Springbok View - Second Test

by Warren Gatchell

With one win in the bag the Springboks can now focus on their next task, the defence of Pretoria. The last 20 minutes of the match on Saturday were pretty exciting for both sides, for me however it felt as though the dominant position of the first 50 minutes was thrown away by a complacent and perhaps arrogant range of substitutions.

Coach Pieter de Villiers would have learnt a lot tactically from the first Test about the perceived strength of the Lions forwards and the power of the Boks playing direct meat-grinder rugby.

The Boks scrum was a surprise to its supporters with Beast Mtawarira giving the experienced Phil Vickery a hard lesson in Test rugby. This really set the marker for a prolonged period of forward dominance. I was also pleased to see John Smit prove all the critics wrong by putting in a very solid performance in only his second Test at tighthead.

The 30 metre maul was an awesome piece of teamwork and I was really glad to see it back in full force with some of the more pointless ELVs like sacking the maul sent to the dustbin only a few weeks ago.

It clearly had a very demoralising effect on the Lions squad which helped the Boks increase their lead just into the second half.

The lineouts performed well but there were occasions in the Bok 22 when the Lions managed to steal ball and this put the hosts under tremendous pressure. All-in-all it wasn't a polished lineout performance but I think the foundation is there to improve upon for the second Test.

The Lions showed how they want to play attacking rugby and when parity was gained in the scrum after Vickery was taken off the devastating midfield partnership of Brian O'Driscoll and Jamie Roberts cut the Bok defence to pieces.

The centre partnership of Jean de Villiers and Adi Jacobs was well tested and didn't pass. Jacobs kept falling off the tackles which meant de Villiers had to provide cover giving the Lions midfield more space to run amok. The Lions will take a lot from that game, especially the last 20 minutes but the challenge in Pretoria will be much tougher than the one in Durban.

A total of eight of the match day 22 are Bulls players, so aside from the jersey being different the supporters and stadium will be the same. Fortress Loftus in Pretoria hasn't seen many defeats of the Springboks in recent years with the only two matches lost this century against rampant All Blacks sides in 2003 and 2006.

I think it would be unlikely to see much more running from the Boks this weekend, but the game should certainly be more attack-based as the players would have found their rhythm as a team and reignited the combinations which were last used in November 2008.

The kicking battle by Frans Steyn, Ruan Pienaar and Fourie du Preez put the Lions on the back foot and nullified the threat posed by Lee Byrne and to a lesser extent Rob Kearney. Fourie du Preez was well marked and didn't get the opportunity play his game. This was down to the ferocious Lions defence which meant we only got to see du Preez make a single substantial break which was then abruptly stopped by Tom Croft.

Du Preez should feel much more comfortable in the familiar surroundings of Loftus Versfeld so I expect to see him make a good few breaks provided that Matfield, Botha and Spies create the needed space around him.

The human wrecking ball Schalk Burger makes a welcome return with Heinrich Brussouw shifting back to the bench. Burger wasn't in the best form during the Super14 and a prolonged calf injury has reduced his match time so far this season.

He is one of those players who doesn't train very hard during the practice sessions preferring to hold up a tackle bag or do a few light jogs. However, on  match day he transforms into a tireless, unrelenting force which often takes two or three defenders just to shut him down.

Ricky Januarie and Gurthro Steenkamp have dropped out of the 22 with the coach favoring a five forwards to two backs split on the bench. So with only a single change to the starting XV and Chilliboy Ralepalle covering for Bismark du Plessis, the Boks can now build on the momentum gained in Durban as they have a chance to clinch the series this Saturday with a game in hand at Ellis Park.

The Bok players and coaching staff have both said that a full 80-minute performance is needed this weekend to secure victory. The Lions won't make the same mistake twice in the scrum but the Boks' match sharpness should allow them to add more elements to their game, especially in attack.

With only a game to go before securing the 2009 series this is the opportunity for the Boks to close out the series with the support of a packed out Loftus and a nation behind them. As this game is so important, with so much pressure on the Lions to win, I predict the Springboks will win the second Test by five points or more.

Springboks: 15 Frans Steyn, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Adi Jacobs, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Ruan Pienaar, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Juan Smith, 6 Schalk Burger, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 John Smit (c), 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Beast Mtawarira.

Substitutes: 16 Chilliboy Ralepelle, 17 Deon Carstens, 18 Andries Bekker, 19 Danie Rossouw, 20 Heinrich Brussow, 21 Jaque Fourie, 22 Morne Steyn.

Warren Gatchell is a Springbok supporter who has lived in Ireland for three years.