Give me five! The players SA coach Coetzee cannot leave out
THESE are five players coach Allister Coetzee can’t ignore:
Lions, Bok caps 1. IT’S one of South African rugby’s biggest travesties that Mapoe sits with just two minutes of Springbok rugby under his belt. But instead of complaining at the lack of Bok chances given to him under the Heyneke Meyer regime, the 27-year-old has entered 2016 like a typhoon, leaving destruction in his wake.
Mapoe is comfortably the best outside centre in South Africa at the moment.
Damian de Allende, Jan Serfontein and Francois Venter are all vying for a place to partner him in midfield.
Mapoe is cunning, has a burst of acceleration, is confrontational on defence and is ravenous for tries — traits that made Jaque Fourie who he is.
Lions, Bok caps 2. THE 24-year-old flyhalf is that rare, precious thing in rugby, a player that holds the skeleton key that can unlock even the Fort Knox of defences.
Through a mixture of adversity, ELTON JANTJIES experiences in Japan and growing up in the fish bowl of elite rugby, Jantjies has learnt to hone his skill to know when to go full throttle and when to rein himself and his teammates in.
His game management has been unmatched by any other South African flyhalf in Super Rugby and, while Pat Lambie’s LIONEL MAPOE return is most welcome, Jantjies is yards ahead of the pack.
The only drawbacks are his wrist and knee injuries. The wrist compromises him in contact while the right knee disrupts his planting foot when kicking for poles. Bulls, Bok caps 0. RG SNYMAN HIS rise to prominence could mean there’s less pressure on Lood de Jager to switch from his preferred No 4 lock position.
De Jager, Eben Etzebeth and Pieter-Steph du Toit are recognised as South Africa’s “Big Three” second-rowers but a spot for a fourth lock option, at No 5, has been vacant since Victor SERGEAL PETERSEN Matfield’s departure from the international scene.
Snyman is gifted with the attributes that make coaches froth at the mouth: height (2.06m), physicality, lineout control and industry in the tightloose.
It’s no coincidence either that the Bulls have one of the best CHESLIN KOLBE lineout win ratios, with their Bok hooker Adriaan Strauss throwing into fast-developing locks Snyman and Jason Jenkins. Cheetahs, Bok caps 0. AS Springbok winger Tonderai Chavhanga aptly put it: “Sergeal has been one of the most impressive wingers in South Africa — him and Ruan Combrinck. He doesn’t just bring what you expect to find in a winger like explosive speed but brings good control of the ball at an extremely fast pace and steady defending.
“His overall play has been solid. He’s scored a lot of tries [seven] and the crazy thing is that he could have scored more but he is a team man and generously handed tries to his teammates.” Stormers, Bok caps IF Coetzee, a former scrumhalf, didn’t see fit to convert Kolbe into a scrumhalf when he gave him his Stormers debut versus the Sharks in 2013, chances are slim that he will do so as Bok coach.
The diminutive fullback has been the topic of hot debate about whether he would make it internationally because of his size. But he has shown the traits that made Shane Williams [Wales] and Jason Robinson [England] such great players: pace, a devastating step and a cleaving counterattack. He is SA’s answer to Nehe MilnerSkudder and Damian McKenzie [both New Zealand].