IF EVER one wanted a snapshot of what often undermines South African rugby, the Bulls’ Super Rugby game against the Lions at Ellis Park in May was an opportunity.
Needing a bonus points win to keep their playoff hopes alive, the Bulls butchered three overlaps and were comprehensively outplayed by the Lions.
Central to the botched tries was JJ Engelbrecht.
A winger-cum-centre who still plays like a wing, Engelbrecht passed directly to the extra man instead of taking the ball through the hands to take advantage of the overlap by drawing and giving, which allowed the defence to shift and successfully cover.
It’s not just Engelbrecht, a 12-cap Springbok, who doesn’t know how to take advantage of an overlap. Even at his peak Frans Steyn struggled with understanding time and space in his initial position of flyhalf.
This is why a close game like the Test against the All Blacks last weekend will almost always end with the Boks losing. If you don’t buy into that, think of the World Cup quarterfinal against the Wallabies in 2011.
At the end of a game like that we blame bad luck or the referee, when the real reason is that the core skills of our players aren’t properly developed to get them over the line.
That is why South African rugby needs to revisit its relationship with the Sevens circuit. Currently, Sevens is where the careers of small players go to die in SA, whereas in New Zealand it has been the beginning of some bright futures.
Christian Cullen, Jonah Lomu, Liam Messam and Victor Vito were some of the players who first made their names in Sevens before the 15-man game. With the exception of Cornal Hendricks, there isn’t a similar correlation in South Africa.
Given how SA players can be lacking in individual skills, maybe it’s high time we used Sevens as a finishing school for our brightest talents.
After playing in the Junior World Championship, SA U20 players like Jesse Kriel, Sergeal Petersen, Warwick Gelant and Andre Esterhuizen should be conscripted to doing a season on the world Sevens series for Neil Powell’s team.
The point is for them to improve their conditioning, running angles, handling skills, individual defending and, most importantly, spatial awareness.
The unions who contract them will grumble at their players spending October to May globetrotting with the Sevens team.
But chances are during that time they would be bit-part players in the Currie Cup late in the year and would only have Varsity Cup and Vodacom Cup rugby to look forward to in the New Year.
Yet the benefits would finally be the individual attention players don’t get in 15-man teams.
If there are doubts about whether it can work, the likes of Seabelo Senatla, Cheslin Kolbe and Kwagga Smith have proved it in the Currie Cup.
Senatla’s searing pace is an unfair advantage, but the fact that Sevens rugby has taught him to read the game makes him even more lethal, while only players in the top five percent in the world can match Kolbe’s eye for space and his ability to exploit it.
The time has come for SA rugby to use all of the structures available to it to improve the game, even little old Sevens.
Boks need the spit and polish Sevens can provide
Needing a bonus points win to keep their playoff hopes alive, the Bulls butchered three overlaps and were comprehensively outplayed by the Lions.
Central to the botched tries was JJ Engelbrecht.
A winger-cum-centre who still plays like a wing, Engelbrecht passed directly to the extra man instead of taking the ball through the hands to take advantage of the overlap by drawing and giving, which allowed the defence to shift and successfully cover.
It’s not just Engelbrecht, a 12-cap Springbok, who doesn’t know how to take advantage of an overlap. Even at his peak Frans Steyn struggled with understanding time and space in his initial position of flyhalf.
This is why a close game like the Test against the All Blacks last weekend will almost always end with the Boks losing. If you don’t buy into that, think of the World Cup quarterfinal against the Wallabies in 2011.
At the end of a game like that we blame bad luck or the referee, when the real reason is that the core skills of our players aren’t properly developed to get them over the line.
That is why South African rugby needs to revisit its relationship with the Sevens circuit. Currently, Sevens is where the careers of small players go to die in SA, whereas in New Zealand it has been the beginning of some bright futures.
Christian Cullen, Jonah Lomu, Liam Messam and Victor Vito were some of the players who first made their names in Sevens before the 15-man game. With the exception of Cornal Hendricks, there isn’t a similar correlation in South Africa.
Given how SA players can be lacking in individual skills, maybe it’s high time we used Sevens as a finishing school for our brightest talents.
After playing in the Junior World Championship, SA U20 players like Jesse Kriel, Sergeal Petersen, Warwick Gelant and Andre Esterhuizen should be conscripted to doing a season on the world Sevens series for Neil Powell’s team.
The point is for them to improve their conditioning, running angles, handling skills, individual defending and, most importantly, spatial awareness.
The unions who contract them will grumble at their players spending October to May globetrotting with the Sevens team.
But chances are during that time they would be bit-part players in the Currie Cup late in the year and would only have Varsity Cup and Vodacom Cup rugby to look forward to in the New Year.
Yet the benefits would finally be the individual attention players don’t get in 15-man teams.
If there are doubts about whether it can work, the likes of Seabelo Senatla, Cheslin Kolbe and Kwagga Smith have proved it in the Currie Cup.
Senatla’s searing pace is an unfair advantage, but the fact that Sevens rugby has taught him to read the game makes him even more lethal, while only players in the top five percent in the world can match Kolbe’s eye for space and his ability to exploit it.
The time has come for SA rugby to use all of the structures available to it to improve the game, even little old Sevens.
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