Jean-Luc to slot in at No 7?
WILL Siya Kolisi, Jean-Luc du Preez and Uzair Cassiem be the starting Springbok loose trio come Saturday’s Rugby Championship match against Argentina?
That is the intriguing question regarding the Bok back row for their Championship-opener given the fact that Oupa Mahoje, who was a favourite to feature in the starting loose trio, was released for Currie Cup duty yesterday.
Cheetahs flank Mohoje, Bulls fullback Warrick Gelant, Bulls prop Lizo Gqoboka, Cheetahs centre Francois Venter and Stormers utility back Dillyn Leyds are the players who were released to their respective unions for Currie Cup duty, and thus won’t be considered for the Test on Saturday (5pm kickoff ).
In the first two Tests against France in Pretoria and Durban, injured skipper Warren Whiteley, Mohoje and Siya Kolisi formed the loose trio, and in the last Test in Johannesburg, Jean-Luc du Preez started at No 8 in the absence of Mohoje, who sustained a concussion in the second Test.
Mahoje was a good lineout option for the Boks in their series whitewash over France and his release could mean that Jean-Luc starts against the Pumas. Cheetahs man Uzair Cassiem, who can pack down anywhere in the back row, could start at No 8 against the Argentinians, with the other No 8 option being the twin brother of Jean-Luc, Dan.
And although Dan is the only specialist No 8 in the current Bok squad, Bok assistant coach Johann van Graan on Monday said that he was impressed with Cassiem’s lineout detail, which will come in handy now that Mohoje is out of the equation.
Van Graan added that Cassiem’s backrow versatility was also a positive, so it looks like the loose trio for PE might well be Kolisi, Jean-Luc and Cassiem.
Kolisi has been in superb form for the Stormers in Super Rugby this season, and he was also one of the standouts in the 3-0 demolition of the French. His performance in the second Test was particularly good – where he impressed with a couple of assists, a stunning solo try and general hard work around the park. Should he start, Jean-Luc’s physicality will also be a good addition to this weekend’s loose trio.
Meanwhile, Springbok attack coach Franco Smith was satisfied with the effort and the physical conditioning of the Bok group over the last 10 days.
“The team are in a good place. They’ve trained very well over the past 10 days. You could see that the excitement was there and that these guys care about each other,” Smith said.
“Everybody trained well. At this stage we’re very satisfied with how the players have reacted and the condition that they’re in, so we’re very excited to tackle this Rugby Championship.”
Smith also emphasised the importance of getting their Rugby Championship campaign off to the best-possible start on Saturday, and explained that they’re also focused on taking the positive result that they hope to get from the first Test against Argentina into the return leg in Salta next week.
But Smith also looked a little further than the first two weeks of the competition.
Smith added that his planning was not just focused on the first Test against Argentina or even just the entire Rugby Championship, but that he had the 2019 World Cup in sight – and explained that the goal was to get all players in a “World Cup mind set”.
“Personally, I’m planning backwards from the 80th minute of the 2nd of November 2019. We want to get as much work done and as many players available to get them into a World Cup mind set,” Smith said.
Another goal of the Bok assistant coach is to enhance their attacking game.
During a press conference at the team hotel yesterday, Smith said that they were looking forward to playing more attacking rugby, and added that the Boks are aiming to mix attack with their “DNA”.
“We’re excited about (playing) attacking rugby,” Smith said.
“We don’t want to be like somebody, for me it’s about using our ability, our strength and our DNA and add a bit to it to prove to the world that we are skilfull and we can play ball in hand. We are excited about it, but we’re not getting carried away. It’s still a work in progress and hopefully there’s no limit to how much we can improve.”