The recently announced Nations Championship couldn’t have asked for better publicity than the Autumn Nations Series currently under way in Europe.
Epic confrontations between Scotland and the All Blacks, France and the Springboks, England and the All Blacks and Ireland and the Wallabies have set the northern hemisphere “fall” (for the fans in Chicago) alight this November. Perhaps the biggest battle of all, however, will be on Saturday in Dublin, when Andy Farrell’s Ireland host the “monster” Boks of Rassie Erasmus at the Aviva Stadium.
Monster is the operative word, given the Springboks’ apparent invincibility of late, even in the face of extreme adversity (ie red cards). Farrell already alluded to it this week when he observed that South Africa, “in this moment in time”, are “definitely the best” team in the world.
“Everyone’s talking about them and the type of rugby that they’re playing. They’ve played some brilliant stuff,” the Ireland boss told the media.
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The match that truly set the cat among the pigeons, or rather the cockerels, was in Paris at the start of the month. Reduced to 14 men, following a contentious red card to lock Lood de Jager for a high tackle on French fullback Thomas Ramos, South Africa turned a daunting deficit of 13-14 at half-time into a sweeping 32-17 victory.
The Springboks were simply irresistible in the final quarter, destroying Les Bleus with three tries in 12 minutes.
It’s not always crystal clear what to read into results against the fickle French, which begs the question: was the Bok performance in that second half really that extraordinary, or was it a classic case of a rather poor Les Bleus team showing up after the break?
South Africa’s dominance of the global game over the past six seasons, however, is clear as day.
Not only do they have the silverware, including back-to-back World Cup titles and a series defeat of the British & Irish Lions, they also have the depth of two to three class players in virtually every position in a squad which Erasmus has been continuously evolving.
This means that, even though a host of the Springbok stars of 2019 and 2023 might be nearing their expiry date, the succession plan that Erasmus has in place should be primed for action come Rugby World Cup 2027.
Quite possibly Erasmus’s biggest masterstroke, though, was the appointment last year of former All Black outhalf Tony Brown as attack coach.
The Springboks have traditionally been renowned for an effective yet rather dour, forward-oriented kick and chase game, in addition to the defensive foundation laid by Jacques Nienaber, with little emphasis on shifting the ball and exploiting space.
That, however, has radically changed over the past year and a half. The South Africans now play a vastly more expansive brand of rugby, and with some aplomb.
They not only possess a monstrous, abrasive scrum that can attack and dominate seemingly any opposition pack of forwards, but now also boast a backline arsenal that can cause considerable damage, as they did against France.
[ Cheslin Kolbe and South Africa ready for ‘massive’ game against IrelandOpens in new window ]
Brown has made a huge difference in this regard. He has brought great clarity, innovation and vision to the Bok attack, and, with his cool, calm and collected demeanour, also perfectly complements a firebrand such as Erasmus.
Brown’s mentorship has helped to fast-track Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu into arguably the most lethal outhalf in the world. At just 23 years of age, Feinberg-Mngomezulu is on track to take Australia by storm in 2027.
“Sacha will keep on growing, and we will manage him correctly,” Erasmus said, following Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s scintillating display against France.
“He’s got the magic of the feel for the game, which he displayed, and he is on 17 caps now. We can see Sacha getting more and more comfortable, but it is always another step-up in the next game.”
The Springboks are certainly ahead of the pack at the moment. The fact that we probably haven’t yet seen the best of this generation in green and gold is actually scary.
That said, the class of Feinberg-Mngomezulu and co will no doubt be pushed to the limits against an Ireland side with their tails up following a comprehensive 46-19 walloping of the Wallabies.
Interestingly, Erasmus has to date won only one out of four tests against Ireland as Springbok coach – last year in Pretoria – and has never tasted victory in Dublin. In fact, South Africa’s most-capped player of all time, Eben Etzebeth, is the only current Bok who has been on the winning side at the Aviva, in 2012.
[ Gordon D’Arcy: Ireland vs Springboks will be decided in a moment of desperationOpens in new window ]
Given all the drama the Springboks had to endure over the past fortnight, another relevant question right now is whether they will be able to again prevail with only 14 or even 13 men against a formidable foe like Ireland. Another straight dismissal in Dublin may just be a red card too far.
Knowing Erasmus and his methodical attention to detail, discipline will be a focal point this week, although, as he observed following Franco Mostert’s red against Italy last Saturday, “we don’t know how to coach guys to go lower. Especially for a two-metre-tall guy to face someone who is on his knees is tough”.
It promises to be another monster match.
