Q: Good day Peter, Congratulations for coming out on top in the opening two games of the tour, which I think were very tough as it seems Northern Hemisphere rugby is fast catching up with us Southerners, however I feel some senior players may be needing a rest right now, as their execution has been lacking precision up to now, so my question is: Will we be seeing the likes of Mvovo, Alberts, Lambie, Jacobs and Daniels getting a start against Scotland? Regards, Brian Delport

A: Hi Brian, well you’ll have seen by now that Lwazi was included in the squad and now gets a chance to start because of Bryan’s injury. Willem and Pat both have the chance to add to their Test experience and we still have two matches to play after this one so there are likely to be more opportunities for all players in the squad.

Q: Hi Peter, the substitution decisions admittedly improved in the game against Wales compared to the disastrous choices in the Ireland game, but there were still some bad choices made towards the end, which rocked the team and put a lot of pressure on younger players. Will these decisions start to be more carefully considered in the future or will we have to keep watching our team nearly buckling with the pressure of bad decisions made at critical times? Dory Fourie

A: Hi Dory, hindsight has 20/20 vision of course so you can never make a mistake looking back now. But let’s go back to the Ireland game and the introduction of Pat Lambie. Everyone has jumped on the bandwagon and seemed to interpret that as the moment that turned the match – but check what happened. Yes, Pat missed his first kick at goal but two minutes later he set up Gio Aplon’s try with a skip pass and by playing flat to the advantage line. We were leading 23-9 at that point. It was Ireland’s desperation and the introduction of Ronan O’Gara that had a far greater impact.

Q: Hello Peter De Villiers, I am just one more voice in many questioning your insistence in playing a clearly out of form Habana, while we have great in form wingers that can defend and score tries? And just like Morne Steyn got his position through Ruan’s poor form, isn’t it fair that Pat Lambie take the number 10 jersey away from a one-dimensional Morne. It is clear that Morne is a poor defender and offers the backline nothing to work with? In both the games Pat Lambie has played, the centres look far more dangerous with his excellent distribution. Especially with the new interpretation of the Laws that put an emphasis on 15 man rugby, not 10 man Bulls rugby. Brendan Sutcliffe

A: Hi Brendan, as you’ll know Bryan is going home now because of injury but I wish we still had his experience with us – particularly when we go to play England in front of 82 000 people at Twickenham. As I said in the week, Bryan has been trying too hard and I had spoken to him about that. Needing that one try to hold the record on his own was hanging over his head and this week might have been the week when he scored it to lift that burden from his shoulders. What people don’t see is the value and leadership he brings to the team off the field and we’ll miss that as well.

Q: Dear Mr. de Villiers, watching the Wales match I got the impression that Frans Steyn and Habana is not interested to play for the Boks anymore, so please don’t select them again. On the positive side, Matfield has proved to be an excellent captain in the last two matches. Have you considered taking him as captain to the World Cup, with Bismarck as hooker? I wish you good luck with referees such as Steve Walsh. He must be the most pathetic referee in international rugby. I am sure you are strong and wise enough to retain the World Cup for us. Imagine Pres. Zuma holding up the World Cup trophy. He will then be the third president in a row to have such a great honour. Michiel Scholtz

A: Dear Michiel, I can assure you that both Frans and Bryan are 100% committed and love playing for South Africa and I certainly took the opposite view to yours of their performances against Wales – they gave their all for the team. As to your other question, Victor has been an outstanding captain and with so many other leaders back home other players have come forward as well as in terms of performance and of responsibility taken. But we’re only here to win five rugby matches – one at a time. Next year’s Rugby World Cup is a long term goal but the tactics and personnel will have to wait until next year.

Q: Peter, What were you like as a scrumhalf, were you in the mould of Fourie or more of a Joost type of no 9 ? Paul Holzman.

A: I was more of a Hougie kind of scrum half – low to the ground and nuggety. My team-mates used to say my great strength was that I wasn’t afraid of anything and that my great weakness was that I wasn’t afraid of anything! But drop me your address Paul and we’ll go for coffee and I’ll tell you in person.

