A Test of Bok depth

Right, time to don the green-tinted “everything keeps going right” Bok shades again. The Tri-Nations title is all but in our grasp and having donnered all three shades of black, gold and red out of the toughest competition in the world, no-one can dispute our claim to be the world’s best team.

But, and here’s the source of my worry, though we surely have the world’s best run-on team and a bench brimming with world-class talent, the story of the season so far has been a consistent dip in on-field performance when the subs are put on. For me that simply points to a rusty bench that, training-ground drills aside, hasn’t had enough battle time with the team stalwarts. The likes of Adi Jacobs, Andries Bekker, Danie Rossouw and Ruan Pienaar/Frans Steyn are no less capable than their starting XV counterparts. The genius that is Matfield aside, of course. So surely the solution is to give these guys time to play together in a tough Test environment to get their battle readiness up to speed.

Now with the Tri-Nations certain to be in our grasp by Saturday afternoon, we have an away Test against the All Blacks to blood these guys in before the rigours of an end-of-year sojourn to the northern mudfest. There are those who will contend that Test rugby is about playing the best against the best and that a Test against the old foe is no place for experimentation, but I would counter that with the argument that Test rugby in these days of a congested calendar is very much a squad game. There is simply way too much rugby to be played between now and the 2011 World Cup for the same 22 players to be playing every Test, least of all dead rubbers.

The best way for the Boks to keep their grip on the pinnacle of world rugby is if we have a deep pool of talent that is always ready to advance the Bok cause and keep everyone fresh and motivated while giving them enough playing time to be at their best. Look at the kind of depth we have at scrum-half and fly-half. Also the embarrassment of riches at centre. Is that a bad thing to have? Now imagine if Bok success was always just three or four injuries from being endangered.

Again some will point to the third Lions Test as an example of what happens when you mix and change on the Test stage. And again I will counter that a result like that is exactly why we should build depth in our squad. Sure we’ll suffer the odd loss initially but in time we’ll have virtually two world-beating Test teams ready to take on all comers. Another upside is that it will be easier to spot those of our benchwarmers who have the aptitude for this stage and those that are beyond their capabilities.

With that in mind my suggestion for the closing Tri-Nations Test is that we run a new-ish team and keep a core of the starting XV on the bench to come on if things get too pear-shaped. Kind of like the Tonga Test in the 2007 World cup.

My suggested team would be:

Starting XV

1. Guthro Steenkamp
2. Chiliboy Ralepelle
3. Jannie du Plessis

4. Johan Muller
5. Danie Rossouw

6. Schalk Burger
7. Heinrich Brussouw
8. Ryan Kankowski

9. Ricky Januarie
10. Ruan Pienaar

11. Jongi Nokwe
12. Adi Jacobs
13. Wynand Olivier
14. Odwa Ndungane

15. Zane Kirchner

Reserves

16. John Smit
17. Bismarck du Plessis
18. Juan Smith
19. Pierre Spies
20. Fourie du Preez
21. Morne Steyn
22. Jaque Fourie

So there you are. Quite a few of the starting XV are proven international performers. Indeed Ricky Januarie seems to preserve his best for the All Blacks whereas Ruan Pienaar gets another chance to show what he as to offer at pivot. Chiliboy Ralepelle has quite a few vocal doubters to prove wrong while Jongi Nokwe remains SA’s deadliest finisher outside of Bryan Habana. Zane Kirchner showed great potential in the Super 14 and gets another chance to translate this onto a bigger stage.

And if things go pear-shaped, there’s the world’s best cavalry ready to charge up the mountain to rescue the Test. Johan Muller picks himself as starting captain. So PdV if you are reading this, here’s something to take into consideration. Are you brave enough Sir?