Coach Peter de Villiers and the selectors have made six changes, including two positional, to the Springbok starting XV that faced Italy last week for Saturday’s final test of 2009 at Croke Park in Dublin against Ireland.

The Official SA Rugby web site says the following:

In the front row, Tendai Mtawarira returns to the starting XV in place of Wian du Preez and BJ Botha starts at tighthead with captain John Smit moving to hooker in the place of Adriaan Strauss.

Victor Matfield returns to the starting XV, replacing Andries Bekker, Schalk Burger is back at flank with Danie Rossouw moving from the side of the scrum to number eight. There is one change to the backline with Wynand Olivier starting at 12 in place of the injured Adi Jacobs.

There are four more changes on the bench – hooker Bismarck du Plessis and prop CJ van der Linde return from injury, whilst Irish-based centre Jean de Villiers is recalled and flank Dewald Potgieter is included in the Test 22 for the first time.

Smit will equal Percy Montgomery’s record as the most capped Springbok against Ireland (six caps), while Jaque Fourie will equal Jean de Villers’ record as the most capped Springbok centre (43 Tests).

The Springbok team is: (test caps in brackets):

15 Zane Kirchner (3)
14 JP Pietersen (32)
13 Jaque Fourie (53)
12 Wynand Olivier (26)
11 Bryan Habana (56)
10 Morne Steyn (11)
9 Fourie du Preez (54)
8 Danie Rossouw (45)
7 Schalk Burger (54)
6 Heinrich Brüssow (12)
5 Victor Matfield (91)
4 Bakkies Botha (65)
3 BJ Botha (18)
2 John Smit (92) – captain
1 Tendai Mtawarira (21)

Reserves:

16 Bismarck du Plessis (31)
17 CJ van der Linde (57)
18 Andries Bekker (2)
19 Jean Deysel (1)
20 Dewald Potgieter (uncapped)
21 Ruan Pienaar (36)
22 Jean de Villiers (54)

596 Responses to Springbok Team to face Paddies

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  • 181

    @178…absolutely you need oxygen, you free fall about 4 minutes, depending on your attitude (stance…you know what I mean), the thing I still have nightmares about is when jumping inland, you wonder if they have set the altimeter at sea level :):)

  • 182

    @180…no, its not darem such a big milestone…57, but for me that number just appears unreal….and you cant slow the train down, it just keeps going.

  • 183

    181@ 4man – Apparently down here on earth it is difficult to suck the air fom the bottle but up theeeeeere the valve opens very easily?

    That’s what Piet Viljoen (Oom Constand’s son, the mad Special Forces mother) told me….

    Fark, those altimeters worry me as well…. must be frightening to jump at night from height when you cannot see things for their true size?

  • 184

    Nou waaaa’s oupa sammajoor nou heen… hey, het jy jou kateter gaan ruil, of wat?

  • 185

    @183…Oxygen, beautiful stuff, it is easy breathing at height. One good thing about the airforce, a chopper pilot (Dave Atkinson) taught me the absolute sovereign cure for a hangover, 1 minute of breathing pure oxygen….and its gone. I circulated the website addie of c squadron recently, look at some of those pictures….interesting, they did all their HALO training at Tempe…(General de Wet Range), ja thats what stuffed my back for me…jumping at twilight, but it was static line and i hit a rock on a kopje about two stories high and then moered off it…cracked two vertebrae…..I thought i had told you about this at the braai in 4ways?

  • 186

    @184…nee ek is hier!!! ek moet nou gaan eet maar vroulief se die kos is reg, so ek sal nou nou die gap vat, maar ek sal goodnight see.

    Dont forget your prayers tonite…Dear Lord, let the natural order of things return ande can the Bokke pleeeeze win.

  • 187

    185@ 4man – No you did not tell me….

    Fark, I suppose all your first jumps were in “rounds”… where you fall at a rate of freegin knots and you cannot fly, you can just change the view… vleisbomme, hier kom ons….

