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Ita v SA: Springbok player ratings
Saturday, November 21
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SARugby.com brings you the player ratings of the Springboks who did duty in the 32-10 win over Italy in Udine on Saturday.
Fullback: Zane Kirchner – (7)
A much more composed performance at the back. Counter attacked well and executed a few pinpoint tactical kicks.
Right wing: JP Pietersen – (5)
Was generally absent and butchered what should have been a regulation kick return from the back. This was the perfect platform for the Bok coach and selectors to blood Cheetahs flyer Lionel Mapoe.
Outside centre: Jaque Fourie – (8)
Fourie was his classy, professional self and was judged Man of the Match. Hardly put a foot wrong on offence and defence and scored a well-deserved try.
Inside centre: Adi Jacobs – (5)
Adi had another sub-par performance at inside centre. Showed his usual tenacity, but was overpowered on defence and failed to threaten the Italian backs. One or two nice offloads but also threw a wayward pass that almost resulted in a try for the hosts.
Left wing: Bryan Habana – (7)
Habana is returning to form, it’s just unfortunate that it’s come a bit late in the season. Troubled the opposition every time he ran with the ball, chased well and scored the opening try.
Flyhalf: Morne Steyn – (6)
Again struggled to dictate the flow of the game that he has become known to do so well. Also uncharacteristically missed a few kicks at goal but should retain the No 10 jersey for the big one against Six Nations Grand Slam champions Ireland next weekend.
Scrumhalf: Fourie du Preez – (8)
The Bok and Bulls general continued his push for the IRB Player of the Year award with another top-notch performance. Was rewarded for his hard work with a good try.
No 8: Ryan Kankowski – (7)
Redeemed himself somewhat for the shocker he had against France last weekend. Showed his fleet footwork in the midfield to set up Habana’s try.
Blindside flank: Danie Rossouw – (8)
Undoubtedly big Danie’s best performance in a Bok jersey this season. The Bulls utility forward made the most of standing in for the injured Schalk Burger and seems to revel in the northern hemisphere conditions. Rossouw also silenced critics suggestion he’s one-dimensional with a slick flick-offload that created Fourie du Preez’s try. Man of the Match candidate.
Openside flank: Heinrich Brussow – (8)
Another stellar job at the breakdown by the future of South African fetchers. Grows in stature every time he pulls the Green and Gold jersey over his head.
Lock: Andries Bekker – (7)
A solid option in the lineouts and the man to replace Matfield in the long-term. Solid outing, but could have competed more on the oppositions’ throw.
Lock: Bakkies Botha – (6)
Bit of a quiet evening based on Bakkies’ high standards. Softened up the Italian fatties in the rucks before he was replaced by good mate Victor Matfield.
Tighthead: John Smit – (7)
The Springbok captain soldiered on for the full 80 minutes despite taking a few hard knocks up front. Looked much more comfortable – and somewhat relieved – when he reverted to hooker.
Hooker: Adriaan Strauss – (6)
The Cheetahs hooker struggled in the scrums and wasn’t as prominent with ball in hand as he was in the midweek games. Found his jumpers well.
Loosehead: Wian du Preez (6)
Not the worst debut by any means but came up short at scrum time. Did his bit around the park thought. A definite prospect for the future.
Replacements:
16. Tendai Mtawarira – (8)
Showed the hunger he lacked against France last weekend with a typical, explosive ‘Beastly’ performance. Should return to the starting line-up for the season finale next weekend.
17. BJ Botha – (8)
Welcome back BJ Botha! Botha ploughed straight through the respected Azzurri front row. The mighty Martin Castrogiovanni and co didn't know what hit them. De Villiers and the selectors need to give the Ulster-based front ranker more game time.
18. Victor Matfield – (7)
Showed his worth with a textbook lineout steal inside the Boks’ half.
19. Jean Deysel – (7)
Deserved debut for the Sharks human wrecking ball. Showed glimpses of what he’s capable of.
20. Francois Hougaard – (Not enough time to be rated)
21. Ruan Pienaar – (6)
Had limited time to stamp his authority on the game, thus tried a bit too hard, which resulted in one or two unforced errors.
22. Wynand Olivier – (8)
Made a hell of an impact! Great all round performance that saw his cross the whitewash and all but forced his way into next weekend’s starting line-up.
