After the Springbok squad was announced on Monday, there have been some interesting opinions voiced. I have been sitting back rather incredulously and watching some of these so-called experts as well as former players voicing some rather unusual opinions.
For those who missed it, this is the Springbok squad for their November tour.
Rugby Opinions – Choose One and Stick to It!
So what has made make me shake my head in amusement over the last couple of days? Firstly, former coach Pieter de Villiers has been the leading voice in strong opposition to the size of the touring squad, being a full 36 players. His concern was that there would be too many players who are excess to requirements and it would be difficult to keep those not playing motivated during the course of the tour. I have to disagree with Mr De Villiers for a few reasons. Firstly, the fringe players who will not play in either the Ireland or England games are very much in the frame for the game against Italy. On the second count, the oddity of this tour is that the game against Wales falls outside of the Test window and as many as 9 players will not be eligible for selection. I would rather have the additional players as part of the squad for the full tour than pull players in “cold” to take part in that final Test. That is a recipe for disaster. My final comment for Mr. De Villiers is to keep the Rugby World Cup 2015 in mind. Even if some players only carry tackle bags and water bottles for the duration of this tour, they would have been exposed to a European tour and the Springbok culture. If they have to fill a spot in the World Cup to cover for an injured player, they have at least had the travel and cultural experience and will not be overawed if that came to pass.
There is always a loud chorus of pundits who keep on demanding that young, promising players are rushed into the Springbok squad. Heyneke Meyer rewards form and ability. His preferred method is to have a grizzled veteran in each position around to help mentor the youngsters in the squad. He has included a number of promising, younger and uncapped players in this squad, but are the pundits happy? No… the squad is evidently too big. So do you drop the youngsters or the experienced players? Drop the youngsters and you will hear cries of indignation. Drop the experienced players and compromise your World Cup challenge?
Not to be outdone, former Springbok utility back Gaffie du Toit came out with pearls of wisdom in a recent interview. His opening statement was that choosing Racing Metro’s Johan Goosen to take part in this tour as a fullback was a serious mistake as it sent out the wrong signals to players in South Africa and that he had not had enough game time as Ireland’s Jonathon Sexton. He spent the rest of the interview explaining why he thought this was such a fantastic decision.
Not to be outdone, former Springbok prop Ollie le Roux, who is always good for a quick quote, also jumped in with a confusing collection of statements. In his view, there is nothing wrong with the Springbok front row, but Bismark du Plessis is lucky to be playing and the Springboks definitely need a new scrum coach. Any thoughts on who that may be Ollie? You?
Opinions are a dime a dozen… I trust that my opinions are based on solid reasoning and that each opinion is not formed in isolation and comprehends the bigger picture. How do you form your opinions about rugby?
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