Andy Capostagno in Cardiff Rugby World Cup
One thing we should be grateful for. The Springboks did not disgrace themselves at this World Cup. They had a man sent off, they loafed around during the playing of Flower of Scotland, they went hog wild for a night in Edinburgh, but in victory over England they were humble and in defeat against Australia they were humbler still. ‘Twas not ever thus.
The squad was given full support by the South African Rugby Football Union (Sarfu), and after question marks about how together they were in spirit, they dispelled all doubts in displays of huge character in the quarter- and semi- finals. That is what living cheek by jowl with each other can sometimes confer in team sports. But inevitably there will be questions when they return home and most of these will boil down to one big one: could they have done better? The answer, unquestionably, is yes.
There is no greater irony than the fact that Bobby Skinstad missed the third- place playoff against New Zealand with a swollen knee. For, if truth be told, he should have missed the whole tournament because of the injury sustained during the Super 12 in April. Instead, the management discarded Gary Teichmann, the most respected captain in world rugby, and asked Skinstad to prove to the rest of the world that they were perfect judges of when to make a change, rather than heartless fools.
If Skinstad had done one thing during the World Cup to remind us of the sublime try he scored against Australia in last year’s Tri-Nations, he would have vindicated the management’s decision. Instead he spent the tournament hanging around in the back line and fumbling the most basic of eighth man procedures. But, it should be reiterated, it was not his fault – it was the fault of ”Pollyanna” Nick Mallett and Alan Solomons, who, against all the available evidence, believed that it would be all right on the night.
The same is true of Henry Honiball, the man who missed out on the 1995 World Cup with injury and should have done the same in 1999. The management could not conceive of a workable game plan without Honiball who, it is as well to remember, was injured for the whole of South Africa’s Test match season prior to the World Cup.
In his absence they tried to turn first Gaffie du Toit and then Braam van Straaten into ersatz Honiballs and then discarded them when they proved to be bad at doing impressions of anyone but themselves. Van Straaten is a workmanlike player with many virtues, but his absence did not affect the Springbok performance at the World Cup. Du Toit, on the other hand, should have been here.
The rest of the world now believes that the apogee of fly-half play in South Africa is Jannie de Beer, ace drop goaler, ace kicker, not much else. How the world would have marvelled at the hubris of Du Toit, exactly the kind of seat-of-the-pants player that this World Cup was crying out for prior to France’s magnificent semi-final victory.
With Du Toit at fly-half there might have been a way to get the backline working, for assuredly it did not with Pieter Muller and there are grave doubts about Brendan Venter, too.
But even at his wonderful best, Du Toit could not have made rugby players out of Pieter Rossouw and Percy Montgomery. When the dust settles on the 1999 season, we will look back and wonder how the two Western Province boys managed to convince Mallett and Solomons that they were the best in their positions in the country.
Both came good just once, against England in Paris, where neither had to trouble their heads about anything more taxing than catching the next high ball, tackling the next Englishman. Of creativity, of the most simple of old- fashioned back-line moves there has been nothing, just the odd pell-mell dash into the foe resulting usually in turnover ball.
Against Australia the only man outside Joost van der Westhuizen with any kind of ambition to break the line was Robbie Fleck, the one Springbok who can truthfully be said to have exceeded expectations at this tournament. Had he had Breyton Paulse to look for in his sorties the Boks might just have scored the try which would have made extra time unnecessary.
There will be a new broom for the 2000 season and several players will be consigned to the dustbin of history. Is it too much to ask that prejudice against small people will be thrown away at the same time? Paulse weighs 78kg and stands 1,75m tall. He is 3kg lighter, 3cm taller than Christophe Dominici, the French wing who destroyed the reputation of Tana Umaga on Sunday.
This tournament has not been a disaster for Springbok rugby: given the background to the defence of their title their performance in defeat against Australia was superb. What would be a disaster would be to start next season with the same old prejudices in place. Springbok rugby should adopt a new motto: there is more joy in heaven for one sidestep attempted than for 10 000 big hits completed.
Because of the World Cup schedule, the South Africa/New Zealand play-off match was being played as this newspaper was at the presses