Kriel leads Boks despite Kolisi inclusion for Eden Park showdown against All Blacks

The problems at No 8 reared up again this week as Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus was forced to make a late change to the starting lineup to face the All Blacks at Eden Park.

Jean-Luc du Preez was set to start but a knee injury sustained in training on Wednesday ruled him out of the round-three Rugby Championship clash.

The injury is significant, according to Erasmus, and has probably ruled him out of the remainder of the Rugby Championship.

Instead, Siya Kolisi will start at No 8, reprising the role he performed at Ellis Park against the Wallabies last month.

Kolisi though, is still recovering from a knee injury he sustained in the aforementioned match, which forced him out of the Cape Town clash against Australia a week later.

Du Preez must be wondering what he has done to anger the rugby gods, after suffering a similar setback last month. He was originally named to start at No 8 against the Wallabies in Cape Town, but withdrew on the morning of the match with a stomach bug.

The upshot is that the Boks go into the biggest game of the year, trying to defend the Freedom Cup, with a great player possibly carrying an injury in a crucial position.

Kolisi won’t captain the side either – that falls to centre Jesse Kriel – suggesting that Kolisi’s evening in Auckland might be short.

The official reason is that internally Kriel was already named as skipper on Monday. That was when Du Preez was set to start. When things changed though, Kolisi was called up and Kriel was retained as captain to keep disruptions to a minimum.

“Siya was touch and go for the match earlier in the week after picking up a niggle a few weeks ago, and we didn’t want to risk him unnecessarily,” Erasmus said.

“But with Jean-Luc du Preez having picked up a niggle at training this week, Siya was the obvious choice to slot in at No 8.

“At that stage, Jesse had already been told he would be the captain, and it was only fair for us to keep things that way.”

It seems an odd decision, given that the entire squad understands that Kolisi is the captain. Kriel would surely not have minded giving up the metaphorical armband to a man he has played under more than 50 times.

Who leads the side in a team full of leaders might be a small detail, and Kolisi will no doubt act like a leader on the field anyway, but small details win tight matches.

Captaining the Boks at Eden Park is a great honour. Kolisi is playing, should his record and standing not have allowed him that honour?

Yet the decision seems to have come from Kolisi himself, which would be in keeping with his character and selfless nature by putting the team first.

“The suggestion (to retain Kriel as captain) came from Siya, and the team accepted it,” Erasmus said.

So, out of this confusion, another suspicion arises – is Kolisi even going to start? Or will he be a late withdrawal as well?

When Kolisi injured his knee at Ellis Park, the prognosis a few days later was that he was out for at least four weeks. He wasn’t initially selected for Eden Park either, adding to the evidence that he is not 100% fit.

Erasmus admitted Kolisi was “touch and go” earlier in the week.

Only those on the inner circle will know the exact situation, but this era of Bok rugby has never been one to play team selection mind games. They’ve usually been clear about the personnel they choose for any given assignment.

From the outside, piecing together the available information, it does feel like there is some slight cloak and dagger at play.

Backline consistency

Despite some juggling with the forwards – locks RG Snyman and Franco Mostert were omitted altogether while Jan-Hendrik Wessels is reserve hooker – the backline has a settled feel.

In all, 12 of the players who started the 18-12 win over the All Blacks in Cape Town last September, will start again in Auckland, including the entire backline.

Grant Williams and Handrè Pollard are at halfback, Damian de Allende and Kriel at centre, with Cheslin Kolbe and Canan Moodie on the wings. Willie le Roux is preferred at fullback over Aphelele Fassi and Damian Willemse.

Le Roux is a calm presence who organises the back three defence, offers intelligent attacking skill and brings an educated left boot to the game.

The only question mark is whether physically his 36-year-old body can cope with what will be a physically demanding match.

On the bench the young Ethan Hooker will cover centre and wing. It will be his second Test appearance and a huge step up from his debut against Italy early this year.

Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Cobus Reinach complete the backline reserves in a 5-3 split between forwards and backs.

“We selected the best possible team we could for the match, and many of these players have done the job for us before against them (the All Blacks,” Erasmus said.

“This is going to be a completely different challenge to what we’ve faced against them in the last two years, with the match being hosted in New Zealand, and also at a venue where they hold a fantastic record.

“That said, we’ve been working hard on the detail we wanted to iron out following the matches against the Wallabies since arriving in Auckland, so it’s now up to us to implement our plans and deliver a performance that we can be proud of.”

All Black changes

All Black coach Scott Robertson is under some pressure after losing to Argentina in Buenos Aires two weeks ago.

He also has problems at scrumhalf with Cam Roigard, Cortez Ratima and Noah Hotham all out injured.

The flame-haired Finlay Christie starts at scrumhalf, with Kyle Preston ready to make his debut from the bench.

“All of our debutants this year have earned their shot, and Kyle’s no different,” Robertson said.

“He’s a smart, composed halfback who backs himself and drives the game. That’s what we’ll need against a side like South Africa.”

In a surprising call, wing Sevu Reece has been axed, with Emoni Narawa coming in for his first clash against the Boks.

The simple explanation is that Narawa is better under the high ball. And with rain expected at Eden Park, the Boks are likely to pepper the back three with contestable kicks.

“His aerial skills, his edge defence, his backfield coverage,” were Robertson’s reasons for picking Narawa.

“Just for those things that we know are coming. It’s a great opportunity for him and gives us a good balance in that back three.”

Flank Ardie Savea will earn his 100th Test cap, marking a significant milestone for one of the greatest All Blacks in history.

Erasmus took time to praise the great looseforward: “Playing 100 Tests is one of the most special milestones a player can achieve, and we’d like to congratulate Ardie for reaching this feat.

“He’s been a true servant to New Zealand rugby, and he deserves all the recognition that comes with that. It also doesn’t get more special than playing at their fortress in such a massive game.” DM

Teams:

New Zealand: 15-Will Jordan, 14-Emoni Narawa, 13-Billy Proctor, 12-Jordie Barrett (vice-captain), 11-Rieko Ioane, 10-Beauden Barrett, 9-Finlay Christie, 8-Wallace Sititi, 7-Ardie Savea (vice-captain), 6-Simon Parker, 5-Tupou Vaa’i, 4-Scott Barrett (captain), 3-Fletcher Newell, 2-Codie Taylor, 1-Ethan de Groot

Replacements: 16-Samisoni Taukei’aho, 17-Tamaiti Williams, 18-Tyrel Lomax, 19-Fabian Holland, 20-Du’Plessis Kirifi, 21-Kyle Preston, 22-Quinn Tupaea, 23-Damian McKenzie.

South Africa: 15-Willie le Roux, 14-Cheslin Kolbe, 13-Jesse Kriel, 12-Damian de Allende, 11-Canan Moodie, 10-Handre Pollard, 9-Grant Williams, 8-Siya Kolisi, 7-Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6-Marco van Staden, 5-Ruan Nortje, 4-Eben Etzebeth, 3-Thomas du Toit, 2-Malcolm Marx, 1-Ox Nche.

Replacements: 16-Jan-Hendrik Wessels, 17-Boan Venter, 18-Wilco Louw, 19-Lood de Jager, 20-Kwagga Smith, 21-Cobus Reinach, 22-Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 23-Ethan Hooker.