Here’s a quick video looking at some areas of strength for the Springboks and opportunity for the Wallabies ahead of their Rugby Championship clash on Saturday night at Suncorp in Brisbane.
I’ve gone back over the Boks’ last match against the Pumas – where they only managed to get ahead in the final five minutes to record a 22-17 win – to see where there might be some pay for the Wallabies.
The three areas that stick out to me are:
The choke tackle
The Boks won 4-5 turnovers through holding up the Argies in Mendoza. The Wallabies will need to watch their body height if we aren’t to have RWC2011 Ireland flashbacks
The breakdown
The Argies blew the Boks off the ball numerous times through lack of protection at the breakdown from the Saffa loosies (Alberts was particuarly ineffective). Could this explain why Gill has been dropped from the bench in favour of Schatz?
The defensive line
The Boks are back with their in your face umbrella D, but the edges of it are looking pretty fuzzy. Two lines of attack or even just a lump of a front row decoy like the Pumas ran are enough to get them into hot water. With Cooper and Leali’ifano having Ashley-Cooper, Folau, O’Connor and The Honey Badger to choose from, this should be an area of opportunity for the Wallabies. Bring on the tries!
