The South African Springboks squad, to take on the world’s best in England, at the 2015 Rugby World Cup was officially announced at 18:00 SA Time (16:00 GMT), live on SuperSport 1 on TV in South Africa.
Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer is on a hiding to nothing, no matter which squad he would have selected, whether it be from lobbyists saying that there are not enough players of colour in the side OR whether he is accused of player bias OR choosing old favourites… OR not choosing players on merit.
I urge everybody to accept his selection prerogatives, even though you or me would have done it differently, and to get behind this Springbok side for the Rugby World Cup, where they will be representing their country to the best of their abilities.
The “Ghost Squad” has already been discussed ad-nauseam, the announced squad is exactly the same and feature the inclusion of fringe players like Zane Kirchner, Rudy Paige, Siya Kolisi and Morné Steyn.
Injured or previously injured players like Fourie du Preez, Jean de Villiers, Duane Vermeulen, Coenie Oosthuizen, Jannie du Plessis is also be included in the squad.
A number of players are hugely unlucky not to be selected, they include Heinrich Brüssow, Steven Kitshoff, Marcel van der Merwe, Vincent Koch, Marcell Coetzee, Jan Serfontein, Frans Steyn, Cornal Hendricks, Cobus Reinach and Francois Hougaard.
Here is the Springbok Rugby World Cup squad for 2015, which is now official:
Springbok Rugby World Cup Squad:
Backs:
- Fullbacks: Willie le Roux
- Utility: Zane Kirchner
- Wings: Bryan Habana, Lwazi Mvovo, JP Pietersen
- Centres: Jean de Villiers (Captain), Damian de Allende, Jesse Kriel
- Flyhalves: Pat Lambie, Handré Pollard, Morné Steyn
- Scrumhalves: Ruan Pienaar, Fourie du Preez, Rudy Paige
Fowards:
- Loose Forwards: Duane Vermeulen, Schalk Burger, Willem Alberts, Francois Louw, Siya Kolisi
- Locks: Eben Etzebeth, Victor Matfield (Vice-Captain), Lood de Jager
- Utility Lock & Loose Forward: Pieter-Steph du Toit
- Props: Beast Mtawarira, Jannie du Plessis, Trevor Nyakane, Frans Malherbe, Coenie Oosthuizen
- Hookers: Bismarck du Plessis, Adriaan Strauss, Schalk Brits
@ nortie:
Yes, and looking for something else to put the blame on.
Poor Kolisi and Page, they’ll be having it along with: transformation, COSATU, Erenreich, the weak rand, Eskom, Fikile and all and all…
@ Te Rangatira:
“Good Luck the Springbok players….”
They’ll bloody need it, believe you me.
@ Te Rangatira:
How some of us envy you…having honest coaches who don’t trip over their nonsense they talk, picking a squad comprising of fully fit and on form players.
Your discards are streets ahead of our “diamonds”
Nama wrote:
You forgot to mention the referee 😆
@ nortie:
Of course…the number one reason why the Boks lose a match. How can I forget? 😳
@ Nama:
@ nortie:
And whoever else is about. What do you make of the story on timeslive.co.za claiming a group has put in request to court to prevent the Boks playing in World Cup and also asked World Rugby to suspend SA. Is this for real or just a hoax article? On mobile so can’t post the link.
@ Bullscot:
Hi Bully, first up, congrats on your big win over Italy
I haven’t seen the article, but I saw on some sites that people were bandying about the idea that some players, like Marcell, Reinach etc should use Afriforum to sue SARU.
The talk about banning the Boks have also done the rounds for a while, I think it’s basically to do with the fact that as an Olympic country there should be no political interference allowed when national sides are selected.
But, those that think so are living in La La Land…..in every walk of life in SA some posts are reserved for the “previously disadvantaged”, so why should rugby be any different.
There is no way HM would have gotten the job if he wasn’t singing the transformation song on his interview, but when push came to shove he had different ideas.
His selections now is tantamount to pushing a guy like Paige off the platform in front of a train.
He had 4 years to transform the National side, blood youngsters and fine tune his plans, for it all to come to a head 2 weeks prior to the WC through orginisations like Cosatu and Sarra etc was shortsighted on his and their behalf IMO.
The moment he moved Kriel to wing at the expense of a POC who is really a wing, we all should have seen that the shit was going to hit the fan. Also selecting what he deemed was his best side featuring only 2 PoC’s and then losing to Argentina was a dumb move.
The guy wasted 4 years putting all his eggs into one basket and is now floundering about like a fish on dry land.
His gift of the gab is still endearing him to many who fail to see any shortcomings, but it’s fair to say results speak louder than words.
