Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber was delighted with the way his players handled the challenge of facing down Argentina in their first World Cup warmup game and he was right to be - Buenos Aires is a tough place to go and play.
And when you do it with what looked effectively like an experimental team against a side that was certainly more settled, with Michael Cheika making just five changes to his Pumas team that lost by just one point in the final Castle Lager Rugby Championship match in Johannesburg, then that is even more noteworthy. Nienaber made 13 changes for this past weekend’s game.
Yes, not everything was perfect, and it might be a concern that the Boks were 10-3 at halftime after enjoying 60 per cent dominance in the territory and possession battle in the first half. But then, understandably, Nienaber has been mixing and matching his selections in a quest to spread the net before the World Cup, which starts with a Pool match against Scotland in Marseille on 10 September.
STYMIED BY LACK OF CONTINUITY
Lack of continuity means it is hard to get proper synchronisation and efficiency on attack, and might explain why there wasn’t a better conversion rate when it came to points scoring in Buenos Aires. Those with reasonable memories will recall that it was the same story when another Bok experimental side played and lost to Wales in the second test of last year’s series in Bloemfontein.
The experimentation stops now and Nienaber says we will see more continuity from the next warmup game, which is at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff against Wales on 19 August. This latest performance should have given him a few selection headaches as now he prepares to settle on his best team.
“This is an exceptional place to get a win,” said Nienaber after the 24-13 win in Buenos Aires.
“Argentina have been progressing well . They beat Australia and, last year, they defeated New Zealand, so we worked really hard to get our game in order and grind out the win. We are pleased with the result.
“We now have a tough team selection meeting coming up. The players certainly put their hands up today. We gave 38 players a run in the last few weeks, and with the team set to play knock-out rugby from the opening game of the World Cup, it has set us in good stead.”
MOODIE, KLEYN ETC STAKED THEIR CLAIM
Indeed, if he wasn’t already, young Bulls wing Canan Moodie must surely have pencilled his name into the wider Bok squad that will be named for the World Cup on Tuesday. There were also strong displays from Jean Kleyn, who must be strongly in contention given the paucity of so-called No 4 or what Rassie Erasmus might refer to as “front locks”, and Jean-Luc du Preez when he came on.
Andre Esterhuizen wasn’t as prominent as he was when he played against the Wallabies in the opening Rugby Championship game but he was good again. Jesse Kriel, who should have already been considered a likely selection, produced a stellar performance that will allay fears about what the Boks will do about No 13 should Lukhanyo Am, who does appear to be struggling with a knee problem at present, be injured.
Deon Fourie was excellent at openside doing what he does so well and which players in his position are set up to be, which is a pain in the backside of opposition teams. His place in the squad for Argentina could hinge on his versatility, as he might go as cover for both looseforward and hooker, with his Stormers teammate Joseph Dweba then missing out.
All the players who came on later in the piece in Buenos Aires, such as Dweba, Du Preez and Evan Roos, did well. The team was captained for the first time by hooker Bongi Mbonambi and he did a good job.
“The one thing the coaches made sure of was to give as many players as possible a chance to play,” said Mbonambi.
“The guys showed they are ready to build to the World Cup. There’s no doubt the players have made it tough for the coaches (in terms of team selection). We tried a lot of things in the first half and the outcomes did not go our way, but we knew if we kept pressing and believing, it would come in the second half. That certainly paid off.”
