The Rugby Championship - Round 3

[Sards]

Look like Moerat to start against the All Blacks. Eben and RG out.

Moerat is out, won't play

Thats a big loss. All Blacks now big favorites.

Moerat can vokkof

[Sards]

Springboks for ABs
Aphelele Fassi
Cheslin Kolbe
Jesse Kriel
Damian De Allende
KLA
Sascha
Reinach
Wiese
BJD
Siya
Ruan
PSDT
Frans
Bongi
Ox

Marx
Steenkamp
Koch
Van Staden
Louw
Kwagga
Grant
Pollard

[OomStruisbaai]

Springbok team to face New Zealand in Johannesburg:

15 – Aphelele Fassi (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 6 caps, 15 points (3t)
14 – Cheslin Kolbe (Suntory Sungoliath) – 35 caps, 96 points (15t, 3c, 5p)
13 – Jesse Kriel (Canon Eagles) – 73 caps, 80 points (16t)
12 – Damian de Allende (Wild Knights) – 82 caps, 55 points (11t)
11 – Kurt-Lee Arendse (Vodacom Bulls) - 19 caps, 85 points (17t)
10 – Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (DHL Stormers) – 6 caps, 33 points (12c, 3p)
9 – Cobus Reinach (Montpellier) – 34 caps, 65 pts (13t)

8 – Jasper Wiese (Urayasu D-Rocks) – 27 caps, 5 pts (1t)
7 – Ben-Jason Dixon (DHL Stormers) – 3 caps, 5 points (1t)
6 – Siya Kolisi (captain, Racing 92) – 86 caps, 55 points (11t)
5 – Ruan Nortje (Vodacom Bulls) – 2 caps, 0 points
4 – Pieter-Steph du Toit (Toyota Verblitz) – 81 caps, 45 points (9t)
3 – Frans Malherbe (DHL Stormers) – 73 caps, 5 points (1t)
2 – Bongi Mbonambi (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 72 caps, 70 points (14t)
1 – Ox Nche (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 33 caps, 0 pts

Replacements:

16 – Malcolm Marx (Kubota Spears) – 69 caps, 95 points (19t)
17 – Gerhard Steenekamp (Vodacom Bulls) – 4 caps, 0 points
18 – Vincent Koch (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 54 caps, 0 points
19 – Marco van Staden (Vodacom Bulls) – 22 caps, 10 pts (2t)
20 – Elrigh Louw (Vodacom Bulls) – 6 caps, 0 points
21 – Kwagga Smith (Shizuoka Blue Revs) – 45 caps, 40 pts (8t)
22 – Grant Williams (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 13 caps, 10 points (2t)
23 – Handre Pollard (Leicester Tigers) – 73 caps, 734 points (7t, 99c, 162p, 5dg)

[OomStruisbaai]

All Blacks going to break Fassi. All Blacks by 12+

[LoveOfTheGame]

Soringboks for ABs
Aphelele Fassi
Cheslin Kolbe
Jesse Kriel
Damian De Allende
KLA
Sascha
Reinach
Wiese
BJD
Siya
Ruan
PSDT
Frans
Bongi
Ox

Marx
Steenkamp
Koch
Van Staden
Louw
Kwagga
Grant
Pollard

SoringBoks eh? You must be quite excited to see Fassi getting a start against the AB's? Hopefully he plays well.

[Sards]

Oh vok.

Stomps casting shade again. You lot are a disgrace

[Sandstorm]

No back-up locks on the bench. Dixon could maybe give it a go, but

[LoveOfTheGame]

I'm a bit worried about Wiese. He has not played any rugby for quite some time now. No idea of what his form is going to be like.

[Sards]

Stomps equal Kokerot supporters

[Sandstorm]

I'm a bit worried about Wiese. He has not played any rugby for quite some time now. No idea of what his form is going to be like.

High and late probably.

[Sandstorm]

Soringboks for ABs
Aphelele Fassi
Cheslin Kolbe
Jesse Kriel
Damian De Allende
KLA
Sascha
Reinach
Wiese
BJD
Siya
Ruan
PSDT
Frans
Bongi
Ox

Marx
Steenkamp
Koch
Van Staden
Louw
Kwagga
Grant
Pollard

SoringBoks eh? You must be quite excited to see Fassi getting a start against the AB's? Hopefully he plays well.

Soaring....

[Sards]

Rassie and Brown have been working with the team. They know what they have. Trust the process.

If you look at the tries scored by our backline it's a great backline. They have a plan to run the ABs off their feet


75 tries in that backline

[OomStruisbaai]

Open tryline for All Blacks once they beat first defense. Is Willie injured?

