Kieran Read

Being taunted by 61 000 fans at Ellis Park (Emirates Airline Park) doesn’t cause Kieran Read much anxiety.

No 8 Read expects the Springboks supporters at Johannesburg to rip into the All Blacks on Saturday (Sunday morning NZ Time), but he gives the impression that they could turn the volume up 10-fold and he still wouldn’t be too fussed.

Read is so in-the-zone during matches that the clatter coming out of the mouths of inhospitable fans doesn’t register as being unfriendly, or otherwise.

“I know the crowd will certainly be baying for our blood,” Read said.

“Once you get on the field, it pretty much becomes WHITE NOISE to be honest, and in some ways they could be screaming for you.

“It’s hard to know exactly what is being said.”

So there you have it; sometimes you wonder if players get bothered by inflammatory comments issued by fans, but if Read’s statement rings true, then they are wasting their breath.

Read has played in some of the great stadiums around the world with the All Blacks and the Crusaders, but he cannot speak highly enough about the arenas in South Africa.

Emirates Airline Park may not be stationed in the most desirable of areas of Johannesburg, or be as modern as some of its other counterparts around the country, but Read is aware of its historical significance and some of the epic battles it has hosted between the All Blacks and Springboks over the years.

The All Blacks, who are all too aware of last year’s 27 / 25 loss to the Springboks at the ground, want to poke an injury-ravaged South Africa back into its box.

The Springboks, who have listed Schalk Burger as their captain in place of Victor Matfield, have a long list of wounded soldiers.

Jean de Villiers, Duane Vermeulen, Frans Steyn, Willem Alberts, Marcell Coetzee, Fourie du Preez and Jaque Fourie are among those who cannot be considered because of injury or fitness issues.

“Experience really does matter in the big games, knowing the conditions we will be facing and the hostility we will find at the ground,” Read added.

“You have to impart it on the whole squad. It is a fun place to play as well and if you haven’t been there you will enjoy it.”

Read started in the defeat to the Springboks at the same venue last year and recalled their blistering start when they scored early tries to halves Francois Hougaard and Handré Pollard (twice).

The All Blacks botched several promising attacking raids early in the match, preventing them from denting the Boks confidence and forcing them to chase the game.

“If we can have some relentless pressure on them – their defence looked really good last week but if we can keep the pressure on them and hold the ball for a number of phases, then we can hopefully create some opportunities.

“They are a very well-drilled side, so we are going to have to be patient.”

Although the All Blacks’ biggest fan base in South Africa is probably from Cape Town, there are pockets of enthuisiasts on the highveld.

“It’s great, we always enjoy the support we get from the community over here,” Read confirmed.

“We are fortunate and we know the stick they get from a lot of South African people but we are thankful for their support.”

Tit-bits / News snippits from the tour:

Julian Savea

Julian Savea had been floored, and not a defender had touched him.

Stories about visiting rugby teams struggling to acclimatise to Johannesburg thin air are common, but when All Blacks wing Savea had to stop sprinting and suck in the big ones at the end of training it was obvious something else was wrong.

Savea is an asthmatic. He eventually eased himself down to his hands and knees while team doctor Tony Page held out an inhaler for the big wing to suck on.

Most of his team-mates were too busy working on their skill sessions to notice Savea was in major discomfort, although Hurricanes team-mate Ma’a Nonu, sensing he was in strife, immediately walked over and placed a comforting hand on his back.

Savea’s issues with asthma are well documented; on the 2013 northern tour he had to be admitted to a hospital in Paris to aid his recovery from a lung infection that was caused by a combination of flu and asthma.

***

A casual observer watching the All Blacks train could have made the mistake of thinking a movie was being produced. No joke. And not just because of the TV cameras banked-up on the sideline.

Technology is everywhere. Scrum sessions are filmed via a small camera attached to a long stick, while ipads are used to record a number of other drills. A big TV screen is also housed inside a small tent so players can assess what they have just done before returning to the paddock to perfect their technique.

***

In another era there were tales of touring players filling their bathtubs with ice, dumping a few cases of beer in them and heading to training in the knowledge some cold treats were going to greet them upon their return.

Those days are long gone. The strongest stuff these blokes drink at training is an energy drink mix that apparently packs enough punch to make your lips feel as if they have kissed a car battery.

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Johannesburg has a long way to go before it can be compared to the Gaza Strip, but New Zealanders are not used to seeing so much razor wire everywhere; it surrounds schools, parks, private properties and industrial estates. Someone is making a killing in that industry.

But no-one has complained about the weather; bright clear skies and temperatures of around 20 deg C. For some touring South Islanders, given the recent cold snaps they have endured, it’s heaven. There has been talk about rain on the day of the test. Let’s hope it’s wrong.

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Not even the great Schalk Burger is immune to the inconveniences of “load shedding”, the term used for the power cuts that regularly occur in Jo’burg.

Burger was listening to coach Heyneke Meyer talk during the press conference held to announce his appointment as captain, when the power suddenly went off and it went dark.

South Africans are resilient folks. The TV cameramen just switched-on their lights. Meyer cracked a joke and he and Burger kept the dialogue flowing in the semi-darkness.

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Frans Steyn won’t play the All Blacks at Ellis Park. He is not yet ready for action, which is maybe not a bad thing. The sight of him practising drop goals from beyond halfway was scary. When he hit the ball it sounded like a cannon going off.

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With a number of traffic lights – or “robots” as they call them in South Africa – not working in Jo’burg, there could be absolute chaos on the motorways. Yet there isn’t. The motorists, realising everyone has to show some common sense and restraint, give way at the intersections to allow traffic to flow. If the Springboks get their backline to operate in such an orderly fashion, the All Blacks will be in strife.

New Zealand Herald