It has not been the prettiest of years for the Springboks. They have conceded a record number of tries this year and their defense has been questioned numerous times, but what is more worrying, is the fact that one of our most celebrated players have been the one seemingly left wanting.
The guys from RugbyXV has put together a video of recent tests in 2010, and although most of us have discussed the defensive failings in the Springbok team, it has been surprising to see how IRB player of the Year for 2007, Bryan Habana has been the one found out more often than not.
The problem with this is complex however. One can easily blame the player for his failings, but if you look at the video you can also rightly question the defensive structures or plan and how its implemented, and also if the Springbok coaching staff are aware of the problem and if so, why it was obviously not addressed. (It happened twice against Ireland last weekend too)
For one, a player will be too aware of tendencies if it is pointed out to him (which suggests it has not since he continued to make the same mistakes) and two, defensive structures need to ensure that players trust the guys on his inside and outside which is also based on the evidence, clearly not the case.
Questions then need to be asked on who decides on these structures, and the reasons behind it. If the reasoning behind this is sound, then we need to look to the player and find out why he is failing.
The main thing is, it can be fixed, the question however remains, why wasn’t it…
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November 10th, 2010 at 10:50 am
Bit of an unfair heading there, Habana was not to blame for those tries.
That said, he does need some rest/reflection time, he has definitely lost his spark of late.
November 10th, 2010 at 10:51 am
Reply to Ollie @ 10:50 am:
Ok, maybe the one were he fell over his own player was a bit doff
November 10th, 2010 at 11:24 am
The main thing is, it can be fixed, the question however remains, why wasn’t it…
====
Easy answer: The WP defensive coach does not want to be in the setup, and The Dick has no clue.
November 10th, 2010 at 11:26 am
Actually some of this footage has been snaffled off ‘Kafes chalkboard’ where he showed all this and more in how to expose the Boks out wide due to their poor defensive lines…
November 10th, 2010 at 11:31 am
Habana has shown a tendency to rush out of the defensive line this season. If one even looks at NZ backline moves or even Aus ones where Habana is on the end he often rushes his opponent or the line between his direct opponent and the carrier in the hope of forcing an intercept pass.
He is not a defensively frail player.
If one looks at his tackle on the man monster Mosi Tui’ali in 2007 Crusaders vs Bulle where he stops the carrier and then drives him back you realize that habana is a superb defender.
However, as someone else has said here, defence has a lot to do with attitude. Everyone has the ability (Breyten Paulse stops Joe Roff two meters from the line as an example 2002) it’s about the execution that matters. There needs to be an attitude involved and there is a skill to being a good defender. We play a rush defence. In a rush the farthest out defender is the anchor of the rush / umbrella… it is a difficult role to play and it appears that under Piet Habana has been uncertain of how to time his rush and sweep onto the defender. The problem is opponents have timed passes and have decided how to pass to nullify the risk. his means effectively that whereas in the past our defence has forced “come to Jesus” passes due to incessant pressure it now gives ball carriers the time to “think” about how to deal with Habana as a threat…
So it’s not just the individual player’s failing but one of the whole team as a whole.
Habana’s poor wide defence is just a symptom of generally poor defensive efforts.
The last two Irish tries occurred on Haban’s side of the field and can be partly attributed to him being out of position.
If I were a stirring man I’d say his defensive frailties developed once he left the Bulls
November 10th, 2010 at 11:32 am
Reply to Boertjie @ 11:24 am: Well I believe The Dick is in charge of the backline and if we go on his performance at S14 he is what his surname says.
November 10th, 2010 at 11:35 am
Reply to Boertjie @ 11:24 am:
at WP he does the same kak! The players around him saves his arse!
November 10th, 2010 at 11:35 am
Reply to DavidS @ 11:31 am:
Well said old chap!
November 10th, 2010 at 11:37 am
Almost all the clips on the video show and overlap were Habana has to rush to kill the ball.
The problem is not in the single players but in the whole backlines defensive structures.
Habana had no problem with defense in the Stormers side in this years S14, Why? because they had defensive structure inplace and he had Jacques Fourie there which we all know is the jingpin on defense in teh Stormers, WP and Boks backline.
Stupid article.
November 10th, 2010 at 11:37 am
Reply to Jacques(Bunny) @ 11:32 am:
what do you mean: Muir!?
November 10th, 2010 at 11:38 am
Reply to JT @ 11:35 am:
“at WP he does the same kak! The players around him saves his arse!”
That’s why rugby is a team sport my fiend played by 22 players on the day.
November 10th, 2010 at 11:39 am
Reply to JT @ 11:37 am:
November 10th, 2010 at 11:39 am
Reply to Jacques(Bunny) @ 11:39 am: Sorry his name!!
November 10th, 2010 at 11:40 am
Reply to Jacques(Bunny) @ 11:38 am:
I am confused…
Are you saying he has the same problems at WP
Reply to Jacques(Bunny) @ 11:37 am:
Or not?
November 10th, 2010 at 11:40 am
The heat in Zambia is getting to my kak spelling as well
November 10th, 2010 at 11:41 am
Reply to Morné @ 11:40 am: For you to be confused is normal Morne….don’t worry take it day for day
November 10th, 2010 at 11:44 am
guys and if you watch the clip, please do not mention that gladiator Jean Divs being slow on the line everytime he defends at 13 channel.
Backline is straight except our hero lags behind. So no, not Habanas fault, but what can we do, surely not point a finger at Mr perfect?
Hell I annoy myself with these rants against sicknote. Will stop now i promise.
