Actually not a bad crop of players but don’t see Am in this squad. Is he injured or out of form?
We’re going to be light on wingers now that Arendse and Moodie are both injured, but we have Fassi, Kolbe and Mpimpi. Hooker has some serious gas. No Nohamba either, but for me he is way to small.
Should Rassie risk it and go all youth for this one?
9. Berg
10. Masuka
11. Edwill
12 Fineberg
13 Hooker
14 Fassi
15 Horn
Some positions are weak and that include the locks - we have locks ten times better than Mostert and I think that Goosen yesterday proved he should also be included in the squad - while Mapimpi has beame a defense disaster and is not even remotely the player he was in 2019 - at 33 years of age he is past it and should be in no quad at all. Esterhuizen at center is also a no-no. He always was a fringe player and when tried at starting center always flopped in both defense and attack.
For the Wales test the only playes that will be available are players playing in SA - no players for clubs outside of SA will be available, The same applies to the Portugal test. So who would be in the team will exclude all foreign club players. The only tests falling in the international test window will be the Irish tests - falling in the test window period in July and in th e RC tests against Argentina, Australia and the All Blacks. The only other period applicable is when the European tes window in February and March 2025. In that period if SA play in any ess the SA players playing in foreign clubs will ahve to eb released by the clubs.
So there could eb major changes in the Wales and Portugese tests and I would not even try and get a team together from the list of 35 players supplied by you - th ere are oter that may be seleced being not on your list of players.
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I’d go:
15. Fassi
14. Kolbe
13. Kriel
12. de Allende
11. Edwill vd Merwe
10. Libbok
9. Williams
1. Ox
2. Marx
3. Malherbe
4. Etzebeth
5. PSDT
6. Kwagga
7. Ben Jason Dixon
8. Roos
16. Bongi 17. Mchunu 18. Fouche 19. Moerat 20. Buthelezi 21. Faf 22. Masuku 23. Sacha
None of the English based players are available for the Welsh test despite being in the squad
Yes Am is injured hence not playing in the Challenge Cup final
Dave
You are right about the Japanese Clubs and I was wrong - the rugby season of Japaan Rugby ends in May and restarts in Auguist - so the Japan players should be available. In esense I agree with the team you selected.
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Let’s see what Masuka or Sacha can do….Start either one of the 2 and Libbok of the bench.
No choose your best side against Wales it’s not a time to experiment
Some new blood on the bench that’s it
I hope Rassie don't pick a whole bunch of Rookies like he did in the past and we end up losing to Wales by one point.
I want the fittest and strongest team. I would almost go with Dud and Kriel in the Midfield.
Fassie, Kolbe and Edwill as my back 3.
Pack go with Ox, Bongi, Koch, Malherbe and Mchunu.
Etzebeth and Mostert as locks
Kwagga, PSTD and maybe Pepsi if Roos is not Fit.
I'll put all the youngsters on the bench.
Marx need game time but do you start with him or or do you wait until the Portugal game.
We need to move on from Bongo now
Roos will be fit only has miner concussion which requires a one man sit out
Fuck useless Mostert he needs to be put out to pastures
Play PSDT at lock and start the impressive Ben Jason Dixon at 7
Rassie has apparently already said Marx is starting against Wales - it will be his first game back
What’s the point of playing our WC team against Wales ….as if to win the game. And then play Libbok at 10, who has just proved he has a problem with pressure.
To me we should play the WC team with a few of the most promising youngsters, at most 4. My candidates would be Fassi, Wilco, van Heerden, Roos.
Jordan Hendrikse is also a option at 10…all three candidates have a higher kicking success rate than Libbok…
Actually you will find that Libbok’s kicking success rate is no different to other 10’s out there
You don’t really believe that Dave, you are locked into your narrative.
Roughly half the kicks these guys take would be slotted by schoolboys.
Meaning that the first 50%(roughly) is a given.
So you multiply the remainder by 2 to get their actual kicking success rate.
A stated success rate of 77% becomes (77% - 50)2 = 54%.
That's how I look at it anyway. A kicker that kicks 65% versus one that kicks 70% is actually 10% worse...not 5%.
It’s true Moz go check the stats
Here is my pick then. I will start with a core of experience players and then sprinkle in the rookies
Have to start Malherbe at 3 - best tighthead in the game.
kingcorn
Senior player
2829 posts
Bok 35-man training squad:
Forwards: Phepsi Buthelezi, Eben Etzebeth, Vincent Koch, Bongi Mbonambi, Ntuthuko Mchunu, Ox Nche (all Sharks), Joseph Dweba, Ben-Jason Dixon, Neethling Fouche, Frans Malherbe, Salmaan Moerat, Evan Roos, Andre-Hugo Venter (all Stormers), Pieter-Steph du Toit (Verblitz), Malcolm Marx (Kubota Spears), Franco Mostert (Honda Heat), Kwagga Smith (Blu Revs), Jasper Wiese (Leicester Tigers).
Backs: Jordan Hendrikse, Quan Horn, Morne van den Berg, Edwill van der Merwe (all Lions), Aphelele Fassi, Ethan Hooker, Makazole Mapimpi, Siya Masuku, Grant Williams (all Sharks), Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Manie Libbok (both Stormers), Damian de Allende (Panasonic Wild Knights), Faf de Klerk (Canon Eagles), Andre Esterhuizen (Harlequins), Cheslin Kolbe (Suntory Sungoliath), Jesse Kriel (Canon Eagles), Handre Pollard (Leicester Tigers).