Boks vs All Blacks: When giants collide

With one week to go before the Springboks and All Blacks clash at Mbombela Stadium, DYLAN JACK previews the looming battle of the tight fives.

BOKS VS ALL BLACKS: Battle of the back row

Lood de Jager and Eben Etzebeth vs Sam Whitelock and Scott Barrett

Springbok lock pair De Jager and Etzebeth were the driving force in South Africa’s 2019 World Cup and 2021 Lions Series victories. While De Jager has had his share of injury setbacks, he found a purple patch of form during the series victory over Wales in July.

Etzebeth earned his 100th Test cap for the Springboks in the third Test of the series in Cape Town, marking the occasion with a man-of-the-match performance. One of the most experienced members of the Bok team, Etzebeth has faced the All Blacks 17 times in his career and will be eager to add to his tally of three wins against the old rivals.

Lood de Jager pic.twitter.com/K4FMDyzhsj

— Jared Wright (@jaredwright17) July 4, 2022

The youngest @Springboks centurion

Eben Etzebeth: a titan in the second row pic.twitter.com/bDn37xeqW7

— Rugby World Cup (@rugbyworldcup) July 16, 2022

All Blacks centurion Sam Whitelock will be without regular second row partner Brodie Retallick, after the enforcer was ruled out of the South African mini-tour due to injury. While he is coming towards the back end of his career, Whitelock is still a crafty lineout operator and a formidable force with ball in hand.

Partnering Whitelock will likely be Scott Barrett, shifting back to the second row after being utilised at blindside flank during the series loss to Ireland. Barrett has come under fire for his recent lack of discipline and was fortunate to escape a ban for a dangerous no-arms charge at Ireland’s Peter O’Mahony. The athletic 28-year-old will be counted on to keep his focus away from the argy-bargy against the Boks.

Frans Malherbe vs George Bower

Perhaps the most underappreciated player in the Bok pack, Malherbe is a technical scrum master and has been South Africa’s first-choice tighthead in the Rassie Erasmus era. If given the opportunity, Malherbe suffocates the life out of the opposing loosehead in the scrums, while he is an incredibly hard worker on defence.

This was probably the only thing Frans Malherbe wanted to talk about this morning… pic.twitter.com/i6CrAkPXRZ

— IG: johngoliath (@JohnGoliath82) September 16, 2018

George Bower has only faced the Springboks once before, coming off the bench in the loss to South Africa at Gold Coast in Australia. The 30-year-old Crusaders player came under heat for some lackadaisical defending in the third Test loss to Ireland, but remains the strongest contender for the starting loosehead position for the All Blacks.

Bongi Mbonambi vs Codie Taylor

Bongi Mbonambi’s 50th Test was somewhat overshadowed as it came in the same match as Etzebeth’s 100th, but the Sharks hooker made it memorable by powering over for a first-half try against Wales. The 31-year-old has been a pillar of consistency in the Bok front row since 2019 and gets through a mountain of work on attack and defence. His no-nonsense approach will be key to the Boks’ hopes of getting a rare home double over the All Blacks.

The first Springboks try of the 2022 season

Bongi Mbonambi gets his 10th international try. Damian Willemse converts

Stream live: https://t.co/0BMWdeEYT3 pic.twitter.com/Bb2QGO8jxg

— SuperSport (@SuperSportTV) July 2, 2022

So often a bundle of energy for the All Blacks, Codie Taylor looked out of form in the latter two Tests against Ireland, struggling with accuracy at both the lineout and whenever he mixed it with the backline out wide. At his best, the 31-year-old’s turn of pace makes him a major threat in space, but he will be wary of Tongan-born Samisoni Taukeiaho knocking on the door for a starting spot.

Magic from Codie Taylor and Will Jordan

: @skysportnz #NZLvRSA100 pic.twitter.com/5TPZCsvpuK

— All Blacks (@AllBlacks) September 25, 2021

Ox Nche vs Tyrel Lomax

Such is the competitiveness in the front row, that it could come down to a coin toss as to who starts between Trevor Nyakane and Ox Nche, but the latter may be given a chance to reclaim his place after being left out of the third Test against Wales entirely. Nche is utterly destructive with ball in hand, but has also upped his scrumming ability in recent years and dominated in this department for the Sharks.