November 10th, 2010 at 11:45 am
Reply to Morné @ 11:40 am:
I am – his attempts at intercepts is dangerous, if the team want him to go for it the cover defense plan must be in place to save the situation when it does not come off. This does not look to be the case.
All comes down to what the COACH wants from him, for example I have a player that reads the game well and is a master at intercepts BUT he tries it too many times and it hurts the team in defense.
what do you do with him? tell him he can NEVER go for it? Or tell him to go for it and cover his arse with other players having to double in defense? Or drop him if he goes for it and it doesn’t work…
November 10th, 2010 at 11:46 am
Reply to Morné @ 11:40 am: What I am saying is rugby is played by 22 players on the day and in today’s game structures make or break a player.
There are a big shift in Habana’s play just from moving from the Bulls to the Cape. One player can not be put on the block anymore.
Pienaar did three major flops on Saturday though the so called experts say he was brilliant.
I feel sorry for wings and fullbacks for they are always on the chopping block when defensive structures in a team are kak
November 10th, 2010 at 11:51 am
Reply to its counterrevolutionary to critique any decisions made by boks brainstrust @ 11:44 am:
I agree that sicknote has his failings – but with all the injuries at the moment he is doing a job for the Bokke even if it is only a “stop-gap” job.
And he is doing it well enough for now.
I would rather have the following back-line for the WC2011 if all are fit:
9. Du Preez
10. Lambie/MSteyn (want to see more of Lambie at test level)
11. Basson/Habana
12. FSteyn
13. Fourie
14. JPP/Basson
15. ??Zane/Viljoen/Daniller/Lambie??
November 10th, 2010 at 11:54 am
Reply to JT @ 11:51 am:
basically what I am saying is that SA’s BEST midfield IMO is
Frans Steyn and Fourie with JdJ as back-up.
November 10th, 2010 at 11:54 am
Reply to Jacques(Bunny) @ 11:37 am:
Agreed… as Kafe said with examples of both wings (JDV being the other at the time)… by the time the AUS/NZ backs had got to the wings they’d drawn in the poor Bok defensive line leaving one defender on two incoming… what else to do for Habana…
What he did show also was how this could only work ‘sometimes’ with Brian as he had the speed to double-back…
Sure enough it happened every week after that again…
November 10th, 2010 at 11:54 am
Reply to Jacques(Bunny) @ 11:46 am:
too right. The only way you can blame a wing is if he A) lags behind on defensive line or B) goes up and then misses the tackle.
But an overlap on the wing suggests
a) the 10/12/13 did not go up evenly
b) the opposition pulled in our 10/12/13 with angle running or deft passing (foreign concepts in SA centre play)
c) no one fulfilled role of sweeper fast enough. this happens when mostly on counter when our 7/8 was waiting to take up ball for phase 309 and then is out of possie when he needs to sweep the line.
November 10th, 2010 at 12:00 pm
Reply to JT @ 11:51 am:
Yeh I agree on that backline.
Hougaard and Pienaar will be on bench as impact players so I’d suggest we use them in these roles already.
We also agree that the 15 jersey is by no means a given yet we are not really experimenting there are we?
Its because we assume Steyn will play there with jean/de jong partnering Fourie – a decision I disagree with strongly.
November 10th, 2010 at 12:04 pm
Reply to its counterrevolutionary to critique any decisions made by boks brainstrust @ 12:00 pm:
“Hougaard and Pienaar”
Not if RJ is fit… and definitely not if Smit or BDP are on the bench and Roly-poly not in the 22…
November 10th, 2010 at 9:40 pm
JT @ 11:45 – is a master at intercepts BUT he tries it too many times and it hurts the team in defense.
I agree. Habs is trying too hard to score tries for his personal “form”, that he is letting the team down. He needs some Rest & Reflection.
JT @11:51 – 12. FSteyn
He is a natural 12 ……and JdV is getting on a bit.
November 11th, 2010 at 3:26 am
Something that was quite obvious during the 3N games.
Analysed and pointed out by Aus TV.
Makes it to the SA analysts 2 months later.
Question is” Will the Bok coach get to this before next year?
November 11th, 2010 at 3:28 am
And why no “hindsight is 20/20 posts”?
November 11th, 2010 at 3:29 am
Or perhaps, “We covered half their backline, so the glass must be half full”
November 11th, 2010 at 3:33 am
I think we may put the argument that Peter de Villiers is not qualified to be an international rugby coach to rest now.
The only real question remaining is how to correct the mistake.
November 11th, 2010 at 3:37 am
I hope they preserved the Bok coach selection and interview process from 2007. One day it will be of real historical significance.
Just how did Peter de Villiers place ahead of Chester Williams?
November 11th, 2010 at 8:04 am
Reply to Timeo Danaos et dona ferentes @ 3:28 am:
Ollie hasn’t seen the thread yet…
Reply to Timeo Danaos et dona ferentes @ 3:37 am:
Even worse… ahead of Alistair Coetzee
November 11th, 2010 at 9:11 am
Reply to DavidS @ 8:04 am:
Uh, read comment #1 on this thread
Reply to Timeo Danaos et dona ferentes @ 3:28 am:
Easily, I understand the implications of the term hindsight and when it can be applied
November 11th, 2010 at 10:05 am
Reply to Ollie @ 9:11 am:
It’s a pity we don’t have a sarcasm smilie… sarcasm is such a beautiful form of humour… it takes real intelligence to pick it up… and when someone does not…
November 11th, 2010 at 10:10 am
Reply to DavidS @ 10:05 am:
Nice side step