/ 21 November 2013

France no pushover for the Boks

Coenie Oosthuizen starts at tight head for the Springboks against the touch French forwards on Saturday.
Coenie Oosthuizen starts at tight head for the Springboks against the touch French forwards on Saturday. (Getty)

Given the incessant touring that is part of modern rugby, it is remarkable that South Africa have not played France in Paris since 2005. The last time the Springboks left the field at the Stade de France they were carrying then president Thabo Mbeki and the Webb Ellis Cup, having defeated England in the 2007 World Cup final.

The team selected for this Saturday's test, the 13th and last of the season for the Boks, shows how consistent coach Heyneke Meyer has been in his second season in charge. Ten of the 23-man squad have played in every game and three more have missed only one. His subtle pruning of dead wood and reintegration of foreign-based players has been the feature of the season.

The belt-and-braces approach remains key to Meyer's philosophy, however, and so Morné Steyn comes back into the starting line-up and no fewer than six forwards are on the bench, with Jano Vermaak and Pat Lambie covering all the back-line positions. Meyer's resources may be stretched if JP Pietersen and Bryan Habana limp off early, but he clearly feels comfortable with almost two complete packs to choose from on the day.

Much has been made of the fact that the tourists have yet to concede a try. But that statistic will be tested to the full by a French side that gave almost as good as it got against New Zealand two weeks ago.

As ever, France have no shortage of talent to select from, in direct contrast to the Scots who, as the saying goes, were lucky to get nil against South Africa last week.

When Springbok coaches are feeling depressed, they should spend a metaphorical week in the shoes of their Scottish counterparts.

Then they will discover that it is never a case of who should play but of who can play. It is when the cupboard is bare that you find out how good a coach is. Scotland have a proud tradition but right now they offer little more than an opposed training run for good sides.

With that in mind, last week's 28-0 win for the Boks was nothing as one-sided as it should have been. Two tries from 5m line-out drives, one from an intercept and the other from a touch of Willie le Roux genius. No score for either side in the last half hour and 70% possession conceded to the home team in the second half.

Indeed, if you consider that the Boks have struggled to get their hands on the ball for two Tests in a row, you have to wonder what they'll do the day they achieve parity in possession.

Actually, we pretty much know the answer to that, for it has long been true that Springbok teams get bored with too much ball. Unlike All Black teams, who delight in putting opponents to the sword, Bok sides tend to make their point and then rest on their laurels.

It could be argued that that is exactly what happened against both Wales and Scotland, although such an explanation would be overly harsh to a game Welsh side. Undeniably, however, the Boks played two top-notch first halves before running out of inspiration after half-time.

That will not be good enough against France, who have not lost at home to South Africa since 1997.

Good footing
That was the tour on which it all started to come together for Nick Mallett, who took over from Carel du Plessis at the end of the domestic season.

Mallett's side played two Tests against France and won both convincingly, putting a half century of points on the board at Parc des Princes in the match that closed the latter as an international venue.

Few would have guessed at that moment that the Boks would remain unbeaten under Mallett until the following December, when they lost 13-7 against England at Twickenham.

All of which puts into perspective the magnitude of South Africa's task this week.

After a distinctly dodgy start to the job in June 2012, Meyer has manoeuvred his team to a stage where they can be compared with some of the best of their predecessors. They have not lost a Test since last October in Soweto, but lose to France in Paris and questions will be asked.

That is the problem with being Springbok coach and it was something that Meyer constantly alluded to during his early months in charge. The pressure never goes away and only winning keeps the public off your back. So France in Paris becomes this team's first real staging post towards the 2015 World Cup.

The real test will come up front, where Coenie Oosthuizen starts his first international at tight head. France have the best pack in Europe and, quite possibly, the world. They give away very few penalties and earn lots. Their locks are good and their back row has more variety than that offered by the Boks.

It is not a vintage French back line, however, and the experience of players such as Jean de Villiers, Jaque Fourie, Habana and Pietersen gives the Boks a distinct edge behind the scrum. It is too close to call but the positive vibes instilled by the coaches and senior players might give the Boks a win by the narrowest of margins.