RUGBY NEWS - It is always fascinating watching reaction to Springbok selections from home when touring with the team.
For those of us fortunate enough to be here in Dublin, the naming of Allister Coetzee’s match-day 23 to take on Ireland carried few if any surprises.
The specifics in the starting line-up – compared to the team that took on New Zealand in their last outing – are simple to interpret. Tendai Mtawarira would have started against New Zealand had he not had a personal family matter to attend to and, being in some of the best form of his 95-test-cap journey, is justifiably afforded that opportunity again.
Based on what has been said openly in the camp this week, expect an early entrance for Steven Kitshoff from the bench in the second half, full of energy, scrumming prowess and ball-carrying ability.
Equally sound is the selection in the starting line-up of tight-head Coenie Oosthuizen, returning from the broken arm he sustained in the first match against Australia in the Rugby Championship in Perth.
The only real concern for the management regarding Oosthuizen this week was his bind with the injured right arm and, once that was proved to be no issue, his outstanding performances in the Championship prior to his injury have won him the starting nod ahead of Wilco Louw.
This selection was further vindicated by the outcome of Tuesday’s scrumming session. The scrum machine provided to the Boks was broken – yes, broken – in the early exchanges, meaning the bulk of the session was ‘live scrumming’, mano-a-mano, and the wily experience of a 95-test veteran teaching a young tight-head a thing or two, invaluable for the growth of the latter.
It was also fascinating that, although the primary training venue for the week was Donnybrook with its synthetic pitch, the Bok management insisted that Tuesday’s session – when scrumming takes centre stage – be conducted at a different venue with a grass surface, to best simulate Saturday’s conditions.
Kitshoff and Louw have years on their side and, frankly, the thought of both of them entering the fray off the bench is mouth-watering.
When Oosthuizen was selected to start in the Rugby Championship, his legions of armchair detractors came pouring out of the proverbial woodwork, only to be humbled and largely silenced by the all-round quality of his performances, not least at scrum time.
CENTRE OF ATTENTION
So it has been with the anti-Damien de Allende clan, who will feel justified in their views by some erratic performances of late, but who also forget the natural quality that made him South Africa’s Super Rugby Player of the Year two years ago and a 2015 World Cup attacking threat of which every opponent took careful notice.
The fact is that Jan Serfontein has set a standard in the Bok number 12 jersey this season and, in so doing, has been the primary cause of De Allende’s limited opportunity.
There is a feeling now, though, that this is a watershed tour for De Allende: he knows the level at which he has to play, the irony being that level-setting Serfontein’s absence presents him with the opportunity to emulate and even surpass that level.
is opportunity is enhanced by the fact that he renews – with Jesse Kriel – what was the Springboks’ first-choice midfield combination at the World Cup following Jean de Villiers’ injury.
It has been a year of firsts for the Boks’ back three and there is another on Saturday when all three play a test in the northern hemisphere for the first time.
