Louw, Esterhuizen key to Bomb Squad redemption

OPINION: The Springbok Bomb Squad continues to trend in the right direction following a series of explosive performances against New Zealand, Argentina and France.

After all the talk of French revenge, it was South Africa who made the biggest statement via an emphatic 32-17 victory at the Stade de France.

The upshot is that Rassie Erasmus’ charges remain on course to realise their biggest goals for the 2025 Test season.

They’ve already beaten the All Blacks to retain the Freedom Cup – and the Rugby Championship – and have won a monumental one-off against France.

And if they beat Ireland in Dublin on November 22, they will complete the set of big Test scalps.

There is one particular trend that will encourage Erasmus and company ahead of the showdown at the Aviva Stadium.

The Boks have taken their game forward in 2025, marrying the traditional strengths with a more ambitious attacking approach.

At the same time, Erasmus has looked to develop some of the younger players and experiment with new combinations – all with the 2027 World Cup in mind.

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While the 10-from-12 win-record makes for impressive reading, it’s interesting to note how inconsistent the performances have been for much of the season.

Indeed, it’s only in the past six matches where the Boks have rediscovered their second-half mojo, and dominated their opponents in terms of points and tries scored.

The Boks forged a reputation for their second-half surges – and their Bomb Squad bench contingent – at the 2019 World Cup in Japan.

They have persisted with these tactics in subsequent years and have enjoyed such a high degree of success that some critics have gone as far as to suggest that they have an unfair advantage or that a six-two or seven-one bench split is not in the spirit of the game.

This season, however, the bench – or more specifically the combination tasked with finishing the game – has produced mixed results.

Italy outscored the Boks 21-14 in the second half of the first Test in Pretoria this past July.

In the aftermath of that match – which South Africa won 42-24 – Erasmus admitted that the Boks had failed to perform to their own high standards.

The following month in Johannesburg, Australia won the second half 33-0 – and scored four tries in the process – en route to claiming a 38-22 victory.

The Boks beat the Wallabies 30-22 in Cape Town the following week, but the trend persisted, with Australia winning the second half 12-10.

The tour to New Zealand witnessed a shift in momentum. While the All Blacks won the first Test 24-17, the Boks outscored the hosts 14-10 in the second stanza.

The powerful scrum at the death that led to a try for Malcolm Marx served to confirm that rumours of the Bomb Squad’s demise had been greatly exaggerated.

The Boks thrashed the All Blacks 36-0 in the second half of the Test in Wellington, before thumping Argentina 42-7 in the last 40 minutes of the clash in Durban.

While they were less convincing in the 29-27 win against Argentina in London, they still managed to win the second half 19-14.

Up against Japan at Wembley Stadium earlier this month, the Boks racked up a scoreline of 35-7 in the second stanza – and won the game 61-7.

More recently, they saved their best for last, outscoring France 19-3 in the second half.

There’s been a lot of speculation about the bench formations this season, with Erasmus favouring a five-three split in seven matches to date.

Erasmus has explained that the move towards a high-tempo approach involving more kicking and aerial battles requires more backline options across the match 23.

When the Boks thrashed New Zealand and Argentina, critics of the six-two and seven-one split hailed South Africa’s move away from a forward-centric strategy.

Then Erasmus favoured a six-two bench against Japan and France – and the results across those matches were no less emphatic.

Erasmus continues to value both formations – and it wouldn’t come as a surprise to see the seven-one unleashed at some point over the next three weeks.

That said, recent results suggest that the Boks are starting to get the balance right on their bench and across the match 23.

Marx, previously the quintessential Bomb Squad exponent, has become a mainstay in the starting XV.

Wilco Louw – the most destructive scrummaging tighthead available to South Africa – has been handed a bench role in recent months.

Louw started three matches earlier this year, before Erasmus moved the big man to the bench for the second match against Australia.

Since then, Louw has worn the No.18 jersey in seven consecutive Tests, and has made a big impact in every one of them.

Erasmus has mixed things up in the latter stages of the season, harnessing Bomb Squad veterans such as Kwagga Smith and RG Snyman while handing Esterhuizen a hybrid role.

When the Bok coach deployed Esterhuizen on the flank in the latter stages of the season-opener against the Barbarians, the rugby world sat up and took notice.

At the time, Barbarians coach Robbie Deans hailed the South African boss for his innovation.

Weeks went by without Esterhuizen receiving another forward cameo, and some critics – this writer included – started to wonder if the hybrid tactic was a red herring.

Then Erasmus picked Esterhuizen to cover flank against Australia in Cape Town.

While he was selected on the bench for the games in Wellington and Durban, he was used primarily as a back in both fixtures.

More recently, Esterhuizen was deployed on the flank in the second half of matches against Japan and France.

In the wake of two strong performances – the try from the back of a maul in Paris was certainly a highlight – the versatile player has to be applauded.

What’s more, the coaches deserve credit for managing his workload and developing a unique athlete into a game-changing weapon.

When Esterhuizen is listed among the reserves in future, opposition coaches won’t know whether the big man will be deployed at centre or flank – or whether the Boks intend to harness a five-three or a six-two split.

The observation was first made after Esterhuizen’s hybrid debut against the Barbarians.

Now we’re 12 games into the season, and Esterhuizen has made significant contributions in both positions.

It’s fair to say that there is evidence to substantiate Erasmus’ hybrid theory.

Opponents will have noted how the Bomb Squad, as a unit, has started to fire in recent Tests, and how Erasmus has harnessed different players beyond usual suspects such as Snyman and Smith.

Indeed, Manie Libbok has been one of the unsung heroes of the past few months, producing influential displays – often in tandem with Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu– from the bench.

Erasmus has more options than ever on his bench – not to mention several different dynamics at his disposal.

We may yet see a seven-one split on the current tour to Europe, and it’s possible that Erasmus will unleash a four-four – as per assistant coach Daan Human’s suggestion this past July – in the near future.

With the 2027 @rugbyworldcup draw coming up, the Springboks could find themselves in the same pool as the host nation.

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