South Africa

JayStarr says...

@ philipjfry: I don't know Basson's tackle stats - not going to look for it now - but I do know that he's not a solid, aggressive defender like Aplon. He usually stops a guy's momentum somehow (bumping into him / pulling his jersey), but then needs his team mates to come help him. Aplon can put a guy twice his size on the ground... Maybe because of his low centre of gravity, but I think it's all about attitude - Aplon has no fear, while Basson always looks jittery on defense...

But other than defense, Basson just has a very low work rate. When the Bulls are not dominating, you hardly see Basson. If they dominate they create space for him and he gets to score a tries - usually due to his superior speed... but that's about all he brings. And he's very good under the high ball I must add. But that's it...

Aplon is good under the high ball, he's great on defense, he's lightning quick, there are few people with faster acceleration than him, he is probably the best stepper in the Super 15, he's a brilliant goal kicker - he even kicks drop kicks - and he has oodles of x-factor. Hardly ever does he get the ball in a little bit of space without making something happen. He'd be the FIRST person on my team sheet.

Posted 01:42 15th June 2012

ArmchairGeneral says...

I want to see England come out of the tunnel wild roaring and angry and psyched like to the teeth. They just lost to a so so Bokke team and should be fuming about it he'll bent on revenge. When did we last see that? Who's doing the pre-match? I wonder is Robshaw just a bit too nice?

Posted 23:32 14th June 2012

philipjfry says...

@JayStarr: I guess we have different parameters on which we judge players. Has he missed a lot of tackles this season compared to other wings in the SA conference?

Posted 17:29 14th June 2012

JayStarr says...

@ ManWarrior: Thanks! Yeah - I couldn't have said it better myself about Gio... You're 100% right. As for Spies - I think even Josh Strauss would've contributed FAR more... I can't remember when last I even saw Spies bust a tackle. Gio Aplon busts more tackles!

@ philipjfry: Are you going to stare yourself blind in statistics or pay attention to what is actually going on? I don't Basson created ONE of those tries this year... Have you seen the rest of his statistics? I play fantasy rugby and see them every week. If he doesn't score a try, he practically gets no points, because he does NOTHING. At least Aplon, Habana and Mvovo works when they don't have the ball.

@ APV1: Last week was by far your best chance to win one of the tests... and you wasted your opportunity. Sorry to say, but you can forget about it now - this Bok team will only get more cohesive and more effective... and I can't see England improving at a faster rate - which is what you will have to do if you want to win.

Posted 15:24 14th June 2012

boksmashoffice says...

Apolon should be on the bench. He has had a great super rugby season to date. He should be ahead of Oliver who should not even be a Springbok. He looked out of place when he was on for Habanna. Mvovo and Pietersen are unlucky not to be in 22. But this is Bok rugby after all. We do not do stuff the easy way. I am still expecting a win by 15 points on Sat. Go Bokke!!!!!!

Posted 12:03 14th June 2012

Carpelone says...

@ Voice

Agree with you. It is Bok Rugby. I do not support any team in particular (Durban used to be the holidays' place, Jo'burg is where my family lived for quite a while, the Eastern Cape is where they live now). My argument is technical. They are not so better than the others to justify so many players in the squad.

But at the moment, it is ok, since I suppose that choosing a Bull platform is the safest way to build a team.

Posted 09:35 14th June 2012

jonesy2 says...

obvious call the fact that kirchner and olivier are in the side over joe pieterson and mvovo or willie leroux or even aplon is crazy. the bok backline looks better now, lots of kicking options thats for sure.

i agree with RugbyLeRoux, basson is lucky to be there ahead of mvovo and willie leroux aswell.

Posted 05:46 14th June 2012

JayStarr says...

Oh CRAP... Alain Rolland is the ref! Uh - this is going to be a crazy penalty-fest... (Note to self: drink a beer BEFORE the game starts).

Posted 04:00 14th June 2012

JayStarr says...

Thank goodness Lambie is finally at 15 ahead of Sideshow Bob!

But now HM picks Bjorn Basson ahead of Gio Aplon!? Gio Aplon is the master of making something out of nothing. As Shane Williams proved time and time again, being small and fast has it's benefits..!

As this clip shows... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOBNzikIFY8

Posted 03:40 14th June 2012

heathy says...

For me, our chance to register a win against the Boks was last week. After a promising first half, we kinda faded a little in the second half. Still, for a young and inexperienced side, I thought we looked okay and it was a small step in the right direction. It will also be vital experience for these chaps. I don't think the changes to the Boks will make much difference and may even strengthen a little. I just hope we can maintain some intensity and also get better for the next test. We will lose as we are not good enough to win these test just yet but as long as we keep getting better, that is a start. Good luck boys on the weekend. You will be blowing out your backsides after 20 mins as this is a tougher test in altitude. I think we will do well to keep this within 10.

Posted 18:59 13th June 2012