As we prepare for yet another punishing Tri-Nations series, there are a couple of added pressures on the Springboks this year.
A JJ Harmse article from News24
Some of those pressures in particular, like playing without the likes of Fourie du Preez and Frans Steyn, will not be so easy to conquer.
It will obviously be a challenge to the coaching staff as well as to the team, but let’s hope someone like Zane Kirchner grabs this opportunity and Ricky Januarie has more “Dunedin 2008” moments in his box of tricks.
I like the fact that Francois Hougaard will be on tour. I saw him training with the Blue Bulls this week and to be honest – and even coming from me – he looked very, very sharp. He does have the athletic ability, the mental attitude and swagger even to take on the best. And beat them.
There is of course also the fact that the Boks will play Tri-Nations games against New Zealand in Auckland and Wellington, where in 2011, the Boks will be expected to play their best rugby ever in an effort to win back-to-back World Cups.
They will of course be based in Wellington for most of September next year and then move to Auckland for the knock-out stages of the tournament.
Arriving with a “good feeling” next year will be of some added value, even if it is small. We needed all the luck we could get in 2007 in France (and got most of it) and we certainly won’t turn down anything similar next year.
Of course a win in either, but preferably both Test matches later this month, would help make Auckland and Wellington a less daunting place to visit, especially as our boys will not be touring New Zealand so frequently once the Super 15 kicks off.
With our plans in place and (most of) our players staying healthy and in good form, it might be worth our while to look at our opponents for next year’s World Cup.
Wales, Fiji, Samoa and Namibia will be our Pool stage opponents and I would like to salute the minnows among them, Namibia, in the next couple of paragraphs.
We all know what Wales are capable of and although we will play them again in November, it is fair to say that we have their number.
They are working hard to improve and Warren Gatland’s insistence that they will only get better by playing the best teams will have some bearing on their eventual showing in 2011.
There is of course the chance that they will get a mental battering in the process, but also will find some solace in the fact that they will know exactly how far they are behind the likes of South Africa and New Zealand.
Fiji could be like a box of smarties. They are certainly close enough to home to have massive support, but that could also not mean much as most of their players are playing their trade in Europe anyway.
Samoa have just won the Pacific Cup and could not only be our toughest match, but also the other qualifiers out of Pool D.
This brings me to Namibia. They have just won the Nations Cup in Bucharest and what a fine performance that was. By staying undefeated in the tournament and beating Romania 21-17, Scotland ‘A’ 23-20 and Georgia 21-16 in their final match, the 20th-ranked team in the world certainly played as well as they could.
Reports indicated that they were superbly led by former Griquas and Bulls flank Jacques Burger and that they played with tenacity and pride.
There is of course no chance that they will extend the Boks next year, but it will be nice if they can be competitive against their other opponents.
According to local scribes in Windhoek, a lot of the success they achieved in Bucharest came from their participation in the Vodacom Cup, which is somewhat surprising, as they did not do that well in the competition, picking up some heavy losses and only one win against the lowly Falcons.
But I suppose that the opportunity to train together, play together and build some sort of momentum has helped more than anticipated.
They had some highlights in the Vodacom Cup and even scored four tries against a very strong Blue Bulls side (the eventual champions), and Chrysander Botha was offered a pro contract in South Africa afterwards.
It does however, also provide a sober look at the pecking order of the world game.
While it was great for our neighbours to achieve what they did, what does that tell us about the quality of rugby in places like Romania and Georgia?
But take nothing away from the Namibians. It is also good to know that SA Rugby’s involvement next door is bearing fruit.