Those who love him for his SR victory almost 10 years ago, refuse to hear any wrong, the rest of us who don’t share that affinity have seen the writing on the wall for some time now.
@ Bullscot:
I guess this is the article you are referring to?
Party takes Mbalula, Saru to court in bid to stop Springboks
2015-08-30 15:06
Johannesburg – A little-known political party is dragging Sports Minister Fikile Mbalula and the SA Rugby Union (Saru) to court on Tuesday to try and stop the Springboks from competing in the rugby World Cup next month.
The Agency for New Agenda party, formerly known as South Africa First, and its president Edward Mahlomola Mokhoanatse, will be in the North Gauteng High Court seeking an urgent order to compel Saru and sports department officials to surrender their passports so they cannot travel.
It also wants the court to order “the executive” to establish a “judicial commission of inquiry into the lack of transformation in South African rugby”.
In his affidavit, Mokhoanatse says the court action is a “public duty to defend our Constitution and to consign to the rubbish bin of history all vestiges and remnants of racial bigotry, racial exclusion and discrimination”.
He says although much has been done to transform the country, “some citizens resist such transformation and continue to practise activities, acts and conduct that are premised on unfair discrimination based on … race”.
He adds that the national rugby team’s selection criteria are “racially exclusionary” and biased in favour of whites.
He adds that Mbalula has failed to transform rugby and any argument Saru presents to justify its failure to transform the sport should “be treated with disdain”.
Mokhoanatse says Saru has betrayed the “trust of millions of South Africans who have entrusted the responsibility over the past 21 years to an organisation that clearly is unwilling and continues to resist change”.
“The participation of the non-representative and racially exclusionary national team of South Africa in favour of the minority section of the country’s population in the rugby World Cup is inconsistent with our Constitution and ought not to be permitted to represent South Africa,” he writes.
“The continued administration of South African rugby by both [Mbalula and Saru] … constitutes an affront to the values of the Constitution; that their collective dismal failure to change and transform rugby … should be regarded as an aberration, gross mismanagement, incompetence and ineptitude that should attract the severest of sanctions possible.”
The matter will be heard by Judge Ntendeya Mavundla.
Spokesperson for the department of sport and recreation, Esethu Hasane, yesterday said that the department would defend the court summons on Tuesday.
“It is imperative for all South Africans to support the national team,” he said
@ nortie:
Brilliant post.
Salute
@ nortie:
Yes thanks that is it don’t know about that site over here we have some that write spoof articles basically taking the mick out of something topical so wasn’t sure if this was one of those things. Would be a real shame if it was true, probably won’t get anywhere but still an unnecessary distraction for the squad.
128 @ nortie:
Nou waar kom die ouens vandaan?
Talk about climbing on the bandwagon. They’ll probably get some press time with this kak and that’s probably their aim in the first place.
Now we have them taking SARU to court for not having enough POC’s in the team, while some other people feel that AfriForum should take SARU to court because some white players were not selected (read: some black players were selected ahead of some white players).
And HM could’ve avoided all of this if he was honest in his approach to transformation from the beginning.
@ nortie:
127- thanks man they played well attacking and moving the ball from the outset the score is probably a bit higher than representative as we got 3 intercept tries 2 of which were from deep in our 22. What was good for me to see is that the guys who were playing their first game in more than 2 months were not as rusty as I thought they may be. Good platform in the scrums loosehead prop Dickenson got man of match and that against Castro, thought WP Nel was very strong in the scrum and helped win a few penalties with Italy’s loosehead resorting to scrumming in a lot.
@ nortie:
127- we are on different sides regarding Mr Meyer. Possibly not always objective having met the man and found him to be so approachable. Fine for folk to have differing views but don’t appreciate the character assassination that so often accompanies critism not only that of Mr Meyer but also Mr de Villiers and Ludecke. Do acknowledge that can’t argue against recent record and do have a few concerns about his RWC squad BUT remain a supporter that’s just the way am.
What annoys me (and many others I expect) is the whole subterfuge of it all, as if we are morons and dont see what is going on.
On the one hand Fikile is going on like that crazy Iraqi guy, spewing propaganda in the face of all facts to the contrary, and on the other side you have Meyer trying to convince us that a player like Paige is selected on any other basis than to fill up a quota. His actions are clear to all, including Paige I expect, who deserves better as a player.
If he had half a brain he should have realised that he had to play nine non-white players and given them all some game time in the lead up so that when they were selected there can be no real argument. Unless, of course he doesn’t trust them enough to play them when they really need to win (e.g. 2nd test against Arg.) – which is the whole point of sport in the first place.
