Andy Capostagno in London Rugby World Cup
The munching noise is the sound of humble pie being consumed in vast quantities. Not only did South Africa not lose to England in the World Cup quarter-finals, they brushed aside the strongest of the northern hemisphere competitors with something approaching disdain. If Nick Mallett could tap into the collective spirit that consumed his team in Paris before every match they could book a seat for the Webb Ellis Trophy on the plane to Johannesburg right now. If only it were as simple as that.
Another week, another challenge. Against England it was enough to tackle, tackle and tackle again and work space for Jannie de Beer to drop a goal. Against the Wallabies something more expansive is required. “We’ll be looking to run the ball a lot more than we did against England,” said Robbie Fleck, one of the many maligned Springboks who covered himself in glory in Paris.
But Mallett is aware that running the ball is only possible if you have the ball in the first place and that the Wallabies routinely produce the kind of backline moves which leave other countries searching for superlatives. Much of their potency comes from five players who all stand next to each other. Number eight Toutai Kefu (recalled after a two-match ban), half-backs George Gregan and Stephen Larkham and centres Tim Horan and Daniel Herbert.
Said Mallett: “Tiaan Strauss is a stronger man on the drive, but Kefu has a better step.” In other words, unlike a whole host of eighth men who believe that their job is done if they make 5m and deliver the ball on the ground after being tackled, Kefu knows that to bring out the best in the players outside him he needs to release the ball before he goes to ground. It is from these broken play positions that the straight running of Horan and the angled incursions of Herbert are seen to best effect.
When Kefu is absent from a move, normally buried beneath a swarm of tacklers, the decision-making process revolves around Gregan, and the fact that he makes the right decision nine times out of 10 is what makes him a special player. Since coach Rod Macqueen decided to try and make Larkham into a fly-half the heat has generally been off Gregan. That suits him down to the ground and it means that he only has to pass to his fly-half the very best ball available.
There are times when Larkham seems to disappear, such as the 40 minutes either side of half-time against Wales. The reason was that Gregan decided to rest him. In the first quarter Larkham ran the show and in the final quarter his stab kick through for Ben Tune’s try sealed the match. If Gregan ever allows him to play a full 80 minutes it could be some show.
In order for that not to happen the Springbok scrum has to function every bit as well as it did against England, something that Krynauw Otto, the quiet man in the engine room, recognises. “I don’t think there’s any great secret to stopping the Australian half-backs,” he said. “We just have to dominate in the tight five and keep them on the back foot. Rugby begins and ends up front and we just have to dominate.”
That may be easier said than done, for the much-maligned Wallaby tight five more than held their own against Wales in Cardiff. In particular, it was impressive to see the way that tight-head prop Andrew Blades got the better of Peter Rogers after suffering horrible damage in the first few scrums. He won the technical battle through perseverance and a little help from his friends, and, for the first time in his Test career, Rogers was forced to concede ground.
Having beaten Wales in the one area they thought they might be the superior side the Wallabies never looked back. It will be vital for the Springbok scrum to recognise early on that they are up against a thinking man’s pack that may not be on a par physically, but can more than match any opponents in the key battles between the ears.
Therefore it is a great comfort to Mallett that, in a season of unprecedented comings and goings, the one area of consistency has been in the front row. Os du Randt, Naka Drotske and Cobus Visagie are developing rapidly into one of the great Springbok front rows. Drotske has seemed a lightweight at times in his Test career and it has affected his throwing into the line-outs, but with the massive bulk of Du Randt under one arm and the technical brilliance of Visagie under the other he has gone from strength to strength.
And there is no other team in this tournament that could afford to leave Ollie le Roux on the bench. One of the great sights of the modern game is watching the look of relief upon the faces of Du Randt’s opponents change to frowns of horror when they realise that a fit and fresh Le Roux is rumbling over to take his place.
Something similar could be expected of the Wallaby back row and inside backs if Mallett decides to give Henry Honiball some game time in the second half at Twickenham. But that is a big if, for De Beer came as close to reinventing the Springbok game plan as any individual is ever likely to with his display at Stade de France. Suddenly the idea of hitting the ball up, hitting it up again and then hitting it up some more seemed ever so slightly antediluvian.
In the form of De Beer, South Africa has, for the first time since Joel Stransky was discarded, got a proper fly-half; one who can run, pass, tackle and kick, especially kick. He may never again experience a day like that against England, but the fact of the matter is that he could afford to be half as effective and still win Test matches. Test matches such as the one against Australia at Twickenham on Saturday.