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The trendy rugby tactic that 'backfired badly' for the Stormers in Dublin
It was always going to happen – a forwards-heavy six-two or seven-one bench split backfiring. Pioneered by Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus – who has managed to escape the dreaded boomerang – it is becoming a more fashionable trend in the game.
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The Stormers became the first high-profile ‘victim’ of the practice flopping when they were left without a specialist flyhalf at a crucial juncture in their United Rugby Championship loss to Leinster this past weekend.
A three-try blitz in seven second-half minutes saw the Irish province record a comprehensive 36-12 win over the Stormers in Dublin at the weekend – stretching their unbeaten run in the URC to 10 matches.
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The Irish giants outscored the normally free-flowing Stormers by five tries to two.
Stormers Director of Rugby John Dobson said they were well-beaten in every aspect of the game, but the real problems started in the line-outs – where they barely managed to win 80 percent of their ball.
“It was, unfortunately, the same case in Paris last week,” he said of their 22-31 loss to Racing 92 in Round Four of the Champions Cup – a result that saw them being knocked out of both first and second-tier Euro competitions.
“The whole thing cascaded as a result of the pressure they put us under.
“It is a lesson for us, how they played without the [20-odd Ireland squad] players they had in Portugal [at a Six Nations training camp].”
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The other big concern was the loss of ace Springbok flyhalf Manie Libbok in the 38th minute with a knee injury – a potentially long-term lay-off.
“Once we lost Manie [Libbok], we had a 20-year-old centre [Jonathan Roche] at flyhalf.
“We lost the backfield [backline] battle.
“However, it started with the set piece [problems] and then [flowed over] into the breakdown.”
The Stormers boss admitted he made a bad call in not having a backup flyhalf on the bench.
“We were 7-10 down and your world-class flyhalf goes off,” Dobson groused about a setback at a crucial junction in the contest.
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“I must take responsibility for not having another flyhalf on the bench – we went for a six-two [forwards heavy] bench.
“We took a bit of a gamble that backfired badly on us.
“Manie [Libbok] very seldom comes off injured. We never replace him.
“That is when you could see the backfield, [with] Warrick [Gelant] often by himself.
“It [Libbok’s injury] was a big loss for us.
“Once Manie [Libbok] was gone and [lock] JD [Schickerling, injured in the 29th minute] was gone.
“It has been the story of our season.
“We lost Sacha [Feinberg-Mngomezulu] three times in the first half, we lost Damian [Willemse] once or twice in the first half and we lost Manie [Libbok] in the first half.
“Those are world-class playmakers.”
It is a call that the Stormers boss may still rue – with his team in 12th place in the standings and a challenging series of domestic derbies in the next month.
Go behind the scenes of both camps during the British and Irish Lions tour of South Africa in 2021. Binge watch exclusively on RugbyPass TV now
You know Leinster ended up with 5 backs on the pitch, for ten minutes, and 6 for about 15 minutes before that too, right?
Why is it that SA players are getting injured so often?Perhaps the human body is not a battering ram?
I fancy that the fact they are just not physical enough is the reality. Hopping and skipping doesn't work in Union (good if you play Sevens). Without the 3 decades long protection and bias that SA teams (tests and international competitions) have enjoyed from WR officials now diluted the physical shortcomings of SA players is becoming increasingly more notable. Sadly the test arena still wraps SA in cotton wool. Sad.
Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Damian Willemse and Manie Libbok are considered 'world class playmakers' by a coach. The reality is that none of them are better than mediocre League 3 club rugby players. Fascinating how WR officials can influence coaching values in SA. Boring and predictable.