Three Ns match 3 Boks versus Wallabies

Having gone on various sites ,getting the soundbites,both sides are using there Defence Guru`s.
Victor Matfield,talking about the lads at Rastenburg diplomatically talking about working out
moves on a chalkboard,not confirming or denying heavy training by the MIA under Erasmus.
Also made the mandatory.Look out we don`t like to lose noises etc.beware the Bok lash!!
Not exactley original answers,to rather stupid and obvious questions,interesting tactical
match this one Bok win and the 3Ns finale at Brisbane.Assuming the All Blacks lose there
Bok match too,by no means a given.Win and realistically the All Blacks would want a convincing
win versus Boks to take 3Ns a lot of combinations involved thoughts any one?

The bok team will be announced tomorrow, I suspect it will be close to the real team. Only Schalk Burger it seems is not available.

Two must win tests for the Boks if they want to go to the RWC with confidence

I think the SA defence thing will have come directly from the Samoa then AB hit on Samoa.

Both Oz teams did not like being smashed up and were caught out (twice!).

SA have the size to do the same but I dont know about the pace or fitness to sustain it constently at the required level of intensity.

It took some doing but time after time the AB's managed to collar Oz with the ball.

emack2 wrote:Assuming the All Blacks lose there
Bok match too...

Never assume Alan, never assume...

Taylorman wrote:

emack2 wrote:Assuming the All Blacks lose there
Bok match too...

Never assume Alan, never assume...

Mmmm, do I detect a tad confidence?

ALWAYS back Bok win at home,but hope for the best.

Hard to say Biltong. Its a weird one. Don't know what sort of form SA will be in or how much the AB's really really ....really want this one...- how bout I let you know after this weekend (like a gold old chicken!)

"ALWAYS back Bok win at home,but hope for the best"

So you'd be down a few quid since 92 then wont you Alan.

How about (who was it- Snipes..?)..."Always back on black'!

Looks like Higginbotham who is a no6 in for McCalman who is a No8 and Sharpe in for Simmons. In typical Deans fashion, takes him about half a season to do what is the bleeding obvious. Looks like McCalman has to take the fall because Rocky has a guaranteed spot in the side.

Oh well, I guess having 2/3rds of a backrow is better than 1/3rd.

Higginbotham should have been in for Elsom not McCalman. If that is the switch then I think Deans should play Higginbotham at 6 and Elsom at 8 and see how he goes there, as he has done very little of what I would be expecting of an international blindside in recent games.

If the Boks have their game faces on, and with the big guns out on the park, I don't think it will matter what forwards Deans puts out anyway.

Team for Saturday:
15 Kurtley Beale
14 James O’Connor
13 Adam Ashley-Cooper
12 Pat McCabe
11 Digby Ioane
10 Quade Cooper
9 Will Genia
8 Scott Higginbotham
7 David Pocock
6 Rocky Elsom (c)
5 James Horwill
4 Nathan Sharpe
3 Ben Alexander
2 Stephen Moore
1 Sekope Kepu
Replacements
Saia Fainga’a
Salesi Ma'afu
Sitaleki Timani
Ben McCalman
Radike Samo
Luke Burgess
Anthony Fainga'a

Gone for a 5/2 bench - no surprises there. Simmons is left out as he has a bad shoulder.

Rob, do you think Pat McCabe is Dean's first choice, or would he want Barnes there?

Also is Giteau now completely out of favour?

I think if Barnes was fit to go at the start of the test season, he would have been first choice 12. He offers a bit more in attack than just a straight hit it up man. Now I get the sense that the 12 jersey is McCabe's to lose. He has made no mistakes since given the opportunity and he is a bigger bloke than Barnes and Deans is looking for all the size he can find in that backline.

An alternative I think is that if AAC does not pull his finger out, the MCCable might find himself at 13 and Barnes at 12. All subject to Barnes getting and staying fit of course. He would still be a pretty risky pick given the nature of his injuries.

I think Giteau is gone - he might scrape into the squad by the skin of his backside but likely to stay on the outer.

Wonder if Palu really will make it back for the last match against ABs? We do need a stronger number 8, someone who can break a few tackles and add some weight to the pack.

Here's hoping Elsom finds his game this match, but then who else to be skipper? Genia?

Looking forward to seeing a real bok test side out this weekend. It's a match for them to lose, as I do not think the wallabys have yet to settle on their best side. Surprised Fainga'a not starting hooker, he does seem more dynamic if maybe less strong than Moore, and his throw ins need more accuracy.

And who's be our kicker??? Obviously Beale for the fifty yarder plus kicks, lol, but who wil be the bread and butter kicker? think we need to stick with O'Connor, he needs to get more high pressure games under his belt for the nerves. Quade is a known quantity with his kicking, whereas O'Connor is a better kicker if his nerves is under control.

Looking forward to the bok team naming tomorrow. Am sure to expect to see the same ole formidable faces in there. Will be a great game, even if not the titanic ab-bok's tradition.

Head says boks win, but will be going in to watch it Saturday expecting a wallaby's win... may need a few snakies to calm my nerves!!

OzT don't worry mate, on another site (south african), the guys aren't very positive about our chances. THey reckon if we can get to 75% vs Wallabies and 85% against the All Blacks next weekend it will be a good build up for the RWC.

I disagree, we need to win.

Agree with you there bilton. No loss is ever good. I do not buy into the oft said phrase 'we take/learn something from this defeat'.

Winning breads a winning frame of mind. Out to win every game, impossible fo course but have never taken a loss with a, hmm, ok, but we did well.

I may after a loss seem fairly chilled about it, but it is only a show. Inside i am quietly depressed.

I cannot for one minute bilton, imagine on a saffa site that there could be doubt amongst the posters. I do not think the boks currently are as good as the kiwis but I certainly think they are the next best. Mentally they may need geeing up, and not to lose silly games, but when in tune they are a side I respect heaps. Spent my childhood back home devouring the tour books of SA vc NZ (in days of real tours).

Both sides will be out for a win, your coach seems pretty safe whatever happens, or he comes across as quite comfortable win or lose. For Deans, another loss and he wil not be too populare back home!

OsT, the South Africans on there aren't happy with the way the Boks have performed since the End of year tour in 2009.

THey have little belief in PDV and even Rassie Erasmus who is there to help now.

BUt then again most of them are Bulls Supporters and it took the non Bull supporters a whole year to convince them Morne Steyn is poor.

I think when quade Cooper ran around Steyn and Olivier, and then later when Steyn looked like he wanted to hug Adam Ashley Cooper they realised they couldn't deny it anymore.

Steyn I had already voted, along with Quade, on an earlier thread, as revolving door defenders!!

Yes, I remember, and politely reminded you that he is the doorman, showing the way through those revolving doors.

I dread the day he, Wynand Olivier and Adie Jacobs ahs to be our midfield defenders.

It will look like the opening to a barnyard sale.

True,Taylorman the All Blacks have a 43% away win rate in the Republic.
BUT such is my RESPECT for the Boks ,always expect a home win it`s a
bonus if the All Blacks do it.