Allister Coetzee and his Springboks kick off the 2017 International season in Pretoria this afternoon with plenty on the line for the coach, Captain Warren Whiteley and the rest of the team.
What would usually be a one sided affair between a fresh Springbok team and a European team filled with tired players at the end of their season, we sit with more questions and doubt than answers and confidence. There is certainly more on the line for the home team, with a general lack of confidence in the coach and his ability to inspire his charges. Coetzee has gone out on a limb and selected a fresh looking team, and although we have certain doubts, at least their is something being done. We will just have to wait until 19h00 tonight to find out if this change is for the better.
There will be plenty of players within the Springbok side that will be under some pressure, none more so than Warren Whiteley. The first time leader will have his hands full inspiring this new team whilst still finding his feet as a regular starter for the Boks. The back three debutants will also be under pressure to perform whilst there are plenty of questions to be asked about the inclusion of the Bulls centre pair.
These 23 players can start the resurgence of Springbok rugby, or could merely carry on in the same vein as the 2016 Springboks. We can only hope that it’s the former.
South Africa: 15 Andries Coetzee, 14 Raymond Rhule, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Jan Serfontein, 11 Courtnall Skosan, 10 Elton Jantjies, 9 Ross Cronje, 8 Warren Whiteley, 7 Teboho Mohoje, 6 Siyamthanda Kolisi, 5 Francois Mostert, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements: 16 Mbongeni Mbonambi, 17 Steven Kitshoff, 18 Coenraad Oosthuizen, 19 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 20 Jean-Luc du Preez, 21 Francois Hougaard, 22 Francois Steyn, 23 Dillyn Leyds.
France: 15 Brice Dulin, 14 Yoann Huguet, 13 Henry Chavancy, 12 Gaël Fickou, 11 Virimi Vakatawa, 10 Jules Plisson, 9 Maxime Machenaud, 8 Loann Goujon, 7 Louis Picamoles, 6 Yacouba Camara, 5 Yoann Maestri (captain), 4 Julien le Devedec, 3 Uini Atonio, 2 Clément Maynadier, 1 Jefferson Poirot.
Replacements: 16 Camille Chat, 17 Eddy Ben Arous, 18 Mohamed Boughanmi, 19 Bernard le Roux, 20 Kevin Gourdon, 21 Baptiste Serin, 22 Jean-Marc Doussain, 23 Vincent Rattez.
Date: Saturday, 10 June 2017
Kick-off: 17.00 (15.00 GMT)
Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Expected weather conditions: Partly cloudy without any rain, a high of 18°C and a low of 6°C.
Referee: Glen Jackson (New Zealand)
Assistant referees: Ben O’Keeffe (New Zealand), Marius Mitrea (Italy)
TMO: Rowan Kitt (England)
Tweet
Win by 1, and start building the next era in Bok rugby.
By next year, we’ll get to see 10-Bosch, 12-AE, 13-Am, 14-Nkosi.
For now, I’ll do my best to patiently support the Boks through thick and thin.
Allister Coetzee could have tried to play it “safe” by doing a Heyneke Meyer, loading the team with overseas based players with 30+ caps. But he didn’t, instead he is doing this year what he should have done from the start last year, building his team around a “spine” of Lions players.
All the Lions players are relatively inexperienced at international rugby but they are not inexperienced rugby players, most having played 40+ Super Rugby games.
In addition to knowing each other well, these players were all involved in successfully rebuilding a team from scratch, playing and performing under the pressure of previous failures.
Hopefully this will stand the Boks in good stead this afternoon. Compared to last year the Boks are much better prepared.
It is a tough game to predict, with both the Boks and France playing with a number of inexperienced players. France’s forward pack is quite raw, while the Boks’ backs are very raw.
@FireTheLooser (Comment 1) : Maybe the house must first be burned down to be rebuilt. Maybe their fall must be complete before Coetzee will be fired. I don’t see him winning a world cup or building a world beating bok side. Not at all.
@coolfusion (Comment 3) : A man with that capability would already have proven able to construct a working unit. Never mind the talent at his disposal nor their condition will daunt such men. We have seen such men, with such capabilities. This man is not one of them. The best we can hope for from AC is mediocrity. It will be better than he currently delivers but still far short from what is required. We will call it improvement, but it will never get where it should. False hope.
@coolfusion (Comment 3) : Our problems are deeper than anything AC can fix….we need a serious rethink about player and coaching development.
I want to see us employ a similar structure to that of the Blitzbokke, where players are developed at at a national academy, as well as pre-identified coaches developed and brought up through the ranks.
We need to stop firing entire coaching teams. Hansen and Smith has been with the AB’s since 2005.
Continuity in the coaching and management box requires succession planning…..nobody was groomed to take over after pdv, hm and nobody is being groomed to take over after ac. Who’s next in line?
Time to gritt our teeth, and get through this.
@FireTheLooser (Comment 5) : Sure but I don’t think he is the man to fix it, gritted teeth notwithstanding.
So 30 mins before the game eskom decides its time to save power !!
@John (Comment 7) : My alarm company was nice enough to let me know that I had a power failure…..quickly came home and flipped it back on and made sure the explora was still set to record.
I really wanted to enjoy this game, then I heard Stransky’s nasal twang. 😥
Books doing well so far. 6-0
We really need a Fetcher
Lots of running from the boks lots of chances just not taking them yet
Try kriel!!
Boks 13-0 frogs
Frogs try
Skosan with Habana syndrome and shooting out the line caused that try to happen
Boks 13-7 frogs 37min
@Poisy (Comment 16) : To be fair to him ot was a 2 on 1 and his inside players made no attempt to shift
Boks 16-7 frogs 39min jantjies pen
Boks 16-7 frogs HT
@byron (Comment 18) : true but I was taught you don’t shoot out if it’s not in the 22, you fall back and give your fullback a chance to join the line in defence
Must say the team looks more composed and cohesive. Not up to international standard. Just slightly better. Will it be enough?