[Sards]

Open tryline for All Blacks once they beat first defense. Is Willie injured?

Kokerot supporter

[OomStruisbaai]

Open tryline for All Blacks once they beat first defense. Is Willie injured?

Kokerot supporter

Willie lose out because of the nrs.

[Sandstorm]

Open tryline for All Blacks once they beat first defense. Is Willie injured?

Kokerot supporter

Willie lose out because of the nrs.

High ball quotas

[Blake]

No back-up locks on the bench. Dixon could maybe give it a go, but

Rassie says there is a small chance the lineup might change and Eben can still play.
He did train on Monday so he is still eligible for selection, depending on a medical assessment that will be done today (Tuesday).

I hope he'll be declared fit and included. Start PSdT at flank and move him to lock later. Move BJD to the bench and maybe drop Van Staden out of the 23.

[LoveOfTheGame]

Kokerot supporter

Willie lose out because of the nrs.

High ball quotas

[LoveOfTheGame]

No back-up locks on the bench. Dixon could maybe give it a go, but

Rassie says there is a small chance the lineup might change and Eben can still play.
He did train on Monday so he is still eligible for selection, depending on a medical assessment that will be done today (Tuesday).

I hope he'll be declared fit and included. Start PSdT at flank and move him to lock later. Move BJD to the bench and maybe drop Van Staden out of the 23.

I was a bit confused by this, I hope he passes the fitness test and can play.

[OomStruisbaai]

No back-up locks on the bench. Dixon could maybe give it a go, but

Rassie says there is a small chance the lineup might change and Eben can still play.
He did train on Monday so he is still eligible for selection, depending on a medical assessment that will be done today (Tuesday).

I hope he'll be declared fit and included. Start PSdT at flank and move him to lock later. Move BJD to the bench and maybe drop Van Staden out of the 23.

Put Eben on the bench. Big lont for the bom squad.

[Blake]

If his knee is iffy, I'd rather start him and pull him if he feels he's done.
If you bring him on from the bench later and he can't complete the last 30 or so minutes, we might have to play with 14 or he might push too hard and aggravate his injury.

Safe move is to start him if he gets cleared and give him 40-50 minutes at the start, and give him the option to come off if something isn't lekker.

[OomStruisbaai]

Rassie is playing games. Chance is good he wont play.

[Sandstorm]

If his knee is iffy, I'd rather start him and pull him if he feels he's done.
If you bring him on from the bench later and he can't complete the last 30 or so minutes, we might have to play with 14 or he might push too hard and aggravate his injury.

Safe move is to start him if he gets cleared and give him 40-50 minutes at the start, and give him the option to come off if something isn't lekker.

Nope. If our most valuable forward has a dodgy knee, then rest him. If we play him and it worsens, then he'll miss the rest of the season.

[Sards]

If his knee is iffy, I'd rather start him and pull him if he feels he's done.
If you bring him on from the bench later and he can't complete the last 30 or so minutes, we might have to play with 14 or he might push too hard and aggravate his injury.

Safe move is to start him if he gets cleared and give him 40-50 minutes at the start, and give him the option to come off if something isn't lekker.

Nope. If our most valuable forward has a dodgy knee, then rest him. If we play him and it worsens, then he'll miss the rest of the season.

100 percent

[average joe]

When is Lood due back?

[LoveOfTheGame]

When is Lood due back?

Out for the season afaik.

[Blake]

When is Lood due back?

He said only next year in a recent interview.

[bok_viking]

I'm a bit worried about Wiese. He has not played any rugby for quite some time now. No idea of what his form is going to be like.

Yeah Wiese worries me a bit, he is a card waiting to happen on Saturday in my opinion. With Willemse out, Fassi has a good chance this season to proof he belongs in the squad, hope he takes his chance, still worried about him as the last line of defense against the All Blacks. Willemse would still be my no.1 when both of them are fit.

With all the front line locks being injured, I am a bit disappointed that we are not trying out any of the up and coming locks. Having a bunch of loosies on the field in the place of locks are great for open play and did not affect our scrums, but we were really struggling in our lineouts once there were no recognized locks left after subs the last time. At the moment it is worrying that several of our top locks seem to be more on the injury list than playing over the last few seasons and outside of Nortje and Moerat we have not paid much attention to getting others into the squad i think.

Overall I like the team for Saturday considering who is available, it is a fast & mobile team so expecting an exciting game. Glad I have a ticket for the game.

[LoveOfTheGame]

I'm a bit worried about Wiese. He has not played any rugby for quite some time now. No idea of what his form is going to be like.

