Fleckie's picks - Part III

New Western Province assistant coach Robbie Fleck continues his build-up to the British & Irish Lions tour of South Africa by selecting his Springbok halfbacks… and, of course, making his Super 14 predictions.

Right then, it’s week three of my Springbok selection exercise and after choosing my fullbacks and wings in recent weeks, I will wrap up ‘my’ backline by selecting the all-important ‘halves’; the flyhalf and scrumhalf.

The flyhalf spot is probably the most talked-about position in world rugby, not to mention South African rugby.

It’s something of a glamour position, especially when you look at the big names across the world in recent times; Jonny Wilkinson, Dan Carter, Matt Giteau, Danny Cipriani – these guys always seem to be in the headlines for some reason or another.

Everyone in SA has always had their favourites and it always tends to split across the usual ‘North v South’ divide. Back in the 1980s it always Naas Botha (North) versus one of Errol Tobias or Michael du Plessis down South and, of course, a lot depends on what style of play the coach is trying to employ.

The current Springbok coach Peter de Villiers and his sidekick Dick Muir are known to prefer an open, expansive style of play.

For that reason they will be picking a flyhalf who likes to take the ball to the advantage line and get his outside backs into play. At the same time, however, this flyhalf needs to be able to use his boot and also defend his channel well enough. In a nutshell – they’d be looking for a mix between Naas Botha and Henry Honiball.

I must say that Butch James’s injury is a blow; for me, he is the most complete South African flyhalf.

Butch might have had a few indifferent games for Bath, but when he fires Bath usually win. We all know about his defence and ability to play on the gainline, but the improvement in his kicking game is what made him such a complete No.10.

FLYHALF:

The contenders at flyhalf:
Morné Steyn (Bulls)
Peter Grant (Stormers)
Meyer Bosman (Cheetahs)
André Pretorius (Lions)
Frans Steyn (Sharks)
Ruan Pienaar (Sharks)

Morné Steyn is looking like more of a complete flyhalf with each passing day.

Along with Wynand Olivier he is the most improved backline player in South Africa – which is no doubt down to Pieter Rossouw – and he has shown that he is not simply just a flyhalf that likes to sit back in the pocket and let his boot do the talking.

He attacks the gainline and his outside backs have been running some lovely attacking lines off his shoulder. He is a serious contender for the Springbok flyhalf position.

Peter Grant is possibly the best attacking No.10 in the country. He is in the Henry Honiball mould; he is tough, he runs great lines on attack, he attacks the advantage line and he gets the ball away nicely.

His kicking game needs work; both out of hand and at goal and it has not helped his cause not kicking at goal during the entire Super 14 season. His option-taking needs a bit of work (that comes with time and experienced), but I like what I see in him and I would have loved to play outside of him.

With no Butch James in the mix, Grant should sneak into the mix.

Meyer Bosman has had a good season for the Cheetahs, but he has mixed and matched between flyhalf and inside centre, which has probably not done his selection chances the world of good.

He is a strong defender, he attacks the advantage, he has good hands and vision – he is just behind Grant in the overall stakes as a running flyhalf in SA. The only downside for me is that he is not the most consistent of goalkickers.

Frans Steyn is also an option in the No.10 position in many people’s eyes, but he is not ready for the rigours of playing flyhalf at Test level. He still needs to mature more in order to play in the No.10.

I am, however, a huge fan of Steyn at No.12 – failing that he would be an option at fullback – and him playing at inside centre will help him develop into a world-class flyhalf when he has the experience. After all, an inside centre in the modern era is in effect a second flyhalf.

There is some talk from the Gauteng region about the merits of André Pretorius in the No.10 shirt, but I don’t really share those thoughts.

Yes, he has the experience and ability (and he is an exciting player), but he is not the answer. He tends to do too much on his own; the Boks need someone at flyhalf who can bring his runners into the game.

Lastly, then and by no means least – Ruan Pienaar, the man earmarked by De Villiers and Muir to fill the troublesome No.10 position. I agree with it.

