SCRUM Magazine – September 2019

1987: Did not compete

1991: Did not compete

1995: Winners

1999: Third Place

2003: Quarter Finals

2007: Winners

2011: Quarter Finals

2015: Third Place

REVITALISED SPRINGBOKS EYEING

THIRD WORLD CUP TRIUMPH

ittle over a year ago, South African
rugby was in a state of turmoil -
some woeful performances on
the pitch, including a 57-0 drubbing at the
hands of New Zealand, had seen the
two-time world champions fall down the
world rankings.
The appointment of Rassie Erasmus as
Head Coach has changed all of that. There
were tough times initially, a series defeat to
England on home soil in the former Munster
boss’ first games in charge, but since then,
the Springboks’ fortunes have improved,
and a new crop of players are coming to
the fore in the green and gold.
Their improvements culminated with a first
win over the All Blacks in New Zealand for
more than a decade but was immediately
preceaded by defeats to Argentina and
Australia, while since that, they’ve also lost
to England and Wales.
Consistency is key for Erasmus - if South
Africa pick up momentum and hit their
straps early in the tournament, they could
become serious contenders, but a pool
stage wobble or two (remember what
happened to them against Japan four years
ago?) could put them on the back foot.
The Springboks are paired with their old
rivals from New Zealand in the pool stage,

and the pair meet in the group’s first game

• the winners of that will likely advance to
  the quarter-finals as pool winners, with the
  other having to settle for second place.
  After their tough opening assignment,
  South Africa will be expected to post
  comfortable wins over Namibia, Italy and
  Canada.
  Erasmus has some of the world’s top stars
  to call upon - Malcolm Marx is arguably the
  world’s best hooker at the moment, while
  Eben Etzebeth and Lood de Jager are two
  mountains in the second row, and the back-
  row options of Siya Kolisi, Duane Vermeulen
  and Francois Louw are up there with any
  other breakaway trio in the competition.

Behind the scrum, Handre Pollard is a key

man - the stand-off controls the Springboks

superbly, and is a pin-point goalkicker, while

the fleet-footed Toulouse wing Cheslin

Kolbe can embarrass even the best of

defenders with his trickery.

There’s no shortage of experience in the

squad either - prop Tendai Mtawarira,

known as The Beast, has over 100 Test

caps to his name, while the likes of Pollard,

Louw and Etzebeth have been around the

international scene for a number of years.

South Africa have a history of shining at

the Rugby World Cup, and head to Japan

looking to join New Zealand as the only

sides to have won the competition three

times. The Springboks’ first victory, on

home soil in 1995, was a breakthrough

moment for the country, with the iconic

image of Nelson Mandela handing over the

trophy to captain Francois Pienaar.

Their second triumph came in France 12

years ago, when John Smit led a superb

side, featuring the likes of Jean de Villers,

Victor Matfield and Bryan Habana, to the

title, beating England in the final.

The class of 2019 have their work cut

out if they are to repeat the feat, but as

mentioned earlier, the Springboks have a

habit of performing well at the World Cup.

L

SOUTH AFRICA

SPRINGBOKS

COACH:

RASSIE ERASMUS

RUGBY WORLD CUP - TOP 10

32 • WWW.SCRUMMAGAZINE.COM • ISSUE 116 2019