Baby Boks Emphatic Win - Black Gold

I'm really pleased to see that the baby boks finally lifted the trophy. The last time we won was back in 2012. 13 years of almost no success.

The bit that really got me was the force of race quotas. For many years I felt that our rugby is going backwards. Every said that it needs to start at grass roots. The team that fielded had 6 Black players in the pack and in total only 4 white players made it in the starting 15. As a white Afrikaner I will always be bias towards my own people and the fact that we dominated rugby for so long. However, rugby is not just for white Afrikaners but for everyone.

We saw the duds in the past like Moerat and many other player of colour that were there but never gotten any further.

I would often state that to measure a non bias rating of these players is to see how many international contracts they pick up and whether international teams are dusting off their cheque books to sign them. Not to look at how they play in the SA system because it has been diluted and so many players that would take their place have gone abroad to secure their future.

However, what we witness is a beast of a Hooker, some Solid back row stock that is 195cm and 112kg. That doesn't mind the physicality.

I thought England would be the biggest threat for these guys but they dealt with them. I thought their pack would get a win over us, but they didn't

Then we played against New Zealand and when I looked at the size of those South Sea islanders, I thought again, these guys will be dropping like flies, but they didn't. They fronted up and kept NZ under pressure the whole game. We didn't dominate possession but we dominated on the scoreboard. We made more running meters, but we only did the half the amount of passes. This symbols that it was the strong carries and searing line breaks.

Great to see we have actual real talent that are there on merit

So you saying that only 4 white players in starting 15 or 23 with substitutes??

Players of colour have been part of the Springboks for 30 years already. So the above ratio is in favour of Black people.

So I am definitely Not buying that all of those Black and coloured people are merit selections…

But ok it’s to be suspected that players of Colour are being favoured because Apartheid lasted for 46 years….

For sure there is a lot of black and coloured talent and that is a good thing.

But that it’s All hunky dory and all selections are on merit, is a pipe dream….

So until it’s a equal 50/50 in selections, no one can actually say that it’s equal merit selections.

I don’t believe for one moment that not more white players could have been a part of the U 20 Squad…

So therefore Equal Merit Selection, is not 100% there already.

Dave, I thought you would be all over this on which players are there on merit and which players are the next big thing. Might be worth looking at the 2012 baby boks and who ended up with a meddle and can we draw a comparison of which players can help us.

That said, if we were to go by that logic then both England and France should be world champions and their teams should be dominating the world.

Here are a list of former winners

2013 - France - England

2014 - England - Wales (SA 3rd)

2015 - NZ - England

2016 - England - Ireland

2017 - New Zealand - England

2018 - France - England

2019 - France - Australia

2023 - France - Ireland

2024 - England - France

2025 - SA - NZ

It just shows for years we under invested in our youth players. I believe a lot was to do with quotes and having a quota coach that was awful.

Now they brought back a white coach in Foote and added Ackerman. Vermeulen has been doing the rounds and took over from Rassie to run the Mobi unit.

That said, we still had a very strong representation of black and coloured talent who dominated all the teams they played against. Especially England that were runners up.

This is a huge jump from a a few months ago.

That said, I still thing the conditions were in the boks favour. The backs are exceptionally quick and no other team has the pace SA has, but if it was a wet muddy day like in previous tournaments then I think our boys would have come unstuck

Well one thing is for sure that if the 4 white players in the squad were there on merit they were outshone by the black players

The only player I never rated in the side was Erasmus at 13 - he is too small for centre

Cupido and Malgas were far better options at 13 when they were given a run there

The two white locks in Norton and JJ Theron were solid but both not big enough for lock. Theron played 8 for Grey Bloem - both are built to play as loosies

Albie Bester at 12 was strong nothing flashy

Jooste was phenomenal on the wing, Williams on the other wing was very good as was Mentoe at 15

Moyo at 10 has a good boot on him, directs well - not very creative

Pead at 9 could start for the Boks today. The back up was good as well

Three of the props were white and all were very solid as was the black loosehead

The black hooker is a future star

Reserve lock Grobelaar is a big boy but needs to use his bulk more

The three black loosies were outstanding - all three will play pro rugby. Batho at 7 is a wrecking ball, the 8 is an absolute athlete and the 6 is a true fetcher

I like Romao off the bench as well, strong flanker with great battle stats

The black players dominated and there are some real stars of the future in that group

Thanks Dave, I definitely have to leave my bias at the door on this one. Agree that the Hooker and the back row are definitely pro players.

Batho, he is a monster for somebody that is only 19. 195 cm and 114kg. He is a real number 7. Great wrecking ball player that can put players under pressure. I saw a clip of him binding for a scrum and you can see he is ready to do battle. That intensity is great. Reminds of the story I heard about Beast that use to start shaking every time he got ready for a scrum. His mind was really on the battle.

The 8 and 6, not sure about them but none the less. Agree on the white locks, not big enough but SA did the job.

I have questions about the 10, I think the White 10 is better. Then definitely the centres were not great, neither black or white.

Pead should be with the boks now, just to take it all in. That guy is insanely good and beat Dupont stats in the tournament. The only difference is that Dupont is bulkier than him and has an insane engine in tracking play and always ending up in the right place.

So I guess that the top players for me that had boks written all over them were about 2 black players and 1 Coloured. None of the white players impressed me that I would go, yes, that is a bok.

The black Hooker is right up there too. Not the tallest, but over 110kg already and found all of his jumpers and has incredible mobility and speed for a hooker. Could be ready in 2 years time given they will be 21 and 22 by then. So it is critically how they are managed over the next two years.

I would hope they get at least a few URC games this year and then find there way to become starters in the next couple of years or at least be on the bench.

As for them being springboks now, I would wait and see if they can cut it.

Some players will take longer

Disagree the white 10 was very ordinary

Moyo is good but doubt he has the tools to stand out as a pro unless he offers more on attack. He is a big boy

Mark my word the 8 is pure class - has such pace and is one hell of an athlete

The 6 is stacked with muscle and good over the ball, pretty handy with ball in hand to

Batho the 7 is from my school - he has a bright future - has already played for the Sharks senior side this year - Plumtree stupidly played him at lock

What a delusional take. Quotas are quotas and the OP is more deflecting than the Trump administration.

But what? None of them have quality, they will not have a professional career unless they are accepted in the North. That is how it is. Fast forwarding a few years up and see how many of them have secured a professional contract and where. Unless the north exhibits charity once again to try to save the failed institution that is SARU, the number is going to be low. Fact is that SA rugby can not train quota players, it is part of SA rugby and will not change for decades. Bear with it.

Trad you fucking idiot

"Batho the 7 is from my school - he has a bright future - has already played for the Sharks senior side this year - Plumtree stupidly played him at lock.."

Will be called "Dud" in a few years...watch this space.