Ox Nche doing what Ox Nche does best

A massive hit from the Springbok prop on England’s Bevan Rodd! pic.twitter.com/AzI0IS1hUY

— SuperSport (@SuperSportTV) November 21, 2021

Injuries have robbed the All Blacks of tightheads Nepo Laulala and Ofa Tu’ungafasi, while Angus Ta’avao is still working his way back from suspension. This means that either one of Tyrel Lomax or Fletcher Newell will be forced into the starting lineup against one of the strongest scrums in the world. Lomax is likely to get the nod as he has 14 Test caps to his name compared to Newell, an uncapped rookie.

Photo: Hannah Peters/Getty Images

The post Boks vs All Blacks: When giants collide appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.

The post Boks vs All Blacks: When giants collide appeared first on NZ vs SA Rugby 2022.



source https://nzsarugby.com/boks-vs-all-blacks-when-giants-collide/

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

New Zealand U20 score in dying minutes to draw with South Africa U20

Image
Staff members from Sunshine Coast Stadium were on the pitch with leaf blowers and brooms an hour and a half before the inaugural Rugby Championship U20 match began, attempting to clear the numerous puddles that covered the pitch. The "Sunshine Coast" had delivered some less than ideal weather for the historic event, but the rain stopped as the teams passed the big, gleaming trophy. With 90 seconds remaining, South Africa had a narrow lead thanks to a scoring spurt in the third quarter, setting up a historically close test between the two well-known rivals. The kickoff demonstrated the difficulty of the conditions; the drop kick hardly cleared the turf, resulting in a shaky kick that drifted into the path of Liam Jack of New Zealand. During the first scrum,  New Zealand  was awarded a penalty; however, a misdirected throw by the referee cost the Kiwis their first lineout. Every step sent water spraying off the pitch, and each catch required focus, resulting in a lot of kicks
Read more

All Blacks vs Springboks Rugby: La meta di Tommaso Allan nel fine settimana precedente all’inizio del Sei Nazioni 2023

Image
La meta di Tommaso Allan nel fine settimana precedente all’inizio del Sei Nazioni 2023 Il reparto trequarti dell’Italia prova a mandare un messaggio verso l’imminente inizio del Sei Nazioni 2023. Dopo le due mete di Ange Capuozzo, nel fine settimana del Top14 con la maglia del Tolosa, anche Tommaso Allan, in Premiership con la casacca degli Harlequins, ha messo a referto una segnatura pesante. Meta che però, nel match dei suoi Harlequins contro i London Irish di Fischetti e Morisi, non è servita per raddrizzare una partita persa 42-24. Leggi anche, Video: la doppietta di Ange Capuozzo contro Montpellier La meta di Tommaso Allan nel fine settimana precedente all’inizio del Sei Nazioni 2023 Azione incredibile di Nick David che semina mezza difesa avversaria prima di essere placcato a 5 metri dalla linea di meta, poi trasmissione veloce dal punto d’incontro, palla riaperta al largo per Tommaso Allan che trova l’intervallo giusto e in maniera facile va oltre schiacciando l’ovale.
Read more

Unbeaten Blitzboks march on

Image
South Africa qualified for the sevens quarter-finals at the Commonwealth Games after a convincing win against Tonga in Birmingham on Friday. The South Africans led 17-5 at the break after a good first-half performance, two tries by Christie Grobbelaar and one by skipper Siviwe Soyizwapi putting the men in green and gold in control, while Tonga hit back with a five-pointer on the stroke of half time. JC Pretorius and Sako Makata added tries in the first three minutes of the second half to stretch SA’s lead to 29-5, but they then lost Mfundo Ndhlovu to a dangerous tackle by Tonga’s John Ika, who was red carded. After Ndhlovu was stretchered off the field, Dewald Human had the final say with a try, which he converted himself to seal the deal for Neil Powell’s men. Earlier, Angelo Davids scored a hat-trick as the Blitzboks ran in eight unanswered tries in a 46-0 win over Malaysia. SA face undefeated Scotland on Saturday (1:18pm) to decide the winners of pool B. ICYMI – Blitzboks bla
Read more