South Africa v Italy - Teams and predictions
PREVIEW: The second of the two-Test series between South Africa and Italy promises to be a humdinger following the Azzurri’s brave display against the world champions in Pretoria last weekend.
The Boks made wholesale changes (11) to their starting line-up for their rematch against the Italians following their 42-24 victory at Loftus Versfeld.
Head coach Rassie Erasmus also named three potential debutants on the bench in Asenathi Ntlabakanye, Cobus Wiese, and Ethan Hooker.
Italy head coach Gonzalo Quesada made five changes to his outfit, most notably scrumhalf Alessandro Garbisi replacing the slightly more experienced Alessandro Fusco to partner with Giacomo De Re.
Despite their 18-point win, the South Africans were displeased by their overall display, especially during the second half, which Italy won 21-14.
Whilst the Boks dominated the scrum battle, they struggled at line-out time, conceding 25 percent of their ball, and lost three consecutive throw-ins at the start of the second half.
The Italians also scored a magnificent maul try, which looked almost too easy as the Boks had little to no answer to counter them in an area that’s usually their strong suit.
Salmaan Moerat, who will take the captain’s armband from Jesse Kriel this week, admitted that the Boks weren’t happy with their line-out efforts, that maul try.
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“The line-outs that we lost mainly came down to our standards.
“We won’t change much, but we weren’t particularly happy with our standards.
“Whether that’s an overthrow or not a proper [line-out] lift, or just our speed on the ground.
“We looked hard at ourselves this week on what we can improve on, and the line-outs were one aspect that we looked at.
“As a Springbok pack, we pride ourselves on our overall set-piece game.
“It was tough for us [in the stands] to see, but we’re looking to rectify it this weekend.”
Moerat added: “It’s tough for any team to concede a maul try, but more so for a Springbok team.
“If you look at a Bok team, the outside opinion is that you’d expect them to dominate a maul whether it’s attacking or defensive.
“That was hard on us as a pack of forwards.
“We looked hard at ourselves, and that’s the only thing you can do, and it’s something you can control.
“We’ll be looking forward to this opportunity to rectify that.”
Assistant coach Mzwandile Stick shared his thoughts on the three potential debutants and how he thinks they will fare in their first rodeo in the Green and Gold.
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“In terms of some of the players getting an opportunity, especially those who haven’t played for a while, it’s something that we plan in our system to ensure we get a strong squad together.
“I am happy for the guys that are getting an opportunity now who worked very hard in camps back in Johannesburg.
“Some of them didn’t have an opportunity against the Barbarians and will have a shot this weekend [in Gqeberha].
“It’s a special moment for Asenathi [Ntlabakanye]. In terms of Ethan Hooker, many people know the potential he has.
“Looking at how he played at the Sharks, he’s a brilliant player.
“He can play on the wing and at centre as well, and is a student of the game.
“I hope he’ll get an opportunity, and it will be special if he does.”
Stick added that giving players opportunities is important and that it is pointless having them in Bok squads if they aren’t afforded a chance to prove themselves.
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“We trust all the players we select in our squads.
“If we don’t give them an opportunity, then why do we have them in camps?
“A lot of these players deserve their opportunity.
He added, “We’re not too worried about them being newbies.
“They’re part of the training group, so they know what the main focus points are.
“They’re experienced [at franchise level], match fit, and understand what we’re trying to do.
“And once again, I’m glad we planned to field them once we started our season.
“There are a lot of things that need to be fixed, yes, but we must ensure that we keep on improving.”
Players to watch:
For South Africa: Veteran Willie le Roux has not been a regular starter for the past two years, but will have the honour of leading the Boks out on the occasion of his 100th Test match. He has been solid playing off the bench, but it will be interesting to see if he can transfer his United Rugby Championship form from the Bulls to the Green and Gold. Another standout name is Canan Moodie, who will have a shot at No.13 in place of last week’s captain, Jesse Kriel. The second youngest World Cup winner will hope to get the likes of Edwill van der Merwe and Makazole Mapimpi into space to do their magic. In the forwards, Ruan Nortje and Salmaan Moerat team up as the lock combination and will need to be squeaky clean against an Italian outfit that targeted that area last week.
For Italy: Winger Louis Lynagh can be a devastating finisher when afforded the opportunity, and the Boks will want to keep him at bay as he knows how to slice defensive lines open. It will be interesting to see how Alessandro Garbisi pairs with Giacomo De Re as a halfback combination, as both are renowned playmakers for their respective franchises. There will be eyes on the loose trio of Ross Vintcent, Manuel Zuliani, and Sebastian Negri after Italy dominated the breakdown last weekend.
Prediction:
@rugby365com: South Africa by 45 points or more
Teams:
South Africa: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Edwill van der Merwe, 13 Canan Moodie, 12 Andre Esterhuizen, 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 10 Manie Libbok, 9 Grant Williams, 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Marco van Staden, 5 Ruan Nortje, 4 Salmaan Moerat (captain), 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Thomas du Toit.
Replacements: 16 Jan-Hendrik Wessels, 17 Ox Nche, 18 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 19 Cobus Wiese, 20 Evan Roos, 21 Cobus Reinach, 22 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 23 Ethan Hooker.
Italy: 15 Mirko Belloni, 14 Louis Lynagh, 13 Tommaso Menoncello, 12 Marco Zanon, 11 Jacopo Trulla, 10 Giacomo De Re, 9 Alessandro Garbisi, 8 Ross Vintcent, 7 Manual Zuliani, 6 Sebastian Negri, 5 Andrea Zambonin, 4 Niccolo Cannone (captain), 3 Simone Ferrari, 2 Tommaso Di Bartolomeo, 1 Danilo Fischetti.
Replacements: 16 Pablo Dimcheff, 17 Mirco Spagnolo, 18 Muhamed Hasa, 19 Matteo Canali, 20 Alessandro Izekor, 21 David Odiase, 22 Stephen Varney, 23 Giulio Bertaccini.
Venue: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth
Kick-off: 17.10 (17.10 Italian time; 15.10 GMT)
Expected conditions: 17 degrees Celcuis with zero precipitation, humidity: 61 percent, wind: 23 km/h
Referee: Andrew Brace (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Matthew Carley (England), Hollie Davidson (Scotland)
TMO: Tual Trainini (France)
