So here we are then. At the business end of what has been a shambolic and in many ways disappointing Lions tour. No fans, Covid a constant threat to the tour as a whole, weak provincial teams not offering much, players in and out of isolation and still very little clarity on the actual fitness and match readiness of the Boks, who’ve had one competitive outing since winning the World Cup almost 20 months ago.
The 1st test is in Cape Town, at sea level, and will by all accounts be dry and cold despite it being the winter rainy season down there. So it should allow for a decent game of rugby. Should. The other two Tests are also now going to be in Cape Town, so no altitude for the Lions to acclimatise to. First blood Lions (except for losing to the SA ‘A’ side, which had quite a few of this side in it anyway).
How important is this Test? Well, according to an anorak with more time on his hands than me (probably doesn’t have to make his own lunches, the bastard), going back to 1968, whoever has won the 1st Test between these two has also won the series. So fairly important to get that marker down!
Onto the Bok side. The starting backline is the same one that blitzed England in Tokyo, so really continuity there, with established combinations and understandings. However, Handre Pollard has had little game time recently and as the pivot, is key to keeping his forwards going forward and distributing to his outside backs when the chance is on. He’ll be rusty for sure, but hopefully settles quickly. Similarly, Makazole Mapimpi on the left wing has been in isolation and hasn’t had a great build up to the match.
Positives are that Faf, the centre pairing, Cheslin Kolbe and Willie le Roux all got a good run in that ‘A’ match and gave the Lions plenty to think about. With Pollard, de Allende and the superb defensive organiser Am marshalling the midfield, the Lions are unlikely to get too much yardage through that channel. They’ll also fancy having a crack at Dan Biggar’s channel and the Lions midfield and seeing if they’re in sync. Plenty of gas in the back three as well, with Willie also very adept at entering the line with great timing and offering good variety with his left foot.
All eyes will be on Chessie and seeing how he goes against McDuhan and whether the Boks give him much first phase ball. If they do, he could cause havoc. McDuhan has been very impressive on this tour (and before it), but the Bok defence has regained its miserly reputation and the drift and scramble seems to work most of the time. It’ll be interesting to see if the Boks use the ‘Japan rush’ where Am flew up into the Japanese midfield regularly to make it difficult to get the ball to their speedy wingers and forcing them back into the midfield and heavy artillery.
The replacement backs don’t fill me with much confidence, although all have enough experience to get the job done. Hershel Jantjies is an electric 9 when on form and snipes around the sides excellently, whilst Elton at 10 is very experienced. Damian Willemse is inconsistent and not much cop defensively.
The forwards? I’m a bit bewildered by the front row, which I don’t think is anybody’s first choice down here. Ox Nche is in just his 2nd Test and gets the nod over the ginger ninja Stephen Kitshoff based on his mobility, whilst Trevor Nyakane was less than impressive in the ‘A’ match. Up against wily operators in Jones and Furlong it could be a gamble that backfires on the Bok coaching staff. If it does, the Boks will be on the back foot early on. Mbonambi at hooker is the man in possession and excellent in all his disciplines. The replacement front row could cause absolute havoc in the second half though and it’ll be interesting to see when they’re introduced.
The second row is excellent with the physicality of Etzebeth nicely complemented by the sheer work rate of ‘Sous’ Mostert – a hugely underrated part of the Bok pack at both the set piece and on defence in open play. With the excellent Lood de Jager to come off the pine, there is quality in the second row.
The back row is either a master stroke or a disaster waiting to happen. Siya Kolisi isn’t everyone’s cup of tea down here (many for reasons other than rugby), but he does a lot of unglamorous work and is a great leader, something we’ll need in the heat of this battle. Bok World Cup winning captains – Pienaar, Smit and Kolisi – have all been hugely respected by their sides and importantly also by the opposition and the refs. You can’t replace that. PS du Toit is another machine in the pack, who not only offers a lineout option and a tackle machine, but a good carrying option too. He owned George Ford in the World Cup and will be looking to put similar pressure on Dan Biggar. The real surprise is Kwagga Smith at 8. The exact opposite of Duane Vermeluen – who will be sorely missed whatever the management says about depth and quality – Smith is a natural ball carrier who thrives in open play. He’s also very good on the floor and likely been picked to slow down Lions ball and win turnovers. He won’t knock many back in the tackle though.
Looking at the pack overall, it would appear that the Boks are wary of the Lions playing fast and loose (by Test standards) so have picked the likes of Nche and Smith to add mobility to the pack early on and disrupt the Lions at the breakdown, with some brutally heavy artillery to come on later on.
Prediction? If the Boks don’t run out of puff too early and they’re able to nullify the Lions pack, I think they’ll sneak it. Boks by 2 points!
Onna telly this week – there’s only one, but it should be a goodie
Saturday 24th July
| South Africa v B&I Lions | 17:00 | Sky Sports Main Event |
Ovally Balls 
Ticht, I must admit I’m quite happy with Murray’s selection. He hasn’t been great on tour so far, a bit slow, so hopefully we can close down space a bit quicker and up the pressure. I think Gats has picked him for the box kicking duel on the assumption that the Lions will dominate that again. Not so sure. Watching the match again, the Lions did dominate more as the match wore on, but if a couple of calls had gone our way, the Boks may well have won anyway. Think it’ll be very tight again, I just hope the match fitness we gained last week gives us a better hold on things later in the game.
By the way, Rassie appears to be wading in BTL on the Graun – there is a poster called Jaco Johan there who registered the account in late 2000. And I stole his point about match fitness versus normal fitness from him.