Yeah Wiese worries me a bit, he is a card waiting to happen on Saturday in my opinion. With Willemse out, Fassi has a good chance this season to proof he belongs in the squad, hope he takes his chance, still worried about him as the last line of defense against the All Blacks. Willemse would still be my no.1 when both of them are fit.

With all the front line locks being injured, I am a bit disappointed that we are not trying out any of the up and coming locks. Having a bunch of loosies on the field in the place of locks are great for open play and did not affect our scrums, but we were really struggling in our lineouts once there were no recognized locks left after subs the last time. At the moment it is worrying that several of our top locks seem to be more on the injury list than playing over the last few seasons and outside of Nortje and Moerat we have not paid much attention to getting others into the squad i think.

Overall I like the team for Saturday considering who is available, it is a fast & mobile team so expecting an exciting game. Glad I have a ticket for the game.

You lucky fish! It's going to epic inside that stadium on Saturday. I've been to sold-out games at Ellis Park and the anthems always gets me teary eyed. It really is a very special place when it is packed, hopefully the Boks will make us many proud.

[bok_viking]

I'm a bit worried about Wiese. He has not played any rugby for quite some time now. No idea of what his form is going to be like.

Yeah Wiese worries me a bit, he is a card waiting to happen on Saturday in my opinion. With Willemse out, Fassi has a good chance this season to proof he belongs in the squad, hope he takes his chance, still worried about him as the last line of defense against the All Blacks. Willemse would still be my no.1 when both of them are fit.

With all the front line locks being injured, I am a bit disappointed that we are not trying out any of the up and coming locks. Having a bunch of loosies on the field in the place of locks are great for open play and did not affect our scrums, but we were really struggling in our lineouts once there were no recognized locks left after subs the last time. At the moment it is worrying that several of our top locks seem to be more on the injury list than playing over the last few seasons and outside of Nortje and Moerat we have not paid much attention to getting others into the squad i think.

Overall I like the team for Saturday considering who is available, it is a fast & mobile team so expecting an exciting game. Glad I have a ticket for the game.

You lucky fish! It's going to epic inside that stadium on Saturday. I've been to sold-out games at Ellis Park and the anthems always gets me teary eyed. It really is a very special place when it is packed, hopefully the Boks will make us many proud.

Yeah really glad I nailed down a ticket for this game. Its been a while since I have been to Ellis Park for a big international game. Only been to Loftus for international games since I got back to SA which is a really good venue for sold out games too, just a bit small. Fully agree with the atmosphere in Ellis Park, the way the stands are build to have the whole crowd closer to the field creates quite a cauldron of noise during sold out games when you are on the field and in the stands.
With the popularity of the Bok team in SA at an all time high I actually think some big games should be played at the FNB stadium again where they can easily sell around 100k tickets per game. Many of the games this year could have been sold out several times over within days. As much as I love Loftus for international games. Playing a team like Ireland in front of 100k people instead of 50k would have been epic. The atmosphere for the games against the All Blacks at the FNB stadium was fantastic at the time.

[LoveOfTheGame]

No back-up locks on the bench. Dixon could maybe give it a go, but

Rassie says there is a small chance the lineup might change and Eben can still play.
He did train on Monday so he is still eligible for selection, depending on a medical assessment that will be done today (Tuesday).

I hope he'll be declared fit and included. Start PSdT at flank and move him to lock later. Move BJD to the bench and maybe drop Van Staden out of the 23.

And so you get your wish Blake Eben in, Marco van Staden dropped.

[Sandstorm]

No back-up locks on the bench. Dixon could maybe give it a go, but

Rassie says there is a small chance the lineup might change and Eben can still play.
He did train on Monday so he is still eligible for selection, depending on a medical assessment that will be done today (Tuesday).

I hope he'll be declared fit and included. Start PSdT at flank and move him to lock later. Move BJD to the bench and maybe drop Van Staden out of the 23.

And so you get your wish Blake Eben in, Marco van Staden dropped.

Eben is quality and will make our lineout and maul defence really strong. Hope he stays fit.....

[OomStruisbaai]

That strengthen the bom squad massively.

[LoveOfTheGame]

Yeah Wiese worries me a bit, he is a card waiting to happen on Saturday in my opinion. With Willemse out, Fassi has a good chance this season to proof he belongs in the squad, hope he takes his chance, still worried about him as the last line of defense against the All Blacks. Willemse would still be my no.1 when both of them are fit.

With all the front line locks being injured, I am a bit disappointed that we are not trying out any of the up and coming locks. Having a bunch of loosies on the field in the place of locks are great for open play and did not affect our scrums, but we were really struggling in our lineouts once there were no recognized locks left after subs the last time. At the moment it is worrying that several of our top locks seem to be more on the injury list than playing over the last few seasons and outside of Nortje and Moerat we have not paid much attention to getting others into the squad i think.

