SA Rugby- Looking a Bit Broken Right Now

[Blue]

Good summary from the Supersport site.

Makes for depressing reading for most SA fans. I don't really drink very often but I might go for a drink now.

http://www.supersport.com/rugby/super-rugby/news/140423/Our_rugby_can_no_longer_sit_on_defence

Nick Malett reckons they need to start teaching kids to pass at school. What, this is 2014 right?

Our rugby can no longer sit on defence

by Super Wrap 23 April 2014, 06:33

It doesn’t matter how much of an optimist you are, it’s impossible to look at the SA rugby glass after Round 10 of this year’s Vodacom Super Rugby tournament and not consider it at least half-empty.

No matter how you hold the container, it’s to the bottom half of the log you’ll have to look to find four of our five teams (and this despite most of them having played an extra match) and again to the bottom of the teams’ try-scoring list, where you’ll find four of our teams – including the log leaders – occupying bottom-six places.

So bad is our lack of attacking prowess that our teams managed to average a mere 12 points each in two local derbies and a dour clash in Sydney this past weekend.

We blame a lack of attacking prowess, because it certainly wasn’t a case of good defence. Even in South African derbies teams score 19 points on average this year.

Things gets dramatically worse in cross-conference games. Australian sides, who have won six out of the nine games they've played against SA opposition, average 24 points against us. New Zealand sides, who have lost only four out of 14 games against us, average a whopping 32 points whenever a team hops over the Indian Ocean.

With the league stages of this year’s tournament having officially passed the halfway mark, touring cannot be blamed either. Six teams have visited our shores while a third team of ours will finish their tour this coming weekend. And not a single South African side has won a match overseas this year.

In terms of attacking play the glass is not even half-empty - we’re pretty much running on fumes.
The time has come for the whole of South African rugby to take a good, honest look at itself.

Is it prudent to continue employing a game plan that is so reliant on physical dominance when it is clear we are no longer stronger than anyone? Is it prudent to stay the course that looks for collisions instead of space and this despite the fact that the net result of contact situations is so often negative for us nowadays?
Is it still necessary to always want to go through defenders instead of around them? To take on all-comers with, above all, a lack of subtlety?

We believe not, but we also understand that it’s not something that can change overnight.

“Our ball skills in South Africa are still very poor and this is a plea to our high-school coaches to put more emphasis on the timing of the passing and running straight rather than running cross-field,” said Nick Mallett after watching the Sharks and the Cheetahs bumble on Saturday.

“I am not surprised that [Heyneke] Meyer and the Boks have such a limited game plan because you can't ask these players to go out and play an expansive game of rugby when they don't possess the necessary ball skills, like our New Zealand counterparts.”

We agree, and the lack of basic attacking skills is something we wrote about often in the past. But it goes beyond that. What needs changing first is our mind-set.

The revolution has begun. That is the good news we have to share from the SuperWrap desk.

It started at the top, and at Saru’s High Performance department to be specific. They have let us know that skills development across all levels under their control has become, and will in future remain, one of their top priorities. With the help of some fancy software and plenty of on-the-ground fieldwork they aim to address this lack of skills from as young as U13 level.

What is more exciting is the fact that players at all levels will not only be rated but also selected based on what they bring to the field other than just pure athleticism.

What they’ll need for it to work is the buy-in from everybody at every level of the game, especially coaches and parents.

But also from higher up, which brings us right back to that cloak of cynicism that has enveloped our rugby at top level. What good is it if you have all these wonderfully skilled players coming through the ranks if those skills will never be used, if all of them are forced into a head-down into contact situation or heads-up here comes another kick gameplan?

This is not a chicken and egg situation. The skills are already starting to come through, we just don’t have a clue what to do with it.

Look at what a superbly rounded player Sias Ebersohn has become at the Force. Under South African tutelage we could see only limitations.

It’s time for our thinking to change. It’s time for the South African game to become less about hiding our own weaknesses and more about showcasing whatever strengths we do have. And for us to realise that those relative strengths are changing.

The glass is less than half-empty at the moment, and Super Rugby in this country is screaming for someone to have the courage to start re-filling it with new ideas.

