rightly) state it.
You can say that, because they have a lot of players even going back to that good 2015 team themselves! But if they win the last two games as convincingly as the AB's did in 15, by scoring points, they could claim it.
That they are behind Ireland and France leading up is not too important either. The AB's weren't ahead much, leading up to 15, it took two exceptional comeback runs from the great Carter McCaw combo to claim that title.
Unfortunately I think it is more likely that the articles perceived strength of their offshore depth will actually be the reason they don't. It has always been that it is better to rely on a chosen core of committed players (and in some regards I think your lucky to have that forced upon you), and while SA's are in a boat were they just don't have the same options to stay (SARU funding), its then impossible to have the same commitment. It's fine margins, but I instead would think they need to back their exciting local youth with their massive experience if they are going to attempt to provide that counterpoint, that spark of greatness of something like Carter and McCaw's influence, that would see them become the best team ever.
They will stick instead with the side that they have tried to hold together internationally and leave greatness to the other two sides.
The wayside journalists are describing the Boks at the moment, you’d think they had been enjoying an unbeaten run for the last few years. However, they have lost several times to different opponents and are Internationally ranked just below NZ. We’ll find out how good both teams really are this weekend of course.
This is true. Not a great win percentage at all.
But they have had a pretty good run of winning trophies.
The other way around is how teams like NZ and Ireland have been talked up massively before world cups and failed. France now too.
So take your pick bruh. At the end of the day it’s about the trophy cabinet.
I back the Boks 100% and i am carefully optimistic that we could win by a small margin of 3 to 5 points. That's how close i think it will be. I just hope the ref will be on point and that the Boks don't go in over confident. Approach the All Black like you would a starving Lion. Give them the respect that they deserve and give it your all. Go Bokke!
Certainly a strong team but its played out on the field. Same group didnt win championship last year
What was the difference last year between SA and the ABs? A bonus point? The difference between the ABs or SA flogging the pumas worse than the other?
That same group made the ABs look poor in Mbombela. The same AB group that lost to the pumas at home? Lost games in the NH?
When it comes to the ABs shit performances seem to be forgotten really quickly. Remember that this same group recently had chaperones appointed to look after foster so he doesn’t eff it up completely.
Amnesia.
This AB group is probably the worst since 2015/16 and will only get better after Foster moves on. Not as formidable or scary. Teams travel to NZ now thinking they have a chance.
JN changed a winning team by making unnecessary changes which came back to bite him. Not playing Malcom Marx, man of the match, using an inexperienced hooker instead was crazy. Old saying if it isn't broken don't try and fix it.
Correct. Credit to NZ for the Ellis Park turnaround. NZ won TRC. The consolation prize for SA was to learn some lessons and get better for next time. Which is now.
Credit to Jacques. In 2021 he said his goal was to "build depth while winning". Well more wins would have been nice, but the he has done a great job of building the depth chart.
Nienaber has done a great job of building depth - but a terrible job of doing so sustainably.
Almost every coach tries to bring in young players, meaning that their squads will remain competitive after 2023. Nienaber however has almost exclusively picked players who are at their peaks or slightly past them, so while they have incredible depth for 2023, they're going to need a pretty complete squad overhaul in 2024.
I really wonder why Rassie hasn't done more to shift the demographic profile of the squad, given that he is presumably responsible for south africa's long term growth beyond 2023.
Article is on the money. SA currently has the ability to take 2 teams of 15 to the World Cup. No other team has that depth.
If you look carefully, certain players are from similar molds. Kwagga is closer to Siya in playing style. Mostert and PSDT are the same formula - locks who play at flank and cover lock. Duane, Roos and Wiese. May as well be clones. Andre Esterhuizen really impressed this weekend, and would cover for De Allende effortlessly. The only gap imho right now is 13. Kriel is safe but not an Am.
Watching Moodie this weekend, I can’t help but wonder whether he is a future prospect at center. Specifically at 13.
It's nonsense to suggest that SA could send two teams to the RWC. It actually requires 46 players in total. Kinda arrogant mate.
"No other team has that depth".
Agree that it's hard to see another B team that would beat the SA B team. But based on recent evidence I would say that the England A team and England B team would be similar in strength. Not saying that either is fantastic, but with good coaching both England A and England B would easily be ranked in the top ten. The NZ B team is not likely to be comparable with the NZ A team, but would no doubt be a top ten test team nonetheless.
Also ... not to be funny, but the UK already has 3.5 test teams. That's a special privilege. NZ don't get to have a test team for the North Island and one for the South Island (both of which would be pretty competitive). Nor does NZ get to play the Maori ABs at test level. SA don't get to play test rugby with a Cape Team, a Highveld Team, and a South Coast Team. Nor does SA get to field teams representing nations, like the Xhosa nation, the Zulu nation, the Sesotho group of nations, etc. And France don't get to field Northern and Southern teams.
The 0.5 for the UK is that, in rugby (not football), Ireland means the island of Ireland, not the Republic of Ireland. So the UK competes at the RWC as England, Scotland, Wales and as a contributor to Ireland. Lots of ways to win (although, historically they have not). And lots of opportunities for Knighthoods. We have seen this get addressed in sevens, with the GB team. Anyway ... I get it that this is adjacent to your point.
Bottom line I agree with you. The SA depth chart is awesome, not just wrt the quality of the players, but also the level of test experience, level of alignment with the current playing philosophy, and in relation to mission commitment. It is impressive that this coaching team has built something with such great long-term potential.
On Moodie, he will have to demonstrate much more sophisticated defensive skills before he gets deployed in the midfield. Plenty of time for him to do that.
What a praise article for SB. They undoubtedly have a very good team but what a hype.. Vincent Koch the best prop in the world ??? Not close. A good player but by no means the best prop in the world !!! Use of superlatives is in the DNA of saffas and that’s why their fans and writers are not very appreciated around the world. A lot of ifs,buts and mays in this article. A little less arrogance would definitely make the Springbocks and their followers more appreciated world round
The journalist isn't even South African secondly for years Sa fans were mocked by how useless they were for getting a hiding by the abs in 2016/17 and there were countless articles about how great the abs were ect now one then said what you just said in your comment, why? Is it because it's nz? Same shit just a different smell.
So who is better than Vincent koch?
The author is not South African, he is a Londoner. He has a British passport... So technically he is super objective.
So you speak on behalf of all rugby fans well done you have an amazing power
Good read thanks I've always believed that the Boks depth is a huge strength and another point is the team is 100% born saffas unlike all other national sides that are composed of many nationalities
I'm sure it would happen if playing in SA was more attractive to top talent, others just make the most of what they have within the laws.
it would be very odd if other countries fielded only SA born players
Awesome article and observation. Saturday’s test is going to be mega
Ian, that's the beauty of rugby, I am a massive Springbok fan, and of course would like to see a win on this Saturday... However, these two squads are each excellent in different ways, so I am certain it will be a sublime, entertaining clash, and at the end of the day, that's what will be remembered not the result.
I was there in Yokohama in 2019 when the ABs gave the Springboks a lesson in how to efficiently capitalize 10 minutes, and you know what, after the game, the Kiwi fans were so damn humble in victory and a pleasure to be around... 😬, unlike a small contingent of springbok fans, honestly was ashamed.
You have to think of it as South Africa has a blend of English rugby and English football fans... Therefore please don't tar all South Africans as a yobbish, self-indulgent, obtuse group of supporters... Believe it or not, I honestly believe in my subjective opinion that the comments that come from the bad sheep amongst the flock, piss off the humble Bok fans more than the rest! 🙄