Former Manu Samoa No 10 and freelance rugby scribe Campbell Burnes believes the All Blacks were not that bad and the Springboks not that good in September’s tightly contested Tests in the Republic.
There was much hyperbole around the Springboks in the wake of their 2-0 series sweep over the All Blacks in South Africa.
Those two victories were the basis of the Boks’ Rugby Championship success, and fair play to them. They know how to win tight Test matches, how to close out games under pressure. They have a canny coach in Rassie Erasmus and many big-game players such as lock Eben Etzebeth, captain/loose forward Siya Kolisi and hooker Malcolm Marx.
But here’s the thing: they are not in the same class as Nick Mallett’s 1998 team, which won its first Tri Nations and racked up 17 straight victories, nor Peter de Villiers’ 2009 team, which mastered the ELVs and cut a swathe through most opponents, including (thrice) the All Blacks.
Last season, the Boks would have toppled out of the Rugby World Cup at the quarter-finals stage if Cheslin Kolbe had not run like a cheetah to charge down a conversion. They won a final mired in controversy by one point. Incredibly, they also won their RWC semi by a point. That spoke of resilience, not dominance. Then Ireland upset them in July, squaring an epic series 1-1.
The Boks were poor for much of the first half against the All Blacks in Johannesburg. That they found a way to finish with the chocolates spoke as much for their ‘Bomb Squad’ and All Blacks’ tactical naivety as it did a rugby titan flexing its muscle.
The second Test in Cape Town may have ended in a draw had the All Blacks kicked their goals. I know what you’re thinking: that’s a lot of ‘what ifs.’
But the All Blacks were the better team for more than 100 minutes of the series. The forwards ripped into their work and were physical, combative and effective. The execution of the backs and their kicking let them down in the latter stages of both Tests.
It does suit the narratives of some New Zealand rugby fans to say that this is a truly great Boks team that had to play out of its skin to beat the All Blacks. Not so. The Boks had to play about 50-60 minutes of good rugby over both Tests. That is highly unusual. Most teams do, however, need to play out of their skins to lower the All Blacks.
But this is not a great All Blacks team. They have had severe growing pains under Scott Robertson and look unclear in exactly how they need to be attacking. They will, one would think and hope, get better. By next year, when the Boks will come to New Zealand for two Tests, the tables may be turned. What chance a 2-0 Boks sweep? It would seem unlikely, even if Tony Brown transforms the attacking mindset of the Boks. Maybe there will be more of a gauge by 2026 when the All Blacks will launch an eight-match tour of South Africa, including three Tests.
In the meantime, there is no need to surrender to despair, bemoaning the exit of South Africa from Super Rugby – that was SARU’s choice – or gnashing your teeth and imploring NZR to allow All Blacks to be picked from overseas, just like those two-time world champion Springboks. Have some patience. The Boks are very good, but not great, just as the All Blacks were not as bad as their record heading into the northern tour would suggest.
Written by Campbell Burnes.