Well, it’s not France’s best, let’s not have premature celebration
@coolfusion (Comment 22) : if they could just take they chances and be ruthless I reckon we could shock the all blacks at home
It doesn’t feel like the real Springboks with only one starting Shark
@SeanJeff (Comment 25) : nkosi for skosan that would be awesome
@Poisy (Comment 26) : Yep that power on the line could be awesome. Like a JP with more heart.
Kriel could be good needs to trust himself. Put Steyn next him I want to see that.
We pay the price for not taking our chances frogs score a try
Boks 16-14 frogs 56min
Serf should have been of steyn next to kriel. Stupid coach.
That must be a penalty try.
Penalty try for boks skosan impeded before he got the ball on the line.
Boks 23-14 frogs 59min
Try cronje!!!
Boks 30-14 frogs 62min
Our coach is an idiot. Kriel is playing the oppertunist. Keep him bring steyn on to break the line Jesse to take the gaps.
Good awareness cronje
Ugh hougaard. …
Marx fast becoming one of my favorite forwards
Try Jan!!!
Boks 37-14 frogs 69min
Well done to the Boks and coaching staff. 😎
Seem to remember someone predicting a 15+ point win for the Boks on another thread.
Etzebeth had a good game. Great on defence and some vital steals in the line outs.
Boks 37-14 frogs FT
https://www.supersport.com/rugby/supersport-challenge/news/170610/Sharks_romp_to_victory_in_Potch
Thanks AC, playing like this is good for business….long may it continue….happy patrons all round.
Well done Bokke. Job done!
Great all round performance
@FireTheLooser (Comment 48) : just so you know, AE scored 2 tries in the Sharksxv victory in Potch.
Bench also did well, I thought RDup was huge on defense when he came on.
@sharks_lover (Comment 51) : Excellent….really miffed that he’s not with the Boks.
What was the score there. (Can’t tap or copy your link on app)?
@FireTheLooser (Comment 53) : 40-24
@SeanJeff (Comment 23) : Had AC decided to pull in all the eligible Boks from overseas the Boks could have looked a better team. He went SA only (mostly) and we had a less experienced team than the French.
30+ caps Boks not used
Schalk Burger
Bryan Habana
Ricky Januarie
Wynand Olivier
JP Pietersen
Ruan Pienaar
Bismarck du Plessis
Jannie du Plessis
Morné Steyn
Zane Kirchner
Francois Louw
Flip van der Merwe
Willem Alberts
Willie le Roux
The record will show it was France vs the Boks. Point.
Jeez, will people stop diminishing the Bok “achievements? Get behind the rebuild instead of looking for another Geriatric Bok side.
Malcolm Marx today outplayed anything that Bismarck ever did for the Boks, given the position the Boks were in.
Ross Cronje had a solid game
Etzebeth found his vigour again
Sorry, I just get a bit p..!..ssed off when nothing the Boks do is ever good enough for some people
@Baylion (Comment 55) : To be fair this is probably the worst French team I have seen play in a long time. Very lateral and slow on attack, set pieces were poor and defense was.inconsistent.
They will get alot better.
@Baylion (Comment 55) : Hey hey hey hey…..don’t diss the Biss. 🙂
Lions shades apart, Boks today did what they couldn’t last year against an under strength Irish.
I’m happy, the Boks now have a base to build on.
@byron (Comment 56) : @FireTheLooser (Comment 57) : Don’t we just love to say the opposition is understrength, as if we are at full strength.
Fact is, had AC gone full HM and called up a lot of overseas based players we could have been much “stronger” but it would not have helped us for 2019.
Fact: The Bok team today was less experienced at international rugby than the French team.
Fact: We had more rookies in the Bok team than the French in their team
Fact: our team had less international caps than the French team
Seriously, why always knock your own?
There was much to be happy about…definitely a step forward compared to last year. Good performances by Marx, Mostert, Whitely, Cronje and Coetzee. Elton was also quite good. Kriel cannot be our 13…he has pace, runs good lines but simply does not have strong enough front on defence for 13. What France did for their second try (run clean through/over him and score an easy try) will be done by better sides all day long against him. But I’m happy with this first step…
@Baylion (Comment 58) : Breath….breath some more…..continue breathing….it will all be okay.
@FireTheLooser (Comment 60) : 😀
@Baylion (Comment 61) : ….now, I’m not attacking the Boks, on the contrary.
Like for like, we’re way ahead of the game than where we were last year this time.
Boks will improve (same as the baby boks did this year), and even though France will have better players available for this coming weekend, this new Bok chapter kicked off with a win. By next weekend they’d have gelled more.
I’m feeling optimistic.
@FireTheLooser (Comment 62) : My reaction was based on a combination of comments on different sites, not only SW
@Baylion (Comment 58) : I didnt say they were understrength … I said they were poor. Subtle difference ;p
@pastorshark (Comment 59) : Kriel also makes poor decisions on attack. I still think he is better at 15 or even maybe at wing.
Marx was really good, Etzebeth stopped his nonsense and played for a change, Cronje provided good calm service, Elton was mostly good and Andries was excellent at 15.
@Baylion (Comment 63) : We’ll have to patiently support the Boks, that includes ignoring the plethora of naysayers.
SA is in a very angry space, so finding positives is not within everybody’s reach yet….let’s try to give them time.
@Bokhoring (Comment 65) : Agreed on all of the above…and Kriel is definitely better at 15 than at 13…
@McLovin (Comment 44) : Well done you win the meat hamper.