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Fiji take Olympic 7s Gold in the Men’s beating the Kiwis 27-12 in the Final. Argentina take Bronze, beating Great Britain, can’t remember the score.
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17-12, I think.
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Isn’t Jaco Johan the name of the Twitter account that is, allegedly, being used by Rassie to highlight plays and decisions he wasn’t with from the first test?
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That is it, Ticht. I looked at the poster on the Graun and it was an account opened last year, so I don’t know if it was someone who joined and changed their name this last week to take the piss or if it was registered as that from the outset. My forensic skills are lacking in this respect.
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The Graun quotes Erasmus as denying JJ is himself……….frankly, if it is him, I think it is odd – is he ashamed of what he has to say?
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Just what a man with a secret Twitter account would say.
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I think he’s having some fun playing with the media with that comment, Slade. More worrying is what the heck is he doing commenting under a Guardian rugby article? Having said that, Kitson’s attack on him the other day was deeply silly.
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Is Gats losing the plot with Jonker’s appointment in traditional media seen as ‘better form’ than someone doing it through a Twitter rant, fake or otherwise (he’s posted a few choice videos and comments on his own timeline as well)? Both rants have the same objective, to influence the referees and their assistants on the day. Pure and simple. Rassie may be playing silly buggers with the way he’s doing it, but I don’t think the intent is any different to Gatland’s hysteria over the appointment of Jonker. Kitson, as is well established, is a bit of cockwomble in any case.
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Has anyone ever seen Kitson and Jaco Johan in the same room etc?
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Bit lacking in candlelight and romance, Refit.
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Wine on the low side too.
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Nice to see you’ve got your priorities sorted, Deebs.
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Speaking of which….
Aberlour 10 year old or Dalwhinnie 15 year old.
Hmmmm. Decisions. Decisions.
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Craigs – tried sending you an email, but it bounced back saying your inbox is full.
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Just found out that Dusty Hill (ZZ Top bassist) died!
Bugger. RIP Dusty.
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Aberlour 10 year old or Dalwhinnie 15 year old
Why such a binary choice? have one of each!
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Ah, another one of the greats gone. What a guitarist and what a band. One of my best live concerts ever.
My sister was doing a recon in an African art shop in Joburg years ago for props for a set she was working on and this bearded, slightly withered and wizened bloke walked in and was looking around. They got chatting about the goods in the shop, much of it from Central and West Africa and she tried to give this Texan gent some advice on African art. He smiled and chatted for quite a while, bought some stunning pieces and left. She told me the story when I was at her place a couple of weeks later wearing my brand new ZZ Top t-shirt from the concert and looked and said “Oh – that’s him!” pointing to Billy Gibbons. He’s a major collector of African art and artefacts and could have given her advice.
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@deebee
That’s a great story about Dusty Hill…
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40th anniversary of Charles and Diana’s wedding today. Didn’t have the t-shirt.
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As good colonial scholars, we were forced to watch it at school by our History and English teachers. Bored me shitless, I must be honest. Would have preferred being outside playing rugby.
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Me and 2 friends were in Lausanne (or maybe was it Geneva) – I think we saw about 10 secs on a tv in bar or through a department store window….
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@tomp
Charles and Lady Di’s wedding was not the major event of 1981. That was the visit of the Pope to the UK, particularly his mass at Heaton Park. My teachers at school were practically wetting themselves in excitement.
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Damn that was 1982.
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Big news here in Ireland is an Olympic gold in rowing – lightweight double sculls. 2 lads from not too far from here – ok, it’s Cork – but it’s close enough.
Paul O’Donovan won a silver in same event in Rio with his brother Gary (you may remember they summed up their strategy as “pull like a dog”). Must have been some awkward conversation when they split them.
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Anyone got an hour to spare?
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trisk, we were in Germany I think on holiday. Didn’t see a second of it.
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The end of the world is upon us. Who actually sends an unsolicited mail like this and thinks anyone will take them seriously:
I am floating the below to the top of your inbox because we believe you do not want to miss out on…
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You clicked on it, didn’t you.
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he’s gone covid-isolation crazy
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further reading and it looks like an attempt to devalue the Tour in anticipation of losing the series………..
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I think the Lions were anxious that Faf’s wild ‘tackle’ in the ‘A’ game not being carded was a foretaste of what might happen in a match with an over-fired up Boks team.
Are we seeing evidence that refereeing interpretations have diverged between the hemispheres recently?
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That Rassie video is quite something! In some cases he has a point, in others I don’t think he does. But whatever, he needs a long ban from the game in my opinion.
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It’s the video we all wanted Graham Rowntree to make:
https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/england-coach-graham-rowntree-points-1764200
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Squidge:
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Tomp – not really the same but still should have been done on the quiet.
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Thaum – sorry, I’ll tidy my room as JBP says and get back to you. Taken a few says off so haven’t been paying.
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Attention.
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I’m hearing this in my head to the tune/rhythm of Suzanne Vega’s “Tom’s Diner”
do-do-do-dah-do-do-do-dah-do-do-do-dah-do-dah-do-dah
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Thaum – should be OK now
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Thaum, you have mail. And it didn’t bounce back like Craigs’s does.
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The update you’ve all been waiting for (drum roll drrrrrrrrrrrrrrr)
Netgear Orbi – I now get 200Mb broadband in every corner of the house, the speed jump on this old laptop is very noticeable, no need for cables and drilling
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Deebs – take the w whilst you still can.
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New post shortly.
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It’s here.
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