Rugby Championship: Pundits discuss the state of New Zealand, Australia and South Africa
Friday 17 July 2015 12:55, UK
The 2015 Rugby Championship will give us an early clue on how New Zealand, Australia and South Africa are shaping up for the World Cup.
The three teams have won six of the seven previous World Cups between them and New Zealand – who triumphed in 2011 in their own backyard – are the bookies' favourites to lift the trophy on October 31 at Twickenham.
A shortened Championship, which also includes Argentina, means that the sides will each face each other only once instead of the usual home and away format. And while we are not expecting them to show their full hand, all four countries will be looking to fine-tune their world Cup preparations.
Here, Sean Fitzpatrick, Michael Lynagh and Thinus Delport give their verdict on the state of their respective nations and what they hope to see ahead of the World Cup...
Sean Fitzpatrick on New Zealand
The 2015 World Cup will be the most competitive one ever. Teams are going to need depth in all positions and I am very happy where New Zealand are at in terms of their depth.
They have back-up in most positions which is going to be key as the attrition of the Rugby Championship and then the World Cup is going to take its toll on everyone. I can’t see any team getting through without injuries and they are going to have to use all of their squad and that is where teams are going to come undone.
If New Zealand lose someone like Aaron Smith, who is the best No 9 in world rugby at the moment, then they have someone like TJ Perenara to step in. The same at No 10 – where we have Dan Carter, Beauden Barrett, Colin Slade and Lima Sopoaga, who has been outstanding for the Highlanders.
I think the main focus for the Rugby Championship will be to get their senior players some game time – the likes of Carter, Richie McCaw, Kieran Read and Sam Whitelock – the guys who have not played much.
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I think the coaching staff have seen enough in terms of how they want to play the game and will take a lot from the differing tactics of the Hurricanes and the Highlanders. The Hurricanes look to break down defences by having ball runners throughout the field and the Highlanders showed that playing without the ball is pretty good effective too.
Players to watch: I am looking forward to seeing how Aaron Smith performs in the Rugby Championship – he was thrilling in the Super Rugby competition and has worked really hard on his kicking game; the same goes for Ben Smith, who has also worked hard on his kicking game, which has made his all-round game much better too.
Waisake Naholo is a very exciting player and I think he could be the star of the World Cup. He reminds me of Sitiveni Sivivatu in the way he plays and his finishing is truly phenomenal. Ma’a Nonu has had a wonderful Super Rugby tournament – probably his best yet and I think he has really matured as a player and as a person.
All in all I think New Zealand are in very good shape. The success of the Highlanders and the Hurricanes in the Super Rugby competition would have given them a lot of confidence and enthusiasm and I think that enthusiasm will be contagious heading in the Rugby Championship
On Argentina: At World Cup time they have always been there and performed well. I expect them to be really competitive, but not sure they have the depth which will be crucial.
On Australia: They may be a little concerned how the Waratahs were beaten by the Highlanders but they have talent to burn in the backs. If they can secure enough first-phase ball, then they will be dangerous. They also have two of the best No 7s in world Rugby in David Pocock and Michael Hooper. I think their coach Michael Cheika will be pretty happy with where they are at.
On South Africa: They have a few injuries and Duane Vermeulen could be a huge issue for them. Jean de Villiers has made an amazing turnaround for them and is so important for them in terms of leadership. Traditionally South Africa are always strong at World Cups and I think they will be looking at the Rugby Championship to try out a few combinations.
Thinus Delport on SA
The amount of front-line players who are out injured is a real concern for Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer. Duane Vermeulen is the latest injury concern and the biggest one too. He has undergone an operation to sort out his neck and there are serious concerns over whether he will be available the world Cup.
Willem Alberts is another player who is not 100 per cent fit. Without Vermeulen and Alberts, the Springboks lose a lot of physicality – South Africa have a lot of strength of depth in the back row but they added that extra dimension to their play.
There has been a lot of talk about Warren Whiteley getting his chance in the back row in Vermeulen's absence but I don't think he is the right fit. He has had a great Super Rugby season for the Lions but the Lions' free spirited way of playing is totally different to the more structured style of the Springboks play – which unfortunately does not play to Whiteley's strengths.
He adds something different to the No 8 position and is more of your Kieran Read style of player in terms of the skills and pace he brings off the back of the scrum. However, in terms of the physicality, well, Duane Vermeulen is totally unique.