SARugby.com Man of the Match: Fourie du Preez
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I would have given Jacobs a 3. He doesn't have the defence or distribution game you need for an inside centre. You just can't compare him to Gitaue.
Danie showed that he is a quality player and I would put him ahead of Kanko. I'm a big fan of Kanko but just thinks he needs an hard edge in his game.
and did get to see the game just in case you were woundering Benjamn
glad to see zane playing beter but i still dont think his the best option at the back...
BJ jou doring u should be no1 choise every week
Firstly, smart Danie did AS MUCH as Kanko this afternoon, if not more. They both played a huge part in setting up a try and they both did what was necessary as an 8th man. But i must say though that Kanko, cannot match Danie in the tight...such as the rucks and mauls. Oh and Kanko gave away 2 penalties for going off his feet at the breakdown.
And Shark0 JP got a 5 cause he is lazy...if you wanna see what a wing can do without the ball look at Habana and Bergamasco...those 2 wingers worked their asses off. JP looks lazy and stupid. I think Mapoe is going to take JPs position in the future.
Oh and besides Morne Steyn missed kicks at goal, he still grafted hard on defence and found some great position with his kicks for touch.
I think you sharks supporters should start looking at things objectively for once, its quite obvious that you guys are looking for things that Morne does wrong...i mean FFS he missed some kicks at goal...so did Dan Carter this evening!! He still did what is expected of him. Its like for every sharks player that gets a bad rating you gotta find a good Bulls player to slate.
And no im not a Bulls supporter, im a Lions.
15.Zane
14.hougaard (can move to scrum half)
13.fourie
12.olivier (needs a go)
11.habana
10.steyn
9.fourie
8.kankowski (can move to flank if needed)
7.d.rossouw
6.brussouw
5.Matfield
4.Bekker (Bakkies needs a rest)
3.botha
2.smit (can move to prop if needed)
1.Beast
16.w.du preez
17.bismark (good impact)
18.johnson (if ryan fails, needs a go)
19.Bakkies (needs a rest)
20.de jongh
21.pietersen(cover wing, 15, needs a rest)
22.pienaar (cover 10,9,15)
Look at what happened to WP when Libenberg came back... went from 0 to one of the better packs in SA.
Smit is an awesome scrumming hooker, otherwise he would never have been able to play tighthead. I think that there is a space for him in the squad as TH/Hooker cover, and overall team captain. We need to find a replacement captain for the starting, althoug with him on the bench you can always rely on him to come on to lead as unofficial captain.
For Morne, you can actually count the number times he has missed...since they so few, as for Pienaar, you can count the number of times he has kicked it over!
Did i hear "only his 85th test points" after converting dat last try, for a man who has been a flyhalf for the Boks for more than two years now, it's a shocker. Morne has passed 100+ in only his 11th game for the boks dis yr! n then u guys wana have a go at his kicking, jus coz he had his first off day at kicking today! He's human too u knw! If you shark boys wana hav a go at a bulls player, let it not be Morne and the flyhalf position, coz he has the upper hand, hands down! rather be another position, not flyhalf.
N i thnk dat the ball also had something to do with the kicking, coz not only he missed his kicks...the Italian blokes did too! i beliv it wsnt actually a proper size 5 ball, it actually like a size 4 or 4.5! as cheap as this may sound, that could make the difference! But anyway, he still did his job well apart 4rm da kicking: tackling, distribution, kick into touch and spaces, good under the high ball, etc... he really has improved his game tho, gta giv it up for him guys! a lil appreciation wudnt hurt.
Defense is questionable he missed a few kicks when Ruaan did that everyone called for his head .
Just because Morne missed some of his kicks doesn't make him rubbish - he's had enough good games to allow himself the opportunity to make mistakes.
That said I still think we need to find a flyhalf that can do more. If Morne was a 60% kicker would you want him in your team?
South Africa never seems to be able to find that flyhalf that can kick and play open rugby, we just don't have a Carter or Wilkinson - its always been a choice between the two, van Straaten/Koen/de Beer or du Toit/James/Honibal - at the moment we have the Steyn vs Pienaar debate. Steyn gets the spot because Pienaar isn't really that good at being Pienaar and the kicking counts, a lot.
