Cape Town - The whole tenet of the Springbok ‘Bomb Squad’ from the 2019 Rugby World Cup was about the replacements coming on and ‘exploding’ on the pitch in the second half.
But in 2022, it hasn’t quite happened for the Bok reserves, either due to the players’ own efforts or coach Jacques Nienaber bringing them on too early, which has seen them run out of steam in the last 10 minutes.
That was quite evident in the Ellis Park clash against the All Blacks, where – after regaining a 23-21 lead – the Boks ended up losing 35-23.
Now, though, many of those players have been given a chance to prove themselves as starters in Saturday’s Rugby Championship clash against the Wallabies at the Allianz Stadium in Sydney (11.35am SA time kickoff).
And with the South Africans having battled to get consistency in terms of performances and results this season, it is the perfect time for those Bomb Squad members to stake their claim for more regular starting berths.
At the top of that list will be loosehead prop Steven Kitshoff. Having spent years as the understudy to Tendai Mtawarira, the Stormers captain would have expected to graduate into the No 1 jersey after ‘Beast’ retired from Test rugby after the heroics in Japan.
But it didn’t happen that way, with first Ox Nche and lately Trevor Nyakane starting ahead of him on the left-hand side of the front row.
The 30-year-old prop now boasts 64 Test caps, and would want to show that he can bring that fiery attitude to the team from the first-half kickoff. Apart from dominating in the scrums, Kitshoff’s “circus act” – the term Nienaber used this week to explain the point of difference in each player – is his ball-carrying at close quarters, and creating turnovers at the breakdowns.
The key for him is to maintain a high work-rate, coupled with real physical intensity, for up to 60 minutes in Sydney, where he will go head-to-head with the formidable Wallaby tighthead Allan Alaalatoa, followed by the dynamic Taniela Tupou off the bench.
Another Bomb Squad stalwart, Franco Mostert, is in a similar situation. He started the 2019 World Cup as the first-choice No 5 lock, but then had to make way for Lood de Jager, who has become entrenched since as the lineout organiser, and showed in Adelaide last week that he can even be a key playmaker on attack.
Mostert is packing down as a blindside flank on Saturday in place of the injured Pieter-Steph du Toit, and needs to rediscover the energy from his Lions days that got him into the Bok squad in the first place.
The 31-year-old is excellent in the lineouts, but it will be his contributions as a ball-carrier and defender that Nienaber and Co will be watching. Mostert needs to get over the advantage line and run good angles to bring a different dynamic to the attack, and display stopping power when tackling Wallaby hard men such as No 8 Rob Valetini, flank Jed Holloway, lock Rory Arnold and hooker Folau Fainga’a.
Hooker Malcolm Marx and loose forward Kwagga Smith have set the example for the Bomb Squad in this regard, as they have been outstanding whenever called upon to start.
So, apart from Kitshoff and Mostert, another reserve in 2022 who can improve his chances of getting further starts is fullback Willie le Roux.
Le Roux has made a good impact off the bench in recent Tests, but there is a reason why he has lost his No 15 jersey to Damian Willemse in 2022. Having turned 33 in August, he isn’t the spring chicken that can beat defenders with speed and sidesteps like Willemse.
But he still has a lot to offer the Boks, and must be an attacking threat in Sydney by maintaining the width in the backline instead of popping in at flyhalf often, and providing that crucial last pass or little grubber to set up tries.
Springbok Team
15 Willie le Roux 14 Canan Moodie 13 Jesse Kriel 12 Damian de Allende 11 Makazole Mapimpi 10 Damian Willemse 9 Jaden Hendrikse 8 Jasper Wiese 7 Franco Mostert 6 Siya Kolisi (captain) 5 Lood de Jager 4 Eben Etzebeth 3 Frans Malherbe 2 Malcolm Marx 1 Steven Kitshoff.
Bench: 16 Deon Fourie 17 Ox Nche 18 Trevor Nyakane 19 Kwagga Smith 20 Duane Vermeulen 21 Cobus Reinach 22 Frans Steyn 23 Warrick Gelant.
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