Overall I like the team for Saturday considering who is available, it is a fast & mobile team so expecting an exciting game. Glad I have a ticket for the game.

You lucky fish! It's going to epic inside that stadium on Saturday. I've been to sold-out games at Ellis Park and the anthems always gets me teary eyed. It really is a very special place when it is packed, hopefully the Boks will make us many proud.

Yeah really glad I nailed down a ticket for this game. Its been a while since I have been to Ellis Park for a big international game. Only been to Loftus for international games since I got back to SA which is a really good venue for sold out games too, just a bit small. Fully agree with the atmosphere in Ellis Park, the way the stands are build to have the whole crowd closer to the field creates quite a cauldron of noise during sold out games when you are on the field and in the stands.
With the popularity of the Bok team in SA at an all time high I actually think some big games should be played at the FNB stadium again where they can easily sell around 100k tickets per game. Many of the games this year could have been sold out several times over within days. As much as I love Loftus for international games. Playing a team like Ireland in front of 100k people instead of 50k would have been epic. The atmosphere for the games against the All Blacks at the FNB stadium was fantastic at the time.

I was John Smit's 100th game at FNB Stadium. If memory serves that was the game where Nonu lost his boot (Smit missed the tackle) and Dagg scored in the corner? Colossal test match, lost in the dying minutes.

[Sandstorm]

I was John Smit's 100th game at FNB Stadium. If memory serves that was the game where Nonu lost his boot (Smit missed the tackle) and Dagg scored in the corner? Colossal test match, lost in the dying minutes.

I know the feeling. I've been to more Test matches the Boks have lost than won.

[Sards]

No back-up locks on the bench. Dixon could maybe give it a go, but

Rassie says there is a small chance the lineup might change and Eben can still play.
He did train on Monday so he is still eligible for selection, depending on a medical assessment that will be done today (Tuesday).

I hope he'll be declared fit and included. Start PSdT at flank and move him to lock later. Move BJD to the bench and maybe drop Van Staden out of the 23.

And so you get your wish Blake Eben in, Marco van Staden dropped.

I read that Eben wanted to play but wasn't up for practice on Monday. So Rassie said that team protocol is that if you don't train Monday you don't play the weekend. And Rassie is vas on that. So Eben went to the practice.

[Sards]

And so you get your wish Eben in, Marco van Staden dropped.

And a tremor just went through the ABs camp.

[OomStruisbaai]

Razor still new to this, when can we expect the All Blacks team for saturday?

[bok_viking]

You lucky fish! It's going to epic inside that stadium on Saturday. I've been to sold-out games at Ellis Park and the anthems always gets me teary eyed. It really is a very special place when it is packed, hopefully the Boks will make us many proud.

Yeah really glad I nailed down a ticket for this game. Its been a while since I have been to Ellis Park for a big international game. Only been to Loftus for international games since I got back to SA which is a really good venue for sold out games too, just a bit small. Fully agree with the atmosphere in Ellis Park, the way the stands are build to have the whole crowd closer to the field creates quite a cauldron of noise during sold out games when you are on the field and in the stands.
With the popularity of the Bok team in SA at an all time high I actually think some big games should be played at the FNB stadium again where they can easily sell around 100k tickets per game. Many of the games this year could have been sold out several times over within days. As much as I love Loftus for international games. Playing a team like Ireland in front of 100k people instead of 50k would have been epic. The atmosphere for the games against the All Blacks at the FNB stadium was fantastic at the time.

I was John Smit's 100th game at FNB Stadium. If memory serves that was the game where Nonu lost his boot (Smit missed the tackle) and Dagg scored in the corner? Colossal test match, lost in the dying minutes.

Yeah I was at that game as well. And have been at way to many games over the years where the boks find a way to lose a game in the last 5 minutes against the All Blacks. You are in a good mood for 75 minutes to just have the rest of the weekend spoiled in a few minutes

[bok_viking]

No back-up locks on the bench. Dixon could maybe give it a go, but

Rassie says there is a small chance the lineup might change and Eben can still play.
He did train on Monday so he is still eligible for selection, depending on a medical assessment that will be done today (Tuesday).

I hope he'll be declared fit and included. Start PSdT at flank and move him to lock later. Move BJD to the bench and maybe drop Van Staden out of the 23.

And so you get your wish Blake Eben in, Marco van Staden dropped.

That gives us a bit more balance in the tight 5 and lineouts. Van Staden being dropped is not to bad, he has been a penalty conceding machine this season for the Bulls, him and Wiese in the same team might be a bit much for penalties and possible cards in a single match