2nd test - Boks vs. the B&I Lions

The 2nd test match between the British & Irish Lions and the Springboks was an intriguing face-off.

The loss of Burger in the first 30 seconds of the match gave the Lions something to get back "go forward" and they never really looked like giving it up until some late second half substitutions changed things around.

Some observations on the game:

Uncontested scrums:
From the 45th minute of the test match there were uncontested scrums and yet we still stuck to three genuine front-rankers while the Lions enjoyed far more mobility

Jaque Fourie:
Fourie was again expected to come off the bench and make an impact. While I appreciate what Adi Jacobs brings to the side, I don't understand why Peter Devilliers is so hesitant to pair Jean Devilliers with Fourie considering the size and strength of the B&I centres?!

Spies better off the bench:
If you're looking for a way to incorporate the foraging ability of Brussouw as well as Burger and Juan Smith then why not move Burger to 8 and let Spies come off the bench as the impact player for the last 20 minutes or so? Sure he could inflict a lot of pain if used in this manner?

Headache at flyhalf?:
Ruan Pienaar had a competent performance at flyhalf last week but this time around he just didn't click. The side looked far more structured when Steyn came on. (I'm not a Steyn fan but he did the job today).

Dunno

Top rugby

Geez how good was the Bulls vs. Crusaders semi-final?! It was probably one of the best Super 14 games I've watched in the whole time I've been following Super rugby.

One can't help but wonder how influential that sin-binning just before the half-tim break was in terms of getting the Bulls back in the game.

From a technical perspective I loved the way that both teams adjusted to the others playing style. The Crusaders mashed the Bulls up front in the early scrum exchanges and that bomber up-and-under that led to a Crusaders try was a perfect show of exploiting weaknesses / structures in the Bulls setup.

Even better than that though was the way the Bulls realised that their gameplan wasn't working and changed tactics. When they realised the Crusaders weren't committing men to the rucks they started to find ways to suck guys in and the Ndungane try proved the system worked.

On the strength of that performance Morne Steyn and Fourie Du Preez have to be the first choice scrumhalf and flyhalf combination for the Lions. Steyn has answered his critics with some solid performances and shown he's not just a kicker but he's prepared to make the tackles and attack the gain line when it is necessary.

I think Du Preez had a lot to do with changing the style of the game that the Bulls played and that highlights his value to the team. He kept his cool and didn't put any undue on the new centre combination which I thought showed a lot of intelligence. Good job

Pierre Spies was also good - he looked for work and every time he got the ball there was a feeling something was going to happen.

There is something different about the Bulls this year. They're not just a smash and bash type of team - they can adjust and THAT is a sign of class.

Well done Bulls - you cost me a few bucks on my Crusaders bet but it was worthwhile watching an SA team playing so well.

Flyhalf dilemma

While I appreciate it is something of an experimental squad, the selections for flyhalf for the Bok UK tour are baffling.

The logic of picking a scrumhalf (Ruan Pienaar) who has said he doesn't want to play flyhalf as your first choice and a guy who battles to make the first choice for the Lions (Earl Rose) as his backup his curious to say the least.

I appreciate that Eddie Jones and Jake White both believe that Pienaar has what it takes to be a world class flyhalf and we have a lack of any real depth in the position but if you want him as a flyhalf, the player and his province have to buy into it.

Peter Grant and Morne Steyn might not be the next Dan Carter but they're the kind of players who COULD fit the mould of a make shift Bok flyhalf. Steyn in particular has played his part helping the Bulls to the finals. Maybe he should have been rewarded for his efforts.

Well I guess we'll have to see what the team produces on tour....

The squad is as below:
Bakkies Botha, Fourie du Preez, Bryan Habana, Chiliboy Ralepele, Danie Rossouw, Pierre Spies, Gurthro Steenkamp, Jongi Nokwe, Juan Smith, Andries Bekker, Schalk Burger, Jean de Villiers, Conrad Jantjes, Ricky Januarie, Brian Mujati, Heinrich Brussow, Jaque Fourie, Earl Rose, Victor Matfield, John Smit (c), Odwa Ndungane, JP Pietersen, Adrian Jacobs, Bismark du Plessis, Frans Steyn, Ruan Pienaar, Tendai Mtwarira, Ryan Kankowski.

Currie Cup final from Sports Trader

The Currie Cup final prediction from the Sports Trader blog

With half an hour to go before the kick off to the Currie Cup final, I'll admit I'm still not sure which way I think it's going to go. Being a WP supporter I'm a bit ambivalent seeing as the 'big name' teams already finished their season a few weeks back.

;-)

In all seriousness though, I'm leaning toward the Sharks purely based on the home ground advantage. I think both sides are both very evenly matched, both sides have quality players and either side has a handful of players who could turn the game on it's head without a second thought.

Black Pearl Betting has the Sharks at 6/10 while the Bulls are at 13/10 - not much in it either way.

Black Pearl however have two very interesting plays that might make it interesting:

First up they have a competition for the first try scorer and I think JP Pietersen at 12/1 has to look good.

The second option they've got going is the "STEYN ALIVE" which pits Morne Steyn against Francois Steyn around drop goals and total points scored. A leaning toward Francois to deliver a drop goal is quoted at 11/10. A few bucks either way here might be a bit of fun....