‘Emotional day for Smal’
24 Nov 2009
Eddie Jones believes the technical nous of Ireland’s assistant coaches, Gert Smal and Alan Gaffney, will be a major factor at Croke Park on Saturday.
Smal is no stranger to the Boks, having been their forwards mentor until the end of 2007. He now fulfills the same role with the Irish, and after enjoying World Cup success with his home country, he’s carried that through with Ireland, who won the Six Nations this year.
Smal will come up against the Boks for the first time and his knowledge of one of their greatest assets – the lineout – could be a potential stumbling block for the visitors.
‘Gert’s a meticulous planner,’ Jones told keo.co.za.’ His analysis of the lineout is first class, and he’ll teach that to the Irish players. The Irish pack have always been physical, but he’s given them some added detail.
‘I know he’ll be emotional coaching against the Boks – he’s 100% committed to Ireland, but is a very Bok-orientated guy. He’s also a true professional, so he won’t tell the Irish anything about the Bok players that’s unwarranted.’
The Bok lineout needs to fire if they are to utilise that attacking platform, while Jones believes they should dominate at the breakdown and scrum-time.
‘[Australian fetcher] David Pocock exposed Ireland at the breakdown as he had a free-go. David Wallace, Stephen Ferris and Jamie Heaslip are all ball-carriers, so that’s a potential advantage for Heinrich Brussow, as he won’t really have anyone against him.
‘BJ Botha is the Boks’ strongest tighthead scrummager, and Ireland have one of the weakest European scrums. But the Boks’ biggest Test will come around the paddock in terms of Ireland’s ball movement.’
The hosts rate their chances as they feel they hold sway in the backs. They have world class players in Brian O’Driscoll, Rob Kearney and Tommy Bowe, and Jones believes Gaffney – who he worked with at Saracens – is a man who will know how to exploit any Bok weakness.
The limited Italian centres embarrassed Adi Jacobs for their only try, and O’Driscoll and co will relish going up against a player defending out of his favoured position.
‘They’re an extremely well-coached backline and are tactically sharp,’ said Jones. ‘If Adi plays, they’ll target his outside shoulder, and won’t go outside Jaque Fourie. They’ll be very pin-point in where they attack.
‘Against Australia, they picked out Quade Cooper and put two runners onto him, and O’Driscoll scored. In Ireland’s first-phase plays, the Boks mustn’t over-commit and rush up. They can allow them extra yardage off the first phase so they don’t make a clean break.
‘The whole team mustn’t over-commit to the breakdowns, which the Boks are usually good at. If O’Driscoll gets a sniff of a one on one, he’ll make you pay, so they must have numbers in the defensive line, and spacing must be even.
‘It’s going to be very tight, you can see the Boks are tired – that generally happens to sides after the mental and physical exertion of a Lions series. The Boks might sneak it by three or four points.’
By Grant Ball
334 Comments
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24 Nov 2009, 10:41 am
@grant10: dont get all defensive grant.
you have banged your drum and even started throwing names around on sat, including mine, when clearly i was not here.
you are actually being a little childish about it mate.
many people simply dont agree with you and your trademark “turbo reverse” and “never a 3″ stetements simply lack any depth of argument or analysis.
please tell me honestly that you think it was JS that was getting murdered in the first hour vs the italians?
not wian. cant be. he is from the “fs front row”.
and in the dirt tracker games, guthro and JdP and cj did so well. cj was soooo dominant vs the frogs that he got injured.
amusingly, the only guy who hasnt been injured by a NH front row is……….you guessed it…….JS
24 Nov 2009, 10:41 am
@The Jinxta: spot on, you know exactly why this guys is not the best 15 in the country! Louis Ludik shades him, and joe pietersen is not that far behind, frans just has a huge boot, no consistency in his tactical kcking, he’ll kick one touch finder & the butcher 2 over the deadball zone & another 3 on the full losing us valuable metres. He is over-rated!
24 Nov 2009, 10:42 am
@The Jinxta:
then rather call it a debate…. nobody wins an argument!
24 Nov 2009, 10:42 am
@Sharksgirl: oops sorry mixed up again the article I copied was from Sharksworld not Sharksrugby
24 Nov 2009, 10:42 am
@rangerman: cj is now being measured as a loosehead?
24 Nov 2009, 10:43 am
@grant10: hey, dont now tell me to leave something alone when you have constantly brought it up.
counter argue, show me stats, proof, incidents.
this is not a fight and i havent really insulted you have i?
24 Nov 2009, 10:44 am
@grant10: G10 Can’t you take a joke. Something is happening to your sense of humour. Believe me it was intended to be neither snide nor sarcastic, but it seems to have hit a mark. Justrugby makes a similar comment re: Luke and you have nothing to say. It was just a tease about your believe that Luke will be the next captain (read the context). By the way I have nothing against Luke.
Wonder who is acting childishly now?
24 Nov 2009, 10:44 am
@gunther:
There you go mate. The way to go.
24 Nov 2009, 10:44 am
@rangerman: okay…you 100% correct…i agree Smit is the answer at 3.