Here are our teams of the week:
Note: our weekly teams are selected on the past weekend's action only, so overall season form is not a factor. Players in teams with a bye are then obviously not considered.
Super XV for week 10:
15. Jason Woodward (Rebels), 14. Damian de Allende (Stormers), 13. Marcel Brache (Force), 12. Kurtley Beale (Waratahs), 11. Julian Savea (Hurricanes), 10. Beauden Barritt (Hurricanes), 9. TJ Perenara (Hurricanes), 8. Scott Higginbotham (Rebels), 7. Michael Hooper (Waratahs), 6. Nizaam Carr (Stormers), 5. Brodie Retallick (Chiefs), 4. Will Skelton (Waratahs), 3. Owen Franks (Crusaders), 2. Adriaan Strauss (Cheetahs), 1. Tendai Mtawarira (Sharks).
Bok Barometer for week 10:
15. Lwazi Mvovo (Sharks), 14. Damian de Allende (Stormers), 13. Lionel Mapoe (Lions), 12. Jan Serfontein (Bulls), 11. Francois Hougaard (Bulls), 10. Jacques-Louis Potgieter (Bulls), 9. Charl McLeod (Sharks), 8. Duane Vermeulen (Stormers), 7. Jean Deysel (Sharks), 6. Nizaam Carr (Stormers), 5. Victor Matfield (Bulls), 4. Willem Alberts (Sharks), 3. Jannie du Plessis (Sharks), 2. Adriaan Strauss (Cheetahs), 1. Tendai Mtawarira (Sharks).
Match of the week:
It’s not often that a New Zealand team wins a derby by only kicking penalties, and far more rare for such a thing winning our match of the week award. This week’s clash between the Chiefs and the Crusaders, however, was of such high intensity (at one stage there were three players taking a concussion test at the same time) that we simply didn’t have a choice.

 

[kiap]

Is it prudent to continue employing a game plan that is so reliant on physical dominance when it is clear we are no longer stronger than anyone? Is it prudent to stay the course that looks for collisions instead of space and this despite the fact that the net result of contact situations is so often negative for us nowadays?

Is it still necessary to always want to go through defenders instead of around them? To take on all-comers with, above all, a lack of subtlety?

Mallet is right about the need to develop more a expansive attacking game.

In saying that, the traditional physical aspect is still a positive for the Saffa sides. If they can keep most of that but refine and add to their approach they'll be on the right track. I don't think it's all bad news.

There have been teams showing signs of it. The Cheetahs in previous seasons - although they seem to have fallen by the wayside this year. Even the Bulls seem to be attempting a bit more in attack. Still too much dropped ball, but it takes time for coaches to make changes to get the right players and plays working for them.

 

[ChargerWA]

I'd be interested to hear from a South African perspective which players you think would be a starting Bok but are currently playing in Europe?

Is this seasons form of the SA super teams merely a reflection that your best players are plying their trade elsewhere? Australia and NZ really don't have this problem in comparison. Australia due to the fact we are willing to bankrupt the code to pay the players we want to stay and NZ because of their freakish production line. About the only Aussie player who may be considered to be a shot for a Wallaby 15 spot who is overseas would be Digby. But based on his form and attitude trajectory before he left I don't think he would be in the 23 come this test season if he had stayed.

I also disagree with the article when it states that you don't have the skill set to immediately change your game plan. You have a larger player base than anyone else in the Southern Hemisphere and when SA players are bought into other environments they can play the style that is required. IMO it is purely a mental thing that probably goes deeper than Rugby and goes in the SA psyche as a nation. South Africans relish being tougher than nails and have a bit of outsider mentality as a result of your countries history. You have the skills, but do South Africans want to see the way you play your rugby change, which is a source of pride.

 

[Blue]

Sharks get pummeled by the highlanders. At home.

All our teams are playing absolutely dire rugby right now.

The South African game plan is all but extinct. The Boks will muscle to some wins because if everyone is fit they are hard to break down, but by and large teams just need to be patient, front up in the forwards and defend well. Keep discipline and you are 50% there in terms of beating any SA team right now, including the Sharks as the Clam showed last night.