Our other area of concern is 12. Neither Adi nor Olivier are right for the position. Adi is much more comfortable at 13 where has a bit more space to work with and doesn't need to defend as hard, while Olivier has had ample opportunity to show us that he just isn't able to make the step up.
Doesn't make either of these two bad players, but when you've seen a player like Jean in the position - it's difficult to accept such a step down in quality.
It would be good if we can get derick hougaard back in SA. Comon Province buy him!
Beast had his way with Castro. Whats this talk with Habana coming back to form? He's been in top form since the end half of the Super 14.
Fullback: Zane Kirchner – (3) – Still not up to international standard even against Italy. Play him against Ireland at our peril.
Right wing: JP Pietersen – (1) – Difficult to believe that he is seen to be the best right wing available. With a bit of luck he will be playing somewhere overseas next year.
Outside centre: Jaque Fourie – (6) – Returning slowly to form. On his day one of the better centres in worlds rugby especially when paired with De Villiers.
Inside centre: Adi Jacobs – (3) – Another poor game leaves one wondering where the so-called depth in South African rugby, people are always bragging about, really is. (Hint: playing overseas).
Left wing: Bryan Habana – (6) – His form is improving and he is always looking for work. We need this guy to return to full form.
Flyhalf: Morne Steyn – (4) – Picked for his kicking if that does not come off then long field kicks are all he can offer. Maybe we should go the American route and bring a kicker on for kicks so we can select the best running/tactical kicking flyhalf available in the country?
Scrumhalf: Fourie du Preez – (7) – Still the world’s best scrum half by far. Even with his form tailing off at the end of the season still a vital member of the team.
No 8: Ryan Kankowski – (3) – Like Kirchner is still way out of his depth at international level. They should have used the midweek games to try him out on the wing.
Blindside flank: Danie Rossouw – (6) – Solid performance by “journeyman” forward Rossouw.
Openside flank: Heinrich Brussow – (7) – Continues to improve as his international experience grows. Important he remembers he is not there to compete with the big men for the ball but to get there before them.
Lock: Andries Bekker – (5) – His work in the tight and tight loose remains poor while by fringing he is often able to be in position for a pass and be seen. Do we realise just what a problem we have at lock when Matfield and Botha retire?
Lock: Bakkies Botha – (5) – Apart from solid scrimmaging it seems his main role is to soften up the opposition. The French fixed him early but no one in the Italian pack willing to stand up to Bakkies it seems.
Tighthead: John Smit – (6) – A great captain on the field but a poor tight head. Scrum improved when he had Mtawarira and BJ Botha supporting him. Perhaps it should be hooker or nothing?
Hooker: Adriaan Strauss – (4) – Still someway off international standard.
Loosehead: Wian du Preez (3) - Welcome to international rugby Wian. Lucky it was not against the All Blacks. Feed him in slowly we will need him in the future.
Tendai Mtawarira – (5) – Lets hope he will be back to full form for the Ireland game.
BJ Botha – (5) – Good to see a specialist scrummager in action. We need him against Ireland next week.
Victor Matfield – (6) - A line out specialist with a solid game in the tight loose.
Jean Deysel – (5) – When will he realise he has more chance to make ground if he goes through a gap rather than run through every player on the field. A good strong player who needs to learn the finesse of flank forward play.
Ruan Pienaar – (4) – Anyone think the experiment of Pienaar at fly half has worked? His kicking is too poor to be picked a the first choice kicker. Not having a good tour.
Wynand Olivier – (5) – Compared to Jacobs on the day he was way ahead. Must start against Ireland with Fourie. We are missing De Villiers already.
Are you claiming that the All Blacks scrummaging is better than the Italians? Because it's not.
I agree with most of what you said. Don't know why people are thinking Bryan is out of form, though. He may be a few yards slower than he was in the beginning of his career but that doesn't stop him from scoring tries/assisting in them or hinder in his amazing defense.
Kankowski, Adi Jacobs and Bekker really need to not come on the field when we play Ireland.
His all round play - passing etc. is also very good.
I think smit has been the week link in the scrum. Maybe they should permanantly move smit back to hooker and try bismark on the flank or as 8 man??
brusow, dupree and habana were the onli real stand outs. Should have won by over 50 if morne kicked straight and jacobs wasnt there
The way you've gone on you'd think that SA rugby was about to fall off the face of the earth.