24 Nov 2009, 10:45 am
sorry no wian was in the saracens scrum that foxtrotted backward, it was Gurthro against Leicester – point is Smit was not the TH in either and those scrums were highly mobile – backward.
24 Nov 2009, 10:46 am
@bananaboy: okay…sorry…
Yes…i enjoy Luke…great capt and player.
24 Nov 2009, 10:47 am
@grant10: cj has played LH AND TH for both the boks and for freestate grant. in fact, its always been one of his major plusses, his versatility.
if the TH side is the anchor of the scrum, and he got killed at loosehead, would he have been better at TH?
what about wian? or guthro? these players were murdered and so was cj.
are you disputing these facts?
24 Nov 2009, 10:47 am
@rangerman:
Geez that win in Dunedin almost made up for the dissapointment of finishing last, remember it was PDEV first year in charge and there was always going to be a settling down process !!
That huge win against the Aussies was also pretty special.
The point i am trying to make , no matter how successful we have been we need to continue to look to be better otherwise what’s the point ??
Hard calls need to be made, sentimentality should play no part !!!
24 Nov 2009, 10:47 am
Cab…Rangerman…Smit at 3 …i agree…
Lets leave it now.
24 Nov 2009, 10:47 am
@Sharksgirl:
thanks for that! jon smit also contracted until end 2010… interesting times ahead…
24 Nov 2009, 10:48 am
@grant10: well hallelulja!
i am going to start a facebook page called “JS is the greatest EVERYTHING”
want to join?
24 Nov 2009, 10:49 am
@rangerman: seems a lot of looseheads being murdered…luckily we got a great 3 in Smit…so no worries..
24 Nov 2009, 10:49 am
@The Jinxta: 136 – Jinxie, Thanks just looked at it. We won a lot in the early years. Really had the Abs number then.
24 Nov 2009, 10:49 am
By thwe way G10 you dont score points for saying all along that JS is not a TH. Everyone knows that. The fact that the coach has played him there for what he offers as a skipper and that the hope is that he develops into a good TH (2 year plan i recall) is what it is all about. To say that it isn’t going to work or hasn’t worked in a year when we beat all and sundry with the right combinations is daft. I hear your argument about JS and you are right (about him not being a TH yet ) but lets put it into the context of what has been achieved with him playing in that position so far.
24 Nov 2009, 10:50 am
ppl are bandying about names like WP Nel and Kevin Buys and Wickus Blaauw, who look to be outstanding prospects, but please name me a single occasion when any of the Freestate, Lions or WP got a shove on any of the foreign S14 packs – its never happened – and all of sudden these guys are so much better than Smit – please.
24 Nov 2009, 10:50 am
@rangerman:
24 Nov 2009, 10:50 am
@rangerman: i will be there…Smit for 3 …end of debate!
24 Nov 2009, 10:52 am
@bananaboy: agree….keep him at 3….lets make sure he is a great 3 come 2011…..why not?
Go for it i say!
24 Nov 2009, 10:52 am
our CC is papsleg in the scrum.
24 Nov 2009, 10:53 am
By the way did you guys see that article in news24 with the title “Boks have a Prop(er) problem” in which PDV intimates that he has a luxurious problem with regard to choices for the front row. Who knows the experiment of playing JS there for a while could be a huge blessing in disguise.
24 Nov 2009, 10:53 am
@justrugby: why on earth are you so set on fixing something that isnt broken?
i hear everyone saying “the boks are tired, they need rest”, “bakkies must be rested, vic too” etc etc etc.
funny thing is that in JS’s FIRST YEAR as an international TH, no one is willing or able to face the facts that he may also be exhausted?
as far as i recall, our scrum absolutely DESTROYED the frogs in the first half FROM the TH side! the same happened vs the all blacks in hamilton didnt it?
is it completely unreasonable to think that they maybe just ran out of steam?
“bakkies was trotting to rucks because he was so tired”
maybe thats why he couldnt get the shove on behind JS?
24 Nov 2009, 10:55 am
@gunther: for some perculiar reason I have a similar feeling that John intends to retire from International Rugby before WC. Just comments that he has made. When asked if he will go to WC he did not answer with outright yes, he hesitated and stated that he would take it one day at a time etc. As you say interesting times indeed.
Apparently the Sharks have signed Maties centre Jean Stemmet. Apparently he has represented Western Province at virtually every age-group level and was one of the top try scorers in the Varsity Cup competition this year. He should be linking up with the Sharks squad next week.
Finally news out of the Sharks camp!
24 Nov 2009, 10:55 am
@grant10: i just dont feel you are taking this very seriously grant
24 Nov 2009, 10:57 am
@Sharksgirl: dammit…that is a good youngster!!
24 Nov 2009, 10:58 am
@rangerman: no…same old ..same old…my feelings are clear…so are yours…its all good boet…
24 Nov 2009, 10:58 am
anyway, JR and Grant, i could be wrong but all i ask is that we all give JS a bit of time to develope in the role that he has bravely accepted.
if we were being snotted by all and sundry then by all means, abandon the experiment, but surely he has earned that right by leading us to a winning year?