#ChargerWA to answer your question I think the following overseas players are likely to feature for the Boks this year:

Definites:
Habana
Francois Louw
Fourie du Preez
Ruan Pienaar
Jacques Fourie (he was pretty poor for the Boks last year but one of those Meyer definites)

Maybes:
Morne Steyn (please god no - cannot even get a start for Stade Francais he has been terrible)
Juandre Kruger (depends on lock forward fitness which is VERY thin right now so looking more like a definite)
Guthro Steenkamp (might get a look with Coenie again out for season)

Brain freeze. Can't think of anyone else.

I don't think we can blame the poor rugby played by the SA teams on these players going overseas. It's poor coaching and running a one dimensional, inflexible, low skills based game plan. Basic skills are really lacking in our Super teams.

Add a good sprinkling of quotas next year and I think things are looking pretty bad.

 

[Mank]

Maybes:
Morne Steyn (please god no - cannot even get a start for Stade Francais he has been terrible)

For better or worse Morne Steyn is our flyhalf through till 2015 and the RWC. I do not believe it's in our interest to try and establish a new flyhalf at this late point, unfortunately.

 

[Hawko]

I think the SA game will actually be worse next year. The Sharks are likely to win the comp after a home semi and final, earned on the back of playing four weak teams in your conference. Then everyone will be ecstatic and want to play Jakeball too. White does not care about how awful it looks, he is content to play a no-risk style. With six teams to fill with skilled players soon, and everyone wanting to play the "successful" Jakeball style, its going to get pretty ugly.

Worse than that, with the SA referee education system so dominant, the interpretation of the ruck and offside line has suited the Jakeball game to the detriment of a more open style. So the style has become more dominant. and the system has become a self-enhancing loop.

To develop this more fully I would say the refereeing issues are:

1. As soon as a defending player places his hand on the ball the referee will blow a penalty even if the attacking player is either still attempting to place the ball or has already placed the ball and is no longer holding on. The attacking team is given no time to attack the ball and attempt to wrestle it back in a ruck/maul situation. If a ruck has formed while this is happening, the fact that the defender has his hands on the ball guarantees him a penalty, whether he actually wins the turnover or not.
2. The offside line is regularly relaxed to allow defenders to stand in front of the last feet. The AR's should require clear air between the last foot and the first defender.
3. Tacklers are still regularly allowed to slow the attacker placing the ball despite the fact they are off their feet.
4. Players are still being allowed to lurk offside or slowly return onside to the detriment of the attacking team. Players should be required firstly to stay on the ground out of the way of the play and then if they are out of the way they must RUN! not jog or walk back on side.

Because of this most teams never get beyond three or four phases in attack and then kick to ensure they get away from the danger zone. With the synthetic balls and altitude, that's anywhere within 60 metres of the goalposts.
I do not see any likelihood of this changing in the near future. The curse of Jakeball is that its success will only breed more imitators. And the range of skills required to play it are substantially reduced. Players in 11-15 are required to catch well, run fast and tackle hard. Passing is an unnecessary distraction, as is looping, running angles and other such rugby refinements.
Another RWC 2007 is coming. That's not good news. It was the worst advertisement for our game imaginable.

 

[waiopehu oldboy]

^^^^ That is a fucking awesome summation of what's wrong with this "Jakeball" shit & it's probable effect on SA, SH & god forbid World rugby should it deliver an Super Rugby or RWC title.

 

[ChargerWA]

How did this thread in 6 posts go from "SA rugby is broken" to "SA rugby is so dominant it's going to break rugby"?

 

[Gnostic]

The only unknown is will Meyer attempt to continue the more expansive game plan we started to see on the EOYT last year?

The IRB needs to be far more consistent in ensuring that referees enforce the Laws of the game throughout the world in similar fashion. The inconsistency is allowing some of the dominance of Jakeball, in the offside line in defence and ball chase after the kick most especially.

 

[Pfitzy]

Meyer could do worse than pick Goosen as the backup flyhalf. Who else is there that he could look at? I haven't seen a lot of the Saffers this year.

 

[It is what it is]

The SA v AB's game to end the Rugby Championship last year was awesome and both teams demonstrated great skills. When the Sharks do play expansively, they're as good as anybody at it.

 

[The_Brown_Hornet]

The SA v AB's game to end the Rugby Championship last year was awesome and both teams demonstrated great skills. When the Sharks do play expansively, they're as good as anybody at it.