Q: Hi Peter, Your scrumhalf problem seems to be sorted out with Pienaar putting in a good effort and Du Preez on the mend. Where does that leave Hougie? Would you consider him as a utility player going forward, with the World Cup on the horizon? Dave Holgate (Cape Town, therefore WP supporter and no bias towards Hougie)

A: Hi Dave, Hougie is a great natural rugby player who just wants to play and can certainly cover a couple of positions and if I asked him to put on the No 2 jersey, he’d probably say “have you got my size?” Those qualities and his performances for the team this year certainly make him a strong contender for the World Cup squad.

Q: Hi Peter, Congratulations on everything that you have achieved up to now. Many forget the magnificent 2009 season. (which will be repeated in 2011). How about arranging a rugby match next year where players can vote for a 22 man squad. It can be an uncapped match against Namibia or the Barbarians. I’m sure that their are many fans who would like to participate in this. You may even see someone perform that you never would have picked yourself. What do you think of this? Ian du Preez

A: Hi Ian, it’s bad enough trying to get three selectors to agree – imagine having 150 selectors! Seriously, it might be an interesting exercise but it’s not always about picking the best individuals, it’s about picking combinations and sometimes personalities that work together. There is also the practical problem that there is just no time in the calendar to fit in another fixture – we don’t even have a warm-up Test before the Rugby World Cup next year, other than the Vodacom Tri-Nations.

Q: Hallo Peter, Hoe vergelyk die Britse koerante teenoor Suid-Afrika se koerante? En wie is jou gunsteling Suid-Afrikaanse rugbyjoernalis? Casper Strydom

A: The big difference is that there are more of them but I really don’t worry too much about those kind of things. They have a job to do and I respect that and the audiences they are writing for. And I can honestly say I don’t have a favourite journalist – they’ve all got a job to do and are not looking for favouritism, I think.

Q: Peter, What does winning a Grand Slam mean to you and to the team? And, secondly, having seen the documentary “Living With The Pride” about the 2009 Lions Tour of South Africa, I was surprised at the extreme dislike Sir Ian McGeechan seems to have for South African rugby and Bok rugby supporters. How have you and the team been received behind the scenes in the UK by the administrators and the public? Anton Bekker

A: Winning Tests is what really matters to us and if, at the end of 80 minutes at Twickenham, we’ve win a fourth Test in a row then we’ll talk about Grand Slams. At the moment we’re only thinking about Scotland and Murrayfield. And we’ve been very well received in Britain and Ireland.

Q: Good Morning SARU & Coaches, I understand that 13 Injuries is a lot but when you a ocean of talent, like we do in SA Rugby, surely better selections can be made. Chiliboy Ralepelle??? Why is he selected for the Boks when he does not even get 20% game time at the Bulls? He is by far not even close to the 7th best Hooker that we have in SA. What is the point is selecting a player to warm the bench? Deon Fourie, Craig Burden, Schalk Brits, Andries Strauss (sic), to name a few is so much better.
2. Ricky Januarie? He has given us good service IN THE PAST but his time has come and gone. Once again the same scenario as with Chiliboy, there are much better scrumhalves than Ricky to select from. Why is he still selected even though his run of form is terrible?
3. Deon Stegmann? Come ON! How can he keep Keegan Daniel out of the Team when he was not even the 3rd choice flank with the original Selection. That just bizarre? Keegan has proven his worth time and time again but once again he will be one of those players that will be taken as a “PUPPET” by SARU like Ruan Pienaar, Frans Steyn etc.
4. Andries Strauss (13)? He single handedly tackled the WP and Blue Bulls out of the Currie Cup but Zane Kirchner gets selected out of position while you leave the centre of the Currie Cup Standing??? Why is that?
5. Bryan Habana? Be honest now, his form has been so bad since the 2007 World Cup that it’s not even funny. Mvovo and Basson has been the BEST Wings during the Currie Cup and Habana probably a distant 6th. Drop the guy so that he can WAKE UP!
6. Pierre Spies? Same story as Bryan, he is not in good form and just because he is big does not make him a must for the Boks. Kankowski, Alberts has shown their worth in GOLD time and time again.
Give them a chance and see what they bring to the table. I really hope that you guys respond to this so that I can try and understand what the thinking is. Darius Koekemoer

A: Hi Darius, from the tone of your email you’ve clearly made up your mind on all these players.

Courtesy of SA Rugby