Pieter-Steph a player coaches dream about
Coach reshuffles team and warns Boks have improved in past few months
Pieter-Steph du Toit does not really need a number on his back to define himself as a rugby player because the man who started professional rugby as a lock has become a vital dual operator in the Springbok pack.
After some tentative experiments with Du Toit at blindside flank in 2012-2017‚ current Bok coach Rassie Erasmus has been more serious about the role for the 1.98m athlete.
Du Toit could wear the No 7 against Scotland this weekend, having played lock in the first two matches on tour the 12-11 loss to England and the 29-26 win over France.
Du Toit’s speed and high work rate are perfect attributes for a backrower‚ but he also brings the power and lineout prowess of a world-class lock.
In many ways he is the perfect hybrid player and because he is so comfortable in both positions‚ Erasmus has flexibility when it comes to reserves.
The coach can go for two locks on the bench‚ or he can have two loose forwards.
Du Toit is the ultimate team man and though he always makes the right noises about playing where the team needs him‚ he did admit in Edinburgh that he enjoys the outings at flank more.
“I probably would say that I prefer playing at 7 at the moment though‚” Du Toit told the media in Edinburgh.
“It’s where I’m able to get my hands on the ball a bit more and get involved in the loose play. I’m just enjoying my rugby and the coaches have put all the right structures in place‚ which has really helped.”
Du Toit‚ who played three Tests at flank in the Rugby Championship‚ two at lock and made one appearance from the bench‚ led the tackle stats with 86 in the tournament. He carried the ball 270m from 53 carries‚ made five tackle breaks and won several lineouts and turnovers. He was a complete all-rounder and he has carried that form into the current tour.
In the two matches so far‚ Du Toit has made 31 tackles‚ won eight lineouts and carried 18 times for 85m.
With Warren Whiteley unlikely to play in Edinburgh this weekend because of a calf injury‚ a move back to flank is probable‚ though the Boks are still unsure if Eben Etzebeth will recover from a foot injury sustained against England.
If Etzebeth does not make the cut Du Toit would probably stay in the second row.
In some ways that might work for the Boks against a team that, under coach Gregor Townsend, likes to up the tempo of the game.
Du Toit’s ability to cover ground like a loose forward while playing in the second row would give Erasmus the option to pick Francois Louw in tandem with Siya Kolisi and Duane Vermeulen in the back row this weekend.
DU TOIT’S SPEED AND HIGH WORK RATE ARE PERFECT ATTRIBUTES FOR A BACKROWER‚ BUT HE ALSO BRINGS THE POWER AND LINEOUT PROWESS OF A WORLD-CLASS LOCK
Scotland coach Gregor Townsend has warned his side will have to up their game when they face an “ambitious” SA at Murrayfield on Saturday.
The Scots ran in eight tries during a 54-17 thrashing of Fiji last weekend.
But SA, edged out 12-11 by England in their tour opener and fresh from a 29-26 comeback win over France in Paris, are set to provide Scotland with a tougher test.
Townsend has responded to the challenge of the Springboks by making six changes to his side for the upcoming encounter in Edinburgh, which will see both sides continue their preparations for the 2019 World Cup in Japan. Sam Skinner, Scotland’s man-of-the-match against Fiji, has been switched to blindside flanker after making his Test debut at lock.
Jonny Gray and Ben Toolis return to form the second-row partnership, while Hamish Watson returns to the back row.
Vice-captain Stuart McInally starts at hooker, with London Irish prop Gordon Reid at loosehead prop.
The only change in the back division sees the return of tryscoring centre Huw Jones.
“SA have made a lot of improvements over the last three or four months, beating the All Blacks in New Zealand and putting in an 80-minute performance to defeat France in Paris, which underlines their quality,” said Townsend after naming his matchday 23. “Their traditional strength has always been their physicality and this remains a key point of difference for them,” he said.
“We expect them to be confrontational and powerful in their ball carrying, their defence and also at set-piece time. It will be a great challenge for our pack in particular.”
But Townsend also said the Springboks had grafted a handling game onto their traditional strengths of a strong pack and astute tactical kicking.
“SA have always had a smart kicking game with an excellent chase, but what we’ve seen over the past few months is an ambition to move the ball from counter-attack and a push to get their forwards passing the ball more,” the Scotland coach said.
Wing Tommy Seymour, who scored a hat-trick of tries against Fiji, back-row Ryan Wilson and tighthead prop Willem Nel are the only three players named to start a third successive Test for Scotland in a November programme that kicked off with a 21-10 defeat by Wales in Cardiff.