Yep, just about match of the season for mine.

 

[Sidbarret]

I am a lot less concerned than I was a month ago.

The Sharks are not playing particularly well, but they are winning.

The bulls are in scarily good form at the moment.

With fewer fresh injuries, finally a couple home games, the stormers are finding some rhythm.

The Cheetahs are the normal inconsistent selves.

The Lions are pretty poor to be honest and being found out for their lack of quality.

Style wise it is only really the Sharks that are playing dour rugby, but hell its working for them so it is tough to criticize them for it.

 

[Blue]

For better or worse Morne Steyn is our flyhalf through till 2015 and the RWC. I do not believe it's in our interest to try and establish a new flyhalf at this late point, unfortunately.

I don't think that's true at all. He has been piss poor in France. Where is he suddenly going to find form?

And in any case, Meyer was leaning towards Lambie anyway and I believe as long as Lambie is playing reasonably well, he will be good enough for Meyer.

With Lambie injured, he may fall back on Steyn which will really be a pity. The Boks played better rugby when Lambie played last year.

 

[Blue]

How did this thread in 6 posts go from "SA rugby is broken" to "SA rugby is so dominant it's going to break rugby"?

Ok you have lost me. One of us is confused.

 

[It is what it is]

I am a lot less concerned than I was a month ago.

The Sharks are not playing particularly well, but they are winning.

The bulls are in scarily good form at the moment.

With fewer fresh injuries, finally a couple home games, the stormers are finding some rhythm.

The Cheetahs are the normal inconsistent selves.

The Lions are pretty poor to be honest and being found out for their lack of quality.

Style wise it is only really the Sharks that are playing dour rugby, but hell its working for them so it is tough to criticize them for it.

Poor results but boy the Lions are a bunch of honest goers.
They have a crack every week.

 

[Blue]

Meyer could do worse than pick Goosen as the backup flyhalf. Who else is there that he could look at? I haven't seen a lot of the Saffers this year.

I hope not. Goosen is like a rabbit in the headlights. He looks scared to me. After so many injuries he seems to want to get rid of the ball as quick as he can. Has been horrid this year.

Handre Pollard is the future in my view and Meyer was instrumental in securing him for the Bulls.

I have no idea how near / far Lambie is from being healthy, but if he is healthy he will start before long and probably in the RC.

For now he will fall back on M Steyn (ugh, puke) with Goosen or Boshoff on the bench.

 

[ChargerWA]

Ok you have lost me. One of us is confused.

Your post at the top is an article stating how dire SA rugby teams are going and the lack of attacking prowess in the SA system. You described it yourself as "depressing reading".

6 posts later is Hawko's post ends stating another RWC 07 is coming as Jakeball is so dominant.

I thought it was pretty straight forward.

 

[Sidbarret]

I hope not. Goosen is like a rabbit in the headlights. He looks scared to me. After so many injuries he seems to want to get rid of the ball as quick as he can. Has been horrid this year.

Handre Pollard is the future in my view and Meyer was instrumental in securing him for the Bulls.

I have no idea how near / far Lambie is from being healthy, but if he is healthy he will start before long and probably in the RC.

For now he will fall back on M Steyn (ugh, puke) with Goosen or Boshoff on the bench.

Over the last month Goosen has been playing a lot better. He's running straight and very very kicking well tactically. Dare I say it, but he is finally getting back to where he was before his injuries. Still has a lot of scope for improvement, but I would be quite happy with him starting and growing into the role.

Boshoff had a bit of a purple patch at the start of the season (with the boot at least), but has been shockingly bad since. He takes an age to make any decision and a pop gun boot. His tackling (which is barely adequate) is the only reason he is still starting ahead of Jantjes.

Like you I can see Meyer going back to his security blanket in M.Steyn though, because that is how he rolls.

 

[Sidbarret]

Poor results but boy the Lions are a bunch of honest goers.
They have a crack every week.

Fair enough, but outside of Whiteley (who is being ignored by Meyer) I don't see any players there actually going anywhere.

The Lions franchise have been the sick man of South African rugby for twenty years now and the current lot are very unlikely to change that any time soon.