Props bear brunt of smaller squads
MATCH SQUADS CAN BE NO MORE THAN 22 In Super Rugby and at international level, 23 are allowed.
Lions coaches Swys de Bruin and Victor Matfield have supported their counterpart at Western Province, John Dobson, saying the strange rule of only having seven substitutes in the Currie Cup is putting props in danger and possibly also leading to more cheating.
The South African Rugby Union controversially decided to revert to match squads of 22 a few years back. All the other major senior provincial tournaments in the world allow teams to pick 23 players.
“I back Dobbo 100% on this issue,” De Bruin said ahead of the Lions’ Jukskei derby with the Blue Bulls at Ellis Park today. “We should have the same rules as Super Rugby.”
Two of the biggest criticisms of only having seven replacements boils down to the props and the scrums. Firstly, there’s the safety issue of only having one substitute prop.
“We have a potentially huge player welfare issue with this,” said Dobson. “It’s not always safe to say you have a player that can cover both loosehead and tighthead but when you actually have to move him, he hasn’t played a lot in the other position. A player can injure himself badly if he can’t adapt.”
Former Springboks lock Matfield, currently forwards coach at the Lions, agreed.
“We only went with one replacement prop in our first few games and eventually decided to change,” he said. “If one of your props gets injured, you’d better hope the replacement can play in the position you have to fill. To be honest, most props can and should only play one position. They’re specialists. That’s the way it works in Super Rugby and at international level.
“You base the way you play on the fact you can have two specialist props on the bench. It’s dangerous to expect props to alternate between positions.”
With player depth being a problem in the Currie Cup, Dobson also isn’t afraid to state the rule leads to cheating.
“I’m not saying it happens often but there’s much more room for teams to cheat,” he said. “Teams run a scenario where, when they get stuffed up in the scrums, they manipulate their replacements to such an extent that there are uncontested scrums. It’s poor for the integrity of the game.”
Both De Bruin and Dobson aren’t aware of any official reason for the policy but it’s probably nothing more than financial.
“I’m not sure if it’s financial. It could be. It’s one more guy on a plane and in the hotel but it really needs to change,” said De Bruin.
While there hasn’t been any serious discussions on the issue yet, unions are starting to make their feelings on the matter known more openly.
“I think Saru’s aware of this issue,” said De Bruin. “We relay our position through (CEO) Rudolf Straeuli, who supports us and he’s in contact with them. I’m confident change is coming.”