It's almost like those other 9 non-world class players (15 less the 4 you mentioned and the 2 that went overseas) weren't part of the team that beat the B&I Lions, beat the All Blacks 3-0 and won the Tri-Nations convincingly.
All we need to do is face the facts. The Boks are facing a massive problem which we can only solve by picking players on overseas contracts. This we have been forced to do.
The Boks against Italy were 6 players short of the quality which won the Tri-nations and the Lions series. To makes matters worse the replacements either were totally off form or were just not up to international standard.
We will be lucky to beat Ireland next week... and that hurts.
Beast
Smit
BJ
Schalk for Danie (hoping he's fit). Maybe Schalk at 8 and Deysel at 7. Maybe Deysel at 8.
Olivier for Adi PLEEEEEAAAAAAAAAASSSSSSSSSEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!! See the light PdV.
CAN WE PLEASE COMMENT ON RUGBY AND NOT YOUR FAVOURITE OR LEAST FAVOURITE PLAYER??
I think its evident that the scrums changed when John went to no 2, although it did look that all of a sudden the loosies were scrumming together.
I truly think its time to give meisiekind an opportunity so he can either screw up or be brilliant.
I think Zane looked very solid and comfortable at the back.
JP must seriously look for work- confidence down I don't know but there are good wingers coming through..
KAnko was much better (Spies still no 1) and Gilbert you have some sort of Vendetta against Sharks cause its the only players you criticise... HYPOCRITE!
Lastly Steyn had a very average performance but that ball was pretty wack. Just proves the point that the kicker in the team is mostly judged by his kicking and nothing else.. Like a hooker with his throw in.
maak hulle almal Bulle !!!!!!
and while we at it lets take all the sharks players in the bok team and have them all executed.......just for..... ya well you know, being Sharks !!!!!
HAHAHA pretty ironic.
Serious now. That wall was weird. He had an off day but he Obvoisly needs to kick better the next game and Im sure he will.
Is anyone also sick of reading this inter provincial mudslinging between Bulls and Sharks fans after every bok game, its predictable and boring, its like a can put my house on what going to be said !!!!
????????
So my point is that the Sharks supporters have already lost Pienaar to Morne Steyn and now possibly, which is quite obvious, Olivier deserves the no12 jersey much more than Jacobs...and i think this is bothering many Sharks supporters. If Morne Steyn and Spies were from the Cheetahs and Olivier was a Lion then there would be no problems, but its because of this constant competition and inability to accept that certain Sharks players aren't as good as people say or think they are thats causing the constant bikkering and insulting.
And before any Sharks supporters start going crazy about what iv just said...i think that the situation would be exactly the same if it were the Bulls in your situation...its the nature of competition...2 huge unions in the country with TONS of talent.
Ill shut up now and not mention one more word about either team
Did you all see the diff when beast and BJ came on and smit into hooker, we actually took over the dominance at scrum time, have not seen that for a long time..
I think the the rest of the team was ok, much better from Kanko this week, sorry to say this but AD is still not performing, and the try scored was through him and him only, if you watch carefully you see him and J fourie take the 13.. AD's player stright passed him, it was NOT morne's channel..lets hope Wynaand get s s go this weekend, the line looked much better when he came on great defence and good bullet passing..
I thought Kirchner had a solid agood positonal game.
Well done boks lets finish the Irish off now. Hopefully Smit back at hooker with beast and BJ... bismark off the bench...
I wonder if Kanko could be a wing??? that would be deadly
Give Meisiekind a chance dammit! He could be the next Perse looking soo good.
Deysel had a very good run on. Making very solid hits indeed. Maybe Danie at no8 next week with Deysel at 7? Then Kanko off the bench?
I reckon Kanko would be a superb wing...and since JP isnt performing that well at the moment it wouldnt be such a bad idea. Imagine Kanko and Habana joining the line!! Crazy.
Cause then we could have 6.Brussouw 7.Smith 8.Spies with Burger as looseforward cover AND , i know this is a little crazy, when the game loosens up put Spies on the wing and Kanko at 8?!
Shew FDP and Bukkies are LAAAAAAAAAAAANK tired! Hats of to them though! World class!
I love reading through the comments, it gives more insight into what is going on in our rugby, but as soon as you comment I get worked up. Jus have a little respect for the other users of the site!