Ex-All Blacks scrumhalf Mark Robinson previews the first of two tests between the age-old rivals. He talks about Ian Foster walking a tightrope, how he rates Faf de Klerk and why Richie Mo’unga could be the key in unlocking the Bok defence.
For the first time in 13 years, the bookies have got the All Blacks as the underdogs. The Springboks are favourites whether they want that tag or not. The All Blacks have lost four of their last five tests and in truth, Ian Foster is two games away from being sacked.
The All Blacks have made four changes to their first XV which will tackle the Springboks at Mbombela Stadium. We always talk about selection with the narrative that there are multiple people involved but it’s Foster and Joe Schmidt who are now basically picking the team. Foster would have had input from his other coaches, but he got rid of them and brought in Jason Ryan who is not exactly going to be selecting the team. This is the side Foster believes can save him but he is under so much pressure that it’s incredible.
FOSTER’S JOB REMAINS ON THE LINE
It’s the first time in a long while that an All Blacks coach has been under this much strain. In terms of the coaching reshuffle, I think something needed to change. I feel the All Blacks need fresh ideas and innovation to come in. Ryan is an amazing forwards coach and has been one of the most successful within Super Rugby. From a cynical perspective, by bringing Ryan in, Scott Robertson has got one foot in the door. Foster’s job is on the line as NZ rugby haven't said: “Win or lose, you’ve got the World Cup next year.” If Foster fails to win the tests, there will be a seismic change within the All Blacks.
The game the All Blacks can win is in Nelspruit. It hasn’t got the intimidation factor of a Loftus or Ellis Park and is on the Lowveld as opposed to the Highveld. That said, this Springbok side is full of experience and they have as many as 449 caps in their forward pack. The Boks are going out to absolutely bully and bash the All Blacks.
The home side will do whatever they can to intimidate the All Blacks wherever possible. If the Boks win the collisions and stop the momentum in the All Black forward pack, it will disseminate into the backline. The Boks will be wanting to bash the All Blacks up front to win the physical battle and consequently earn the right to go wide and score those tries.
MO’UNGA CAN FIRE ALL BLACK ATTACK
The halfback battle of Aaron Smith/Beauden Barrett against Faf de Klerk/Handre Pollard will be a riveting subplot. Smith and Barrett are under a huge amount of pressure and I wouldn’t be surprised if Richie Mo’unga replaces the latter if he’s not firing early on and giving the right direction.
To be honest, I would like to see Mo’unga more because he attacks really well. The way that the All Blacks are going to beat the Springboks is through skill, speed and mobility. The game plan is to run the big Bok pack around the field. The All Blacks need to use their skill and soft touches out the back and front. The key to that is Smith firing out long passes, getting speed at the breakdown and moving the ball. When you play with that direction, you’ve got a chance against the Boks but give their pack easy targets and they will absolutely dominate you.
FAF’S THE MAN TO FIND BOKS SPACE
At nine, I think Faf’s kicking game is pretty much spot-on and I don't feel he’s erratic. The question I have instead with him is: When can he switch from a kicking game to an attacking game? When the Boks want to shift the ball at high tempo, Faf is the man you want at No.9 because he is one of the best when it comes to getting the ball into space.
When it comes to Pollard, he’s not an attacking 10 and is very much a sit-in-the-back and put-up-a-kick type of player. The Boks are not going to be doing anything flash or fancy. They are going to look to apply pressure and then when it’s on, it’s down to Faf and Handre to move it. There is no doubt the Boks have so much attacking power in their backline. I’m a purist and I just want the likes of Makazole Mapimpi and Kurt-Lee Arendse to be given the ball but I'm aware that all-out attack won’t form part of the plan.
ALL BLACK-BOK RIVALRY UNMATCHED
What makes the 101-test rivalry between the All Blacks and Boks so special is that we always measure ourselves against each other. It took us until 1996 to win our first test series in South Africa which underlines the history and legacy. South Africa is such a fantastic rugby nation with really good depth and it’s the same for New Zealand. We may play two very different styles of rugby but the bottom line is that both of them work.
*** Robinson debuted for the All Blacks against England in 1998 and played the last of his three tests in 2001.