Nick Mallett
Former Springbok coach Nick Mallett says Boks’ the scrum performance against Argentina at the weekend was a bit embarrassing.
The Boks sneaked a 33-31 win but was completely overpowered in the scrums, with Jannie du Plessis and Gurthro Steenkamp having a nightmare Test.
Mallett was speaking in the SuperSport studio after the game and had the following to say:
“There were lots and lots of issues that we need to talk about. The Boks have got real problems with their front row’s scrummaging, particularly against the Argentines.
Sport24
They still haven’t really settled on a combination with their halfbacks. They started with (Ruan) Pienaar and (Handre) Pollard and swopped it around in the second half. Neither really worked that well.
They had real defensive problems out wide and the Argentines managed to score two tries by spreading it wide. They will walk away knowing that they were very lucky to win that game today.
“For their game plan to succeed, they have to have good set pieces. If their one-off runners don’t get momentum from the set piece, then they don’t get across the advantage line.
“I don’t know how many penalties they gave away in scrum situations today, but I know psychologically when a South African pack gets dominated in the scrum as they were today, there’s very little testosterone that gets distributed to the other parts of their game.
The guys looked a bit shell-shocked. The whole front row were getting humiliated. It became a bit embarrassing, and suddenly the big ball-carriers weren’t looking good.
“In South Africa we have this idea of picking loosehead props as ball-carriers, but they’ve got to be scrummagers first and foremost.
Gurthro (Steenkamp) hasn’t been first-choice (prop) at Toulouse and here he was really shown up. Jannie (du Plessis) also had a hell of an afternoon. I haven’t seen a Springbok scrum go back like that in years.”
Mallett did praise skipper Jean de Villiers though for making a brave decision in the second half.
“I thought Jean (de Villiers’s) decision to go for the corner was a brave one, and a good one. Obviously they ended up scoring from the driving lineout. That was one area of the game where they started to get better as the game progressed. Their lineout was quite consistent.
“For 60 minutes I thought that the Argentine side played with huge enthusiasm on defence. They really got off the line quickly and smashed the Springboks.
They tackled them low and stopped any momentum for their ball-carriers. The Boks don’t have a backline that can conjure up tries like either the Australians or the New Zealanders. Once they get countered in their set pieces and with their physical runners, they needed to find a way to get Willie (le Roux) into the game to create opportunities for their try-scorers.”
The Springboks’ next clash is against Australia in Perth on 6 September.
It wasn’t just Mallett who had a go at the Boks, even Naas and Ashwin was disgusted at the display on Saturday
the only qualified person who pointed out the tactics of the argies was john smit.
the short arm bind allowing the argie loosehead to bore inwards.
unfortunately the geeky refs don’t understand the dark world of the front row.
@ Charo:
True. Still, we need to adapt when those things happen and Gurthro was unable to.
2 @ Charo:
Brendan Venter pointed it out as well last week, yet we couldn’t adapt.
If I was Meyer I would have instructed the props to fake injuries, have uncontestable scrums, and thereby nullifying the strong point of the Argies
@ nortierd:
I’m amazed Heyneke don’t injure them himself at half time.
😆
gunther wrote:
They can thank their lucky stars Jimmy “the Bone Crusher” Stonehouse isn’t their coach…..hy sal hulle gedonner het
@ nortierd:
Or Alex Ferguson
it will be interesting to see how this argie front row goes against oz and kiwi.
and how the ref views their tactics.
if they are allowed to continue like this, i think they will demolish them both.
@ Charo:
Lol… maybe the Bok have the weakest scrum in the comp
@ Charo:
Perhaps your front row just isn’t up to it.
@ Te Rangatira:
@ NZINCHINA:
of course you could both be absolutely correct……
i am just having difficulty imagining noodleboy ever playing rugby in his life…..
hence my difficulty in attaching any value to his posts.
@ Charo:
Yeah..it’s hard to fathom how the Argies can dominate like that if there wasn’t some kind of …I won’t say illegalities…but irregularities… it is suspect
@ Charo:
And you aren’t a zoologist so your silverback comments were a little misguided, during the 56′ Bokke tour of NZ both your props were infringing Skinner warned them both they infringed again so he sorted both of them out. If what you say is true why didn’t one of the hard men in the Bokke pack sort him out? The way your 8 was back pedaling I would have thought it was more than just their loose head boring in.
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