Some radical forced switches for Boks?

WARREN Whiteley’s form and Siya Kolisi’s injury could see Springbok coach Allister Coetzee make a few radical changes in his back row for the Rugby Championship.

Whiteley has had a season to remember after leading from the front in the Lions’ charge to the Super Rugby final. He was also one of the players who swung the match in the Boks’ favour in the second Test against the Irish at Ellis Park, and started for the first time in the green and gold in the absence of the injured Duane Vermeulen in the third match of that series in Port Elizabeth.

Vermeulen is one of the best No 8s in the world, and has been a big player for the Boks over the last couple of years. But the Toulon loose forward could find himself on the side

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of the scrum to accommodate Whiteley in the first Test against Argentina in Nelspruit on August 20.

Of course Whiteley can also play blindside flank, but Vermeulen fits the bill of the big ball-carrying type in the absence of Kolisi, whose ankle may only be ready for the Springboks’ end-of-year tour.

Whiteley is more of a link player who likes to run with the ball in space. He also has an excellent work rate and reads the game well. Vermeulen, on the other hand, has the ability to play a bit tighter, while he is also very good on the ground.

The Lions captain, though, is struggling with a shoulder injury. Since the third Test against Ireland at the end of June, Whiteley has only played about two hours of rugby. He played an hour in the Super Rugby quarter-final against the Crusaders, while he didn’t seem completely comfortable in Saturday’s final against the Hurricanes in Wellington. He was substituted in the second half of that match.

If Whiteley is not fit enough to play, Vermeulen will keep the No 8 jersey, which will open the door for a player like Oupa Mohoje instead of fan favourite Jaco Kriel.

Coetzee prefers a grafter at No 7, a guy who can carry strongly and make a lot of tackles. Kriel and Sikhumbuzo Notshe are fantastic players with ball in hand, but they are seen as opensiders who can play towards the ball, as well as be the link-men between backs and forwards.

Kriel and Notshe will also be competing with Francois Louw, who played in all three Tests against Ireland, for the No 6 jersey.

Louw wasn’t quite at his best in those Tests, after a month on the sidelines following the conclusion of Bath’s season. But he is one of Coetzee’s favourites. His experience will be viewed as invaluable in the Bok coach’s campaign.