Bok coach: Captain Strauss hits right notes
Bok coach Allister Coetzee has brushed aside questions surrounding Adriaan Strauss and his position as skipper of the national team.
|||Cape Town - driaan Strauss is not your modern-day “flashy” hooker who can break the line, but his accuracy in the lineouts is why he is wearing the Springbok No 2 jersey.
That was the riposte from Bok coach Allister Coetzee on Thursday about questions surrounding Strauss and his position as the first-choice in the front row and more particularly as the skipper of the national team.
With Coetzee deciding to largely pick locally-based players, with just loose forwards Duane Vermeulen and Francois Louw and prop Steven Kitshoff called up from overseas, it meant that Bismarck du Plessis and Schalk Brits would miss out on the Bok squad for the three-Test series against Ireland.
Strauss has not been his robust self in open play for the Bulls in Super Rugby this year, although he has still maintained impressive accuracy in the lineouts. Du Plessis, though, is the ultimate No 2 these days with the way he carries the ball, his work-rate on defence and at the breakdown, and his ability to inspire through his actions on the field.
There has also been a chorus in local circles for Lions youngster Malcolm Marx, who was outstanding in Super Rugby, to be given an opportunity.
But ahead of Saturday’s decider in Port Elizabeth, Coetzee rolled out the stats in support of his captain. “People might look at Adriaan and they look at some other hookers who are contributing in broken play, and they’re all over the field. Adriaan is a typical set-piece type of hooker who will make sure that functions,” the Bok boss said on Thursday after naming his team.
“And that is where Test rugby starts. In the two games, we’ve had 16 lineouts in the first Test and lost one, which is almost 94 percent. In the second Test, we had 14 lineouts and missed one. In both Tests, he showed his value under pressure against a quality Irish defensive lineout.”
Coetzee went further – and no doubt gave the visitors extra motivation – by bringing in Strauss’ opposite number, Ireland captain and hooker Rory Best, into the conversation.
“I’m not comparing, but if you look at Rory Best – he might be running around, he might be huge tackles here, but he is currently sitting on a 70 percent success rate at lineout time.
“If you look at Adriaan Strauss’ ball-carries as a tight forward, he brings that. Damian’s (de Allende) try (at Ellis Park) was as a consequence of how well Adriaan carried and got over the gain-line and generated quick ball, which led to the one-on-one between Damian and Conor (Murray).
“But it’