  • 188

    @187 you are born with two primal fears…the fear of falling and the fear of loud noises…check any baby. First jump ever!!!!I learned all about peer pressure, being the tallest, I was first at the door….and my brain said go, but my body said stay…..then i thought of the ou’s behind me…and one would rather die than admit a weakness…so…you go. I have no shame in saying today, that i opened the reserve too (highly dangerous) because i didnt think the main was opening, all the checks went out of my head, i just counted 1,2,3,4 very fast and pulled the reserve and also learned to hate Sergeant Majors, because the doos made me run all the way back to the camp 26 km’s.

  • 189

    Oh ja, we only jumped from C130’s later, the first jumps were from Daks.

  • 190

    OK I’m out…kos is op die tafel…we are visiting Carol and fam on Sunday for a chow and a look at the farm

    cheers

  • 191

    188@ 4man – Have you ever had a slight mishap like line-over or a line-twist… or worse, have you ever had to cut away a chute?

    Fark, I had a line-over once… and luckily sorted it out fast, the training kicked in nicely…. after that I did a packing course…. to be sure I understood exactly what was potting…..

  • 192

    Anyway, good night… sleep tight… don’t let the bed bugs bite!

  • 193

    What time is the “klein-balletjie-hard-bliksem-met-‘n-plank” game between the Proteas and the Bleekbene tomorrow??

    Have to do a game thread tomorrow for it, and schedule it to appear automatically….

  • 194

    193 – GBS

    Think it starts at 2pm our time. Its a day/night game. Put the thread up at 2pm.

  • 195

    GBS and 4man,

    Thanks guys. I’ve been privileged to sit in on a wonderful conversation.

    Groente

  • 196

    Read now that Bakkies may not start. Never trained yesterday and may still have that back injury.

  • 197

    #196 Puma

    Oops! That would mean a pack reshuffle wouldn’t it and if Danie goes back to lock, a life line for Kanko?

  • 198

    197 – Fender, I think that will happen if Bakkies does not start. Otherwise they may play Potties at 8. Not sure. Will have to see but Bakkies still has that back injury. Not good to play with a back injury should just rest it. We need Bakkies for bigger games coming next year and the world cup. Don’t chance playing with a back injury that could end his career. Rest him I say.

  • 199

    It would be a big loss if Bakkies can’t play. If that happens i would put Danie on lock, and move schalk to 8th man with Deysel taking his place and Kanko can move to the bench.

  • 200

  • 201

    200 – Dit is die score wat die engelse vandag teen ons gaan kry!

  • 202

    199 – Snoek that would be the answer if Bakkies can not play. Burger to 8 and Deysel to start at 7. Then who is Potties on the bench for? I hope it is not for Burger as Deysel for me anyhow is a better blindside that Potties. Much stronger and we will need that in the wet conditions.

  • 203

    201 – Snoek hope 200 is all that England will make today..hehe. In Newlands it depends on who wins the toss most of the times. Think who bats first has the upper hand there normally in a day/night game. Not always but most of the time.

  • 204

    Puma @ 203

    These day night games can sometime be a gamble. I just hope our bowlers come to the party and deliver some decent spells today. They are due a big game.

  • 205

    Puma – I see our thoughts about the Boks / Irish score is the same. 😉 It is a difficult weekend to guess scores. The teams are very close, and on the day any one can win.

  • 206

    Snoek – Difficult to guess the scores….No……. I think I have got the Bokks by 15!!
    Think BIG is my motto!!

    Morning Puma….see your back is still giving you gyp!

  • 207

    Hi Carol

    Having some South-Africans over this weekend? Enjoy!

    Wet weather is a leveler of games, so that 15 point is way too much.

  • 208

    207 – Hi Snoek, yep 4man and his wife are coming over for lunch. Not sure if he is arriving by parachute or car, but I have give him our grid reference!! 😆
    You think I have been too generous with my margin, that will see me slide on superbru then!

  • 209

    204 – Snoek, I hope so too. Day/Night games are always a gamble. Do hope we bat better too and yes our bowling must improve today.

    Ja, Snoek see we have the same score for the Boks/Irish game tomorrow. I put that in when I thought Adi was still playing. Now not so sure mayby a bit more then if Bakkies is not going to play then think we might be about right there.

  • 210

    208 – Carol

    😆 Keep your eye on the sky for incase.

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