He is a wonderful talent; a balanced runner and a player very much in the mould of Stephen Larkham one of the greats of southern hemisphere rugby.

Pienaar glides into space, he can pass off both hands, he is a good line kicker and he is an intelligent player and thereby a very good option taker. As a bonus, he can also defend – all in all, this man is the real deal.

He can control a game (his scrumhalf days no doubt helping) with authority, but it’s a real pity that he missed so much of the Super 14 with that knee injury as it would have given him some much-needed game time in the all-too-crucial flyhalf position.

My flyhalf picks:
Ruan Pienaar (my first choice), Morné Steyn (my back-up) and Peter Grant (the third choice – who offers good utility value as an inside centre option).

SCRUMHALF:

The contenders at scrumhalf:
Fourie du Preez (Bulls)
Enrico Januarie (Stormers)
Rory Kockott (Sharks)
Jano Vermaak (Lions)

To be absolutely frank, there should not even be a debate here. Fourie du Preez has been the best scrumhalf in world rugby since 2007 and his name would be down first on my Springbok teamsheet.

He is physical, he has an excellent passing game and his kicking game is unmatched… it’s his option-taking, however, that makes him such a brilliant player – and a complete one at that.

The other nice thing about Du Preez is that he still looks a class act behind a beaten pack, but more often than not he tends to play behind packs going forward – at the Bulls and the Boks.

Looking at possible back-ups to Fourie, Dewaldt Duvenage at the Stormers is a prospect. He is keeping Ricky Januarie on the bench, but he is one to watch for the future as he needs to improve physically and pick up a bit more experience at the highest level.

Speaking of Januarie, his form might be a worry for De Villiers, but he has been there and done that. He is combative and physical and the idea ‘scrapper’ that you want up against the likes of the All Blacks.

Opposition halfbacks do not like playing against him and when he is playing well he can push Fourie du Preez for that Bok No.9 shirt.

Elsewhere, I really like the look of Jano Vermaak from the Lions.

He is a fine little player in a side that has underperformed for some time now. He is aggressive – on attack and defence, hungry, he kicks well and he scores a lot of tries for a scrumhalf too. (He has scored five tries this season, putting him up there amongst the top try-scorers.)

The Sharks’ Rory Kockott is similar to Vermaak in many ways – except he brings an excellent goalkicking game to the party. He is also tough, he defends nicely around the fringes and he has a sharp passing game.

Yes, his discipline is an issue, but I have no doubt his coach John Plumtree would have had a serious chat to him after his little slap against the Highlanders.

It really was inexcusable and an act like that in a Test would no doubt cost the Springboks the match. But like we learnt from that match against England at Twickenham in 2002 (when we lost 3-53), Kockott, too, needs to temper his, erm, temper!

My scrumhalf picks:
Fourie du Preez (first choice), Enrico Januarie (he has the experience and you cannot argue with that) and Rory Kockott (who just shades Vermaak thanks to his goalkicking).

My Super 14 predictions for Round 14:

CHIEFS v BRUMBIES:
Friday, May 15 – 9.35am

The Chiefs will be on a high after their derby win over the Hurricanes last week and they are within touching distance of a home Super 14 semifinal.

The Brumbies, on the other hand, still have a very real chance of making the semifinals, but their record in New Zealand is not too flash and I cannot see it getting any better this weekend.

Fleckie’s prediction: The Chiefs will win this one and keep the pressure on the Bulls. Chiefs by 10 points.

LIONS v WARATAHS:
Friday, May 15 – 7.10pm

Regular readers of this column will know that I am not a massive Waratahs fan and it was interesting to read Eddie Jones’s views in the Aussie press this week – he doesn’t rate them too much either!

Still, they did well to beat the Sharks in Durban last week – and you cannot take that away from them.

The Lions fought back nicely last week and thoroughly deserved their victory over the Highlanders.

Fleckie’s prediction: The Waratahs’ defence will win it for them – ‘Tahs by five.

