Springboks v Wales player ratings

by Rob Cowie The Springboks ran out narrow 17-16 winners in their opening game of the 2011 Rugby World Cup. For once it was the replacements who made a big impact off the bench. The best players on the day were Frans Steyn, Schalk Burger, Heinrich Brussow, Francois Hougaard and Bismarck du Plessis. Here is what we thought of the individual performances.

15. Frans Steyn [8] – Started well on attack with an excellent try in the corner and some booming touch-finders. Took a more defensive role in the second half, and his positional play was good. Made the Welsh think twice about kicking onto him.

14. JP Pietersen [5] – Did not really get involved in the action apart from a couple of chip ‘n chases and a high tackle.

13. Jaque Fourie [6] – Organised the defense well and made a couple of line-breaks when the Boks were going forward. Not a dominant performance, but didn’t let the side down.

12. Jean de Villiers [5] – Left the field with his obligatory World Cup injury after 24 minutes. Didn’t really do much until then. Replaced by Butch James [5] who spent the match defending.

11. Bryan Habana [4] – Because of Habana’s ongoing try-scoring struggles, his supporters often cling to the argument that he is still invaluable as he gets involved around the park and looks for work. He didn’t even do that today. Francois Hougaard [8] replaced him, touched the ball five times and scored a crucial try within minutes of coming on – showing the veteran what it means to get involved!

10. Morne Steyn [5] – Kicked well (especially his touchline conversion) but was a glaring liability on defense. The Welsh targeted his channel with strong strike runners and he duly missed his tackles. Added to the workload of his loose forwards (Brussow was forced to make almost 30 tackles!) and Butch James on defense.

9. Fourie du Preez [4] – One of the worst Boks on the field today – looked a shadow of his former self. Dropped balls, kicked poorly and was generally out of sorts. Looks like he is still carrying an injury.

8. Pierre Spies [4] – Insert the usual line about him going missing in tight games here. Doesn’t have the mongrel or the appetite for the collisions that is expected from a No. 8. Thank goodness Schalk has enough mongrel for both of them. Replaced by Willem Supersub Alberts [6], who brought more to the game in his short stint than Spies.

7. Schalk Burger [8] – Rampaging display around the park, throwing himself around with little concern for his own welfare. Did the dirty work which enabled Brussow to do his thing at ruck time. While captain, he made the bold decision to go for the try rather than kick the penalty with 7 minutes left, which paid off this time.

6. Heinrich Brussow [8] – Tackled like a demon all day and made a couple of crucial turnovers. Slowed the Welsh ball down where he could, and put his body on the line. He is becoming like Juan Smith in that he never has a bad game.

5. Victor Matfield [5] – Clearly nursing an injury, this appeared to be a match too soon for the Bok legend. Replaced by Johann Muller [6] who showed the value of his experience in taking a few crucial lineout balls.

4. Danie Rossouw [6] – Did a solid job of replacing the injured Bakkies Botha and did good work on defense and in the tight exchanges.

3. Jannie du Plessis [5] – Stood up in the scrums and had a generally solid game.

2. John Smit [4] – Nothing spectacular on the playing or leadership front. Has about ten minutes in him before he runs out of puff. Thank goodness he wasn’t moved to prop. Replaced by Bismarck du Plessis [8] who lived up to his billing as the best hooker in world rugby with a strong all-round display.

1. Beast Mtawarira [5] – Did his job in the scrums but not given much time to run with the ball in a tight game. Defended well close in.