Former Springbok captain Gary Teichmann, writing for The Tribune, shares his analysis of the Boks vs All Blacks Tri Nations clash.
“Coach Jake White, skipper Victor Matfield and the Springboks must be very disappointed after throwing everything they had at the All Blacks at the Absa Stadium on Saturday.
It was a fantastic Test and this Springbok team can take a lot of positives from the game. They took the game to the All Blacks and played really well for 60 minutes and but for a few lapses in concentration they may well have pulled something off. I think the Boks chose the correct game-plan, they just couldn’t carry it through for the full 80 minutes. On the whole, Jake and his charges shouldn’t be too despondent because I firmly believe the more they play together, the more this team will grow.
In reality, it was a soft try from Richie McCaw that was the Boks’ undoing, especially after Francois Steyn’s long kick that wasn’t followed up properly. It really knocked the stuffing out of the Boks who had worked really hard up until then.
In hindsight, perhaps, it was the wrong time to bring Francois on. He’s more of an attacking player, and the game at that stage probably required a more defensive-minded player.
Again, their second try also had an element of luck when the grubber kick hit JP Pietersen and bounced favourably for the All Blacks for Joe Rockocoko to run in his try.
The Boks started very well with aggressive rucking but you can’t afford to let the All Blacks get into any kind of rhythm. There were five or six instances where the Boks made silly mistakes or had lapses in concentration and they were made to pay.
I was a bit disappointed with the Boks in the lineouts where we were caught snoozing and the All Blacks called four or five quick lineouts, and in doing so countered the superiority held by Victor and Bakkies.
I thought Pedrie Wannenburg’s yellow card was a very rough call on referee Alain Rolland’s part, especially since he’d been quite lenient throughout the game about the ball on the ground and I don’t remember him giving Victor any final warnings. I thought he also missed a few skew lineouts and forward passes.
Again, Schalk Burger was outstanding and a constant disruptive element for the All Blacks. Unfortunately he wasn’t backed up by his fellow loosies. He definitely sets the benchmark for commitment.
Schalk was a lone ranger among the Bok loose trio yesterday, whereas the All Blacks’ combination of Richie McCaw, Jerry Collins and No 8 Rodney So’oialo all had outstanding games and were prominent throughout. If we want to compete at this level we need three out of three loose forwards to step up to the plate to combat the All Blacks. We can’t just rely on Schalk all the time, and I’d like to see someone with the strength and speed of Pierre Spies getting more game time.
The wings worked hard and I like the way Ashwin Willemse looks to keep busy all the time. But another area of concern is the combination of Jean de Villiers and Jacque Fourie who seem to lack penetration and flair.
I’m not sure if it’s an issue of understanding between the two, who I both rate highly but perhaps the time has come to look at alternatives, and if this is the case, I’d seriously consider giving the dynamic Sharks midfielder Waylon Murray another run.
At scrumhalf, Ruan Pienaar is really coming into his own. He cleared the ball really well and his cover-defence was outstanding.
With Fourie du Preez out injured, Ruan has shown he’s more than capable at the highest level but it would be a bit unfair on Fourie to say Ruan has leapfrogged him in the pecking order. They’re two very different players and both bring their own strengths to the position along with Ricky Januarie who’s also in the mix.
The Boks’ brains trust mustn’t push any panic buttons or let this defeat get to them as they prepare to head Down Under. I still think the Boks gave a strong all-round performance and can take a lot of positives from the game.
This latest setback will only serve to make them harder and stronger as a unit.
The bottom line is that we have the team to win away from home in the Tri Nations, we just need to up our concentration levels, be more patient with the ball in hand and cut out the silly mistakes.â€
This article was originally published on page 38 of the Tribune on June 24, 2007