Rugby on July Day

Should be a cracking final...

Me thinks S15 results are a reflection of what's to happen in TRI-NATIONS and RWC.
NZ and AUS to dominate.
Sorry to say but SA (PDV & Co) coaching staff seem to be out of touch with the modern trend of play.
Criticism of SBW's ball handling skills; maybe his family eating scrambled egg off PDV face this morning.

Now that the South African participation in the Super 15 has ended it is time to turn our attention to the World Cup.

It is not accidental that I have not mentioned the Tri-Nations as this competition is the biggest non-event of 2011. NOBODY will be particularly keen to risk or reveal anything. Hopefully South Africa will put its strongest combinations out for the home legs and rest key players for the away legs. Let's wait and see.......

Nevertheless, and despite the gloom amongst South African fans at present, there is plenty to be optimistic about. So let's look at the facts :

1.) The early exit from Super 15 for the Bulls, Sharks and Stormers buys South African players a vital rest period that the top NZ players ( in particular ) are not going to have.

2.) SA fans seem to continually overlook one vital fact : When you play the Crusaders you are effectively playing the All Blacks as not too many positions will be filled by players outside of that franchise. On the other hand - Springbok talent is spread much more broadly between the Bulls, Sharks, Stormers & Cheetahs.

3.) Obviously SA needs to harness that talent as a collective and use it effectively. Regrettably SA fans immediately point to the coaching staff and ASSUME they are not up to it. Well, I have noted plenty of subtle appointments in the last few months that suggest we are capable of putting an effective overall playing and management team into the field.

4.) An interesting point regarding SA teams which I have picked up on is this : We definitely lack the ability to CONSISTENTLY go out week in and week out and produce at the highest level. But we have always had the ability to produce selected 'do or die' efforts when the need arises. The best example of this mindset is to refer you all to the recent Bulls/Sharks clash where both teams delivered an exceptional level of committment which few Super 15 opponents would have been able to withstand.

Winning a world Cup is a process - There are 7 successive matches to be won where the intensity builds from Match 1 to Match 7. Delivering the most intense performance in Match 2 and 3 is not going to do it.

The biggest task facing our national side is to meld the differing playing styles into one coherent effort. We have already improved out of sight in tricky areas such as winning in New Zealand. Furthermore we will not have the almost intolerable weight of expectation that the home side is going to have to bear.

It is also becoming apparent that, despite what the cynics would have us believe, we will choose a squad based on merit.

So -despite not being a believer insofar as a South African Super 15 or Tri-Nations win is concerned - I am optimistic that we are very capable of lifting the World Cup again.

If simply picking favourites was the way to go why do our bookmakers survive?

Crusaders 1/1 -3 with sportingbet looks a decent bet(tu)

Looks good to me Bob. There are only 2 things standing between the Crusaders winning another Super Trophy and that is Genia and Cooper.

If the Crusaders do to the Reds scrum what they did to the Stormers scrum it will be one way traffic. I haven't seen a scrum taken apart like that for a very long time.

This site is called African Betting Clan? Right? So let's consider some betting issues for a moment.

Two short weeks ago you could have got as much 22/10 about the Crusaders as you wanted. Now you will probably struggle to get 7/10.

This has probably been one of the better trading/profit opportunities of the year if you factor in the short timeframe.

Mugs like myself have sweated through w-e-e-k-s of tough matches since taking/not taking the 4/1 available after the 'draw' against the Hurricanes in week 2. I could have kept my powder dry and jumped in a fortnight ago with fewer imponderables and a quick turnaround albeit at reduced odds.......but that's betting!

gotta hand it to the crusaders this year... i dont think they have played a home game (earthquakes)..so beating all n sundry on the road is some achievement so far... i wouldnt bet against them in the final!