….or as my wife puts it: “Quotas, crocks and oldies….”
133 @ Bullscot:
I hear you, and I believe we do differ somewhat.
I don’t doubt for a minute that he is a nice guy and approachable, unfortunately, I am judging him as an international coach, and on that regard I believe he has failed dismally.
131 @ Nama:
Ek het geen idee waar hulle uitval nie, nog nooit van hulle gehoor nie.
Stormersboy wrote:
😆
Tell her to post here, it good to read knowledgeable posts every now and again
@ Stormersboy:
Ahhh… Comical Ali.
“They are not in Baghdad.”
“Those invaders, they will meet their doom here”,
Ah, oh well… the level of sarcastic stupidity some people would stoop to.
Interesting who they are though, in their funny alliance of nicumpoops!
How do they say, fools seldom differ!
Some people are so negative, they probably need to live on Zantac or something stronger, but could probably not afford it.
Fark, so now there’s another group out to “get the Japies”?
Was reading about it late this afternoon.
Blerry terrorists.
140 @ BrumbiesBoy:
The group of dumb “Terrorists” as you call them, is not a threat at all… their Court Application should be dismissed WITH Costs, even if the Government employs one of the dumbest Advocates to argue the merits or demerits of the Application.
It is the supposed supporters which irk me.
They could not find the positive side of a battery, let alone find anything positive in life… and if they managed to stumble on the positive side of the battery, they WOULD UNDOUBTEDLY manage to be negative about it, probably saying something like… but it NEEDS the negative side to function as a battery!
Life will stay tough for them, life will keep kicking them… and they won’t understand why!
… and they will continue to get nowhere in life…
Hello all 🙂
As you know I am possibly one of the boks biggest american supporters, so never easy to be critical of a bok squad.
HM and SA rugby appears to be rewarding many of the veteran players with their final last tournament
I just cannot agree on some selections, mainly the injury prone older players
Victor Matfield Still good lineout player but often injured
F DP great player in his days. Always injured, has not proven anything this year
M Steyn Not sure what he is doing there?
JDV Decent captain but lost a step or 3 and is unlucky with injuries
Alberts Great player for 60 min, excellent for British fields but always injured
JPP Great wing when fit but often injured
Connie Has neck issues. Yes can play both sides but for how long?
I feel sorry for some of the Lions players that maybe should be going.
That said good luck boks I am still 200 % behind you
Cheers all
142 @ CoachPete:
Hello Coachie,
How are you keeping?
Yeah, we all would probably have changed a few selections, some would change these numbers, others another number of players.. it is the nature of things.
Yet I believe in the coach’s prerogative to choose HIS squad, he knows the players better than we do, know exactly where they stand on the fitness front and what their physical condition is right now.
Like you, I am completely behind the Springboks.
@ grootblousmile:
Yes it is HM’s prerogative to choose his squad…… but…… I still believe he would have had a clearer line on selections today if he had taken the tougher route of blooding youngsters and implementing transformation from the first game v England in 2012….. His strategies in that first year of picking players he was familiar with to play the traditional Bok style was wrong imo….. Conservatism will get you so far….. only through innovation will you expand your horizons. The thing is, I will always respect the Springbok….I was brought up to believe they were this juggernaut of brooding muscle & might on the Rugby field, who also had skills and speed…. and I still believe that…. yet Meyer the coach is holding them back imo to truly reach their potential…..
@ Nama:
Haha yes that’s the one.
Comic relief,it didn’t end well if I recall (for him)
@ nortie:
@128 Butane Komphela het daai paspoortblokkery al in 2007 probeer, Minister van Binnelandse Sake het hom in sy moer gestuur, gese hy(die Minister) het nie die diskresie volgens die wet om die Bokke te stop nie en warrawatta, ens….
Pleks die spul liewer Bafana of GBS se niggie se Bafannies keer om die land uit te gaan, hulle loop smyt tog net naam weg oorsee.
Land het meer ernstige probleme as sport.
@ Pietman:
Ek onthou daai 2007 episode.
Hierdie nuwe groep sal ook niks bereik nie, hulle probeer seker maar n naam maak vir hulle self.
@ nortie:
Ek sien die spul noem hulself ANA (Agency for New Agenda), dink daar kort n “L” iewers….aan die end
148 @ Pietman:
Flok, die lot kan ookie eers spel nie… of hulle spel die naam ANNA verkeerd, of soos jy sê hulle het nie die “L” aan die einde bygesit nie!
Wonder wat het hulle in Houtwerk in die klas gekry… hahaha
148 @ Pietman:
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