South Africa’s other big concern is lock – especially at No 5. Flip van der Merwe is not available, Andries Bekker is not available due to contractual issues, and Pieter-Steph du Toit is injured. At the moment it is all down to Victor Matfield, although there is some good news as Lood de Jager is on the comeback trail after injury.
The focus will be on getting game time and getting the team confident in the plays and in the combinations. Heyneke Meyer will want to get as many players as possible confident in his game plan and will also be trying to avoid any more injuries.
The World Cup is a four-year process so this should be the final steps in that process. Getting confidence away from this is important too – wins away from home in Australia and in that second game against Argentina in Buenos Aires is important. Our last memory of touring in November was pretty disappointing with losses to Ireland and Wales.
Players to watch: Midfield is another area of concern, especially outside centre where SA are struggling with the same challenges that England have got – although England seem to be a little more settled with the emergence of Jonathan Joseph.
Jean de Villiers has made a remarkable recovery but still needs game time to get him back to his best. Damian de Allende will be one to watch for SA at 12 and Jesse Kriel could be the answer at 13. Kriel has been playing full-back for the Bulls but against the World XV he was impressive in the No 13 jersey – but the Rugby Championship and the World Cup means that the intensity goes up a few notches and the young rookie will really need to adapt quickly.
Jannie du Plessis has been carrying the Boks at tighthead for some years now but it is good to see a guy like Vincent Koch come through – Frans Malherbe is another man who when he came back from injury performed well upfront for the Stormers. Meyer will be a bit more relieved at the depth we have a tighthead.
On New Zealand: They are again the team to beat and have so much strength in depth which is going to be key for the Rugby Championship and the World Cup. The biggest question for them is who will play at fly-half.
On Australia: The return of David Pocock to the Wallabies will be a huge boost. He has been out injured for them for so long but made such a huge impact with the Brumbies. I think they are in a much stronger position than they were last year and will be very competitive.
On Argentina: I have not seen a lot of their players but they will be tough at home. With so many of their players playing in the NH it is tough for them to prepare as a team but they will competitive and combative – especially at the breakdown and at the set pieces.
Michael Lynagh on Australia
Michael Cheika was appointed two days before Australia’s tour to the UK last year which was not ideal but he has now had time to look at his players and work out what he wants to do. Now he has had proper access to the players and it is time for him to put his strategies and theories into practice.
It is going to be really interesting to see what combinations Cheika goes with – Australia have a lot of players at 9,10 and 12 and what he does with them is going to be key. Will he experiment a little bit and try out some different combinations or will he go all out and focus on getting the home wins over South Africa and New Zealand?
This is a good opportunity to build some confidence by getting one over these teams going into the World Cup.
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Players to watch: I am looking forward to seeing what Will Skelton can do. He is a big fellow and certainly attracts attention. I think he really adds something to the Wallaby pack. He has been playing really well this season and his work rate is impressive which I think is down to his fitness.
He is carrying well and defending well too, while also doing what he needs to do at scrum time and in the lineout. I feel for the props who have to lift him at lineout time though!
I am also seeing what Cheika does with Michael Hooper and David Pocock. They both play No 7 but in the Super Rugby campaign they were used totally differently. Hooper was used almost like an extra back while Pocock used in that traditional No 7 role.
It will be interesting to see who he opts for and how he plays them and how that fits in with the rest of the team. Tevita Kuridrani is a big player in the centre for Australia too – he was injured on the tour last year but I think he will play a key role going forward.
There is a bit of talk about some players not being in form – I am not too worried about that. I think I would have been more concerned if they were at their peak in March because you cannot maintain that and I think Cheika will be working hard on getting the best out of his players at the right time.
On Argentina: Their perceived weapon over the years has been their scrum which I thought creaked a little last year. They have a few young players coming through – especially in the backs which could be very interesting. They are a little unknown at this stage which is always a bit dangerous.
On South Africa: They have some really good players but it all depends on how they want to play. That will become very clear as soon as we see who is playing at fly-half for them.
They have a big forward pack who like to try and dominate physically and big backs who like to do the same. But they have options with some real play makers like Handre Pollard and Wille le Roux. Damien de Allende is another one who can play a bit.
On New Zealand: They are favourites for this tournament and the World Cup but they have to overcome some historical facts. No one has ever won a World cup back-to-back and they have never won a World Cup outside of New Zealand, plus there team is aging a bit – they are still very good though.
They just have so many good players and a lot of depth to call upon.
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