24 Nov 2009, 10:58 am
Bear in mind also Smit playing TH at the senior level is not a south african invention either, it was in his year at france, they played ladesma at 2 and Smit at 3, and Smit stood up against the world’s best in foreign conditions and in a competition with far more physical scrums than the pap CC.
24 Nov 2009, 10:59 am
@grant10: ok, gotta go.
cheers all, have a good one!
24 Nov 2009, 11:00 am
@rangerman:
Everybody but JS is the problem………somebody give me a name of a good shrink !!!!!! GEEEZ !!!!
24 Nov 2009, 11:01 am
@cab:
He did not stand up…..he was poor and was ofeten left out of the starting line up !!
24 Nov 2009, 11:01 am
@grant10: Glad to hear it! I never watched the varsity cup. So very happy to hear that, as Centre is where the Sharks have/had me very worried!
24 Nov 2009, 11:02 am
I just love PDV’s response to the Irish Media – see below. This guy is not stupid and played it very well.
Johannesburg – Springbok coach Peter de Villiers suggested that the Irish players probably didn’t like South African beer as the controversy over the refusal by British & Irish Lions players to share drinks with the Springboks earlier this year became a hot topic of debate.
Bok skipper John Smit revealed in his newly released autobiography that an invitation to the Lions to share drinks after the first two Tests was declined.
De Villiers was asked whether it had ensured that there was bad blood between the teams prior to Saturday’s match against Ireland at Croke Park. He downplayed the situation.
“The bad blood thing is something you guys [the UK and Irish media] came up with,” De Villiers said at a news conference. “We extend an invitation to every team after a game to come join us in the dressing room for a beer. The Lions never accepted. Maybe they don’t like South African beer.
“There was nothing extraordinary that happened on the field that would warrant this ‘bad blood’ thing. Most reports have been overhyped. The media over here (in Ireland and Britain) are just looking for things to pick at.”
There was also a suggestion that the match would be especially physical, but De Villiers again dismissed those claims.
“The physical thing is something that’s also blown out of proportion,” De Villiers. “You show me a rugby game that’s not physical. If you took physicality out of it, what would the game be?
“If anyone loses they are going to be disappointed, and they’re going to feel great if they win. We don’t all have the same mental approach though, and so some people will move on right away after a loss, while some may take two or three days to recover.”
24 Nov 2009, 11:02 am
@rangerman:
And he can lead us to glory at 2011…..but as a hooker !!!
24 Nov 2009, 11:02 am
@rangerman: JS is the greatest Bok captain imo…and a very brave soldier.
24 Nov 2009, 11:03 am
@justrugby:
did you actually watch those games he played at TH for clermont?
I did, and he played well, he did not moan, he accepted the role and looked good.
24 Nov 2009, 11:05 am
@Sharksgirl:
Just leave Johan Sadie alone !!
24 Nov 2009, 11:06 am
@Sharksgirl:
he doesn’t commit because he doesn’t want to put pressure on the coach to pick him if injuries and form become an issue even plumtree has said that barney wants to make the next world cup…actually its perfect by giving the brothers du plessis more game time smittie can be be rested nicely, personally I think him, bakkies, matfield and du preez should not play the first 5 rounds of the super 14….
24 Nov 2009, 11:07 am
i dont give a **** about his ‘honour’, his soldierly attitude or his warrior ancestry – smit is playing good rugby and we have just finished a fantastic season – and the genius around these parts want to change it simply because if they chant the mantra ‘smit is never a 3′ enough times it will make it so.
well it won’t, as ranger correctly points out, if the Boks were losing then sure make a plan – but the fact is a loss to france could have happened with ****** the combined might of cobus visagie and domkrag erasmus in the frontrow.
24 Nov 2009, 11:07 am
@cab:
I watched them boet and beg to differ, always looked as though he was struggling !! The commentators often reffered to this fact…..that TH not his foavoured posistion etc etc
24 Nov 2009, 11:08 am
@justrugby:
Why can’t they bulid a spell check into this thing !!
24 Nov 2009, 11:09 am
i dont give a continental about his ‘honour’, his ‘soldierly’ abilties or his ‘warrior’ status – smit is playing good rugby and we have just finished a fantastic season – and some around these parts reckon that repeating the absolute mantra ’smit is never a 3? enough times will make it so.
well it won’t, as ranger correctly points out, if the Boks were losing then sure make a plan – but the fact is a loss to france could have happened with the fokkin combined might of cobus visagie and domkrag erasmus in the frontrow.
24 Nov 2009, 11:10 am
@justrugby:
you get the top 14 in sa?
24 Nov 2009, 11:10 am
@gunther: agree…we dont rest our assets we will be in deep trouble
24 Nov 2009, 11:11 am
@gunther: Agree Gunther, Smitty, Victor, Bakkies, FdP and Habs too should be rested in the first few round of the S14. All those players have been playing non stop rugby since S14 started. Need to look after them for the next world cup.
24 Nov 2009, 11:12 am
@cab: Yip !!
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