Boks team for 2nd Test

shanagarry

Burger back - it will be interesting to see what sort of shape he is in:

The Springbok team for the second Test against the British & Irish Lions is (Test caps in brackets):

15. Frans Steyn (28)
14. JP Pietersen (25)
13. Adi Jacobs (22)
12. Jean de Villiers (47)
11. Bryan Habana (47)
10. Ruan Pienaar (28)
9. Fourie du Preez (44)
8. Pierre Spies (20)
7. Juan Smith (55)
6. Schalk Burger (49)
5. Victor Matfield (81)
4. Bakkies Botha (56)
3. John Smit (82) – Captain
2. Bismarck du Plessis (22)
1. Tendai Mtawarira (11)
Reserves:
16. Chiliboy Ralepelle (3)
17. Deon Carstens (8)
18. Andries Bekker (14)
19. Danie Rossouw (37)
20. Heinrich Brüssow (2)
21. Jaque Fourie (43)
22. Morné Steyn (1)

Stev_o

Tbh they should of brought in Kankowski for Spies with the later on the bench. Ryan is the real deal while Spies is just for show when other people do his work for him.

Dickerty

The fact that they aren't making changes at centre shows that this is a weak area for them. The Lions can only improve in the scrum/linout, but it is unlikely that the Boks midfield defence will do so...

Amabokke

oh boy oh boy....did the boks management or shall I say PDV not learn anything from last week's match?? Did the names BOD and Roberts pop up somewhere during the match and then dissappear again after the game. Those two are going to kill us! JDV is good but put under so much pressure because Roberts kept hitting Jacobs channel and create the space for BOD.

:mad:

shanagarry

Stev_o wrote: »

Tbh they should of brought in Kankowski for Spies with the later on the bench. Ryan is the real deal while Spies is just for show when other people do his work for him.

I sit beside a Sharks fan with a similar opinion! Spies did nothing really last week, and probably made work for JdV covering for him defensively. Kankowski should at least be on the bench ahead of Danie Roussouw.

Fourie should also be starting ahead of Adi Jacobs.

Amabokke

Stev_o wrote: »

Tbh they should of brought in Kankowski for Spies with the later on the bench. Ryan is the real deal while Spies is just for show when other people do his work for him.

Kankowski will not do any better. He can only play and run when given space, which the Lions are not going to offer him. Spies play the same but at least he is strong enough to drag 2-3 players with him over the advantage line. If he's off then Roussouw should start for his lineout and power to break through the defence.

subfreq

Amabokke wrote: »

oh boy oh boy....did the boks management or shall I say PDV not learn anything from last week's match?? Did the names BOD and Roberts pop up somewhere during the match and then dissappear again after the game. Those two are going to kill us! JDV is good but put under so much pressure because Roberts kept hitting Jacobs channel and create the space for BOD.

:mad:

Well I think the fact Burger is included is the real pointer here. Last time Roberts was dealt with was a hard tackling back rower marking him out of the game. Worsley in the 6 nations.

I expect PDV to deploy the 6'4" Burger on a seek and destroy mission in the midfield.

Amabokke

shanagarry wrote: »

I sit beside a Sharks fan with a similar opinion! Spies did nothing really last week, and probably made work for JdV covering for him defensively. Kankowski should at least be on the bench ahead of Danie Roussouw.

Fourie should also be starting ahead of Adi Jacobs.

That;s what you get for mixing with a Sharks fan. Spies was a monster in the S14 and he is the best choice.

Amabokke

subfreq wrote: »

Well I think the fact Burger is included is the real pointer here. Last time Roberts was dealt with was a hard tackling back rower marking him out of the game. Worsley in the 6 nations.

I expect PDV to deploy the 6'4" Burger on a seek and destroy mission in the midfield.

I was thinking same but I bet EUR10 or 1/4 (whatever that means) that the Lions centres will get through a few times. Expect BOD to score or at least create a score.

subfreq

What PDV has sacrificed in this gamble is the sheer speed with ball retention in the breakdown as Brussow was excellent in the first test.

This certainly makes the game a bit more interesting.

Stev_o

Amabokke wrote: »

Kankowski will not do any better. He can only play and run when given space, which the Lions are not going to offer him. Spies play the same but at least he is strong enough to drag 2-3 players with him over the advantage line. If he's off then Roussouw should start for his lineout and power to break through the defence.

Kankowski is by a much more better defensive player who and more effected in a trench war sort of match. I also rate him much higher then Spies as a ball carrier. Also considering that the majority of players selected have been so far from the Sharks it would make sense to have a Shark player at one of the most important positions on the field at 8.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQN8P2GCE6A

shanagarry

Amabokke wrote: »

That;s what you get for mixing with a Sharks fan. Spies was a monster in the S14 and he is the best choice.

It's forced on me! Agree that Spies should keep his place, but I think Kankowski is a better option off the bench.

Crash

If the lions manage to steady the scrum and get the backrow out faster, not having brussow starting could be a turning point IMO. His work at the breakdown was crucial at times.

subfreq

It's almost perverse that we think including Burger could weaken the team. The Boks have such a wealth of talent.

Stealdo

Crash wrote: »

If the lions manage to steady the scrum and get the backrow out faster, not having brussow starting could be a turning point IMO. His work at the breakdown was crucial at times.

Yeah, would like to know what the South Africans make of that, he was a top performer in the first test, and seems a smarter player than Burger. We know what Burger can do, but also know he can blow hot and cold.

On another note - the SA bench looks very unbalanced to me, but maybe I'm not seeing where the halfback cover is coming from.

Stev_o

Stealdo wrote: »

Yeah, would like to know what the South Africans make of that, he was a top performer in the first test, and seems a smarter player than Burger. We know what Burger can do, but also know he can blow hot and cold.

On another note - the SA bench looks very unbalanced to me, but maybe I'm not seeing where the halfback cover is coming from.

Piennar switches to 9 and either Steyn goes to 10.

Stealdo

Stev_o wrote: »

Piennar switches to 9 and either Steyn goes to 10.

that'd be it - my traditionalist hat on wanting a separate player to cover both. lots of fiddling there though, not ideal.

Will have to look harder to find a weakness.

Amabokke

Spies is a natural freak,

Check out A Tribute to Pierre Spies on youtube....some bizarre reason can't past the vid.

Amabokke

Stealdo wrote: »

Yeah, would like to know what the South Africans make of that, he was a top performer in the first test, and seems a smarter player than Burger. We know what Burger can do, but also know he can blow hot and cold.

On another note - the SA bench looks very unbalanced to me, but maybe I'm not seeing where the halfback cover is coming from.

I'm always a big fan of Burger as I've never seen him having an off day in the boks shirt even though his S14 was poor. The fact that Brussouw is also good and young will push Burger to play better and defensively he will offer more than just tackling than young Brussouw.

thomond2006

Jaysus, how does PDV leave Jacobs on the field! :D:D

Jacobs vs BOD on Saturday was like Peter Stringer vs Brian Cowen in a pie eating contest.

Leslie91

Amazed that they have not made a change at centre having said that PDV is the coach.