Grand Scam

So the Springboks have an end of season Grand Slam tour scheduled. Very tempting to knock over Ireland, Wales, Scotland and England — (throw in a game against the Barbarians for good measure) — on consecutive weekends after a full Tri Nations and a looming World Cup? Not!

Simple solution: send the B team. So the Tests will be lost and the British rugby public cheated. Who cares? They’re so desperate to see their teams win that if we trotted out the Legends in Springbok jerseys they’d still fill the stadiums and cheer their heads off.

We’ve done it before. In 2007, Jake White caused controversy when he sent an under strength Springbok team on the away leg of the Tri Nations.

The priority must be to retain the Rugby World Cup in 2011.

I can just imagine Peter De Villiers arriving in Ireland later this year, strains of Lady Gaga’s Pokerface in the background, and, in perfect imitation of England’s 2007 coach Brian Ashton, stating: “Were not here to make up the numbers.”

In 2007, a few months prior to the RWC, England under Ashton, sent their squad of 30 players to South Africa for two Tests, one in Bloemfontein, the other in Pretoria. The Springboks duly won, scoring more than fifty points on each occasion. Only 10 of this squad made the English RWC party, most of them backline players.

England certainly did not see fit to honour the South African rugby public with their finest team on a pre-RWC tour. Sure, England didn’t win RWC 2007, but they made it to the final when nobody gave them the slightest chance.

The English lesson is important. In 2003 they won the RWC with an established side, many of the individual players rated as the finest in their position in the world. Johnny Wilkinson, Martin Johnson, Jason Robinson, Lawrence Dallaglio. Ditto South Africa in 2007.

After their RWC 2003 victory, English coach Clive Woodward stated: “I want the success of England to go on forever so that we become the leading force in world rugby and take over the mantle of the All Blacks and the South Africans.”

At the same time, he picked a shadow England side for the 2007 RWC. Of the fifteen players he chose, only 5 made the squad and only 2 played in the final against South Africa.

Experience counts. What if Nick Mallett had not ditched Gary Teichman in 1999? If Jake White had selected a side for the next RWC straight after South Africa’s 2007 success, his side may have looked something like (ages in 2011 in parenthesis):Francois Steyn (24), Brian Habana (28), Jean De Villiers (30), Jacque Fourie (28), JP Pietersen (25), Ruan Pienaar (27), Fourie Du Preez (29), Pierre Spies (26), Schalk Burger (28), Jean Smith (29), Victor Matfield (34), Bakkies Botha (31), CJ van der Linde (31), Bismark Du Plessis (26), Gurthro Steenkamp (30).

Since then, Morne Steyn (27) has emerged as a formidable match winner, Heinrich Brussow (24) had added variation to the game plan and the front row has caused major concerns. John Smit’s (33) longevity and credentials as leader make him difficult to exclude, but as hooker, not at tighthead prop.

Barring injury (and heaven forbid a disastrous Tri Nations 2010 campaign) it would not be improbable that more than ten members of the team selected above would still be first choice in 2011. Properly rested, South Africa can then approach the forthcoming RWC with a legitimate prospect of making history as the first side ever to retain the Cup.