BLUES v CRUSADERS:
Saturday, May 16 – 9.35am

This should be a cracker – a good old-fashioned North v South Island clash in New Zealand.

The Blues have lost three games in a row – to the Reds, ‘Canes and Brumbies – which I guess puts an end to my theory that they are inconsistent; that is just downright poor, nothing inconsistent about that!

Still, they have some amazing outside backs in the shape of Wulf, Ranger, Tuitavake, Toeava, Rokocoko, with Toeava – in particular – being rather impressive, despite his team’s dire results of late.

The Crusaders, meanwhile, have certainly picked things up; they are looking good in terms of a semifinal place, and they play a very simple game.

Fleckie’s prediction: The Crusaders pack will squeeze out the win here, despite being away from home. Crusaders by five points.

REDS v HURRICANES:
Saturday, May 16 – 11.40am

This should be a high-scoring match, but the Hurricanes have plenty at stake – whereas the Reds do not.

I really have enjoyed watching the Reds at times this season and sincerely believe they will be a force in years to come – provided, of course, that they keep the core of their young playing group together.

Fleckie’s prediction: As much as I would like the Reds to do the South African teams a favour, I expect the ‘Canes to win by 10 or more.

FORCE v HIGHLANDERS:
Saturday, May 16 – 1.45pm

The Force had an up and down tour of South Africa, but they’re at home in their final league game of the season and will no doubt be happier – and who can blame them?

It’s been a tough old season for them, what with all the talk of off-field issues, and coach John Mitchell would certainly be hoping to end the season with a win.

The Highlanders have had their moments this season. Written off – by me, amongst others – their pack showed tremendous strength throughout the season and they will look to dominate that area once again.

Fleckie’s prediction: The Force by five.

CHEETAHS v STORMERS:
Saturday, May 16 – 4pm

I thought the Stormers were good value in their win over the Force last week, but they could have won by more had they taken all their chances.

They impressed with some good phase play at times, but they have still not managed to hit their straps this season and they are still way off from getting their best side out there.

The Cheetahs, on the other hand, were involved in a morale-boosting dog-fight against the table-topping Bulls and even though Habana managed a late intercept try to seal that four-try bonus point, I thought their defence was good.

Of course, leading that defensive once again were those outstanding flankers of theirs, Juan Smith and Heinrich Brüssow – surely the best flanking duo in South Africa at present. They were magnificent.

Fleckie’s prediction: I’d like to say the Stormers will take this one, but they’re without the likes of Schalk and Jean… the Cheetahs to edge them out by three points.

SHARKS v BULLS:
Saturday, May 16 – 6.05pm

The Sharks have had a poor three/four-week period. I guess, some people might be wondering just what has gone wrong, but without knowing the ins-and-outs in their camp, one could merely speculate.

Maybe they were trying too hard to ‘defend’ their lead at the top of the table… maybe they were over-confident – as I said, it’s hard to say for sure.

With the Sharks hitting a downward spiral, the Bulls have been magnificent of late – shades of 2007 in many ways… and we all know what happened in their final league match when they went chasing a home semifinal!

I have said before, in previous columns, how to go about beating the Bulls – but if you try the Kiwi way of fronting up to them and trying to beat them at the breakdown and physically across the park, you could open yourself up to getting smashed – physically and on the scoreboard.

Then, if that is not enough of a worry, Bryan Habana is playing superb rugby and is a threat all across the park. He will punish any sloppy passes or kicks – as we saw last week.

Fleckie’s prediction: This game is going to be a ding-dong affair of note and the result won’t be settled until late on. The Sharks, however, will pick it up this week and just edge the Bulls by three.

Cheers,
Fleckie

PS. Join the iafrica.com/rugby365 tipping competition and take on myself and the rest of the guys at Primedia Online in our 2009 Super 14 prediction competition. Click HERE now to enter!

Robbie Fleck is a Tournament Host for the 2010 Cape Town Tens. For more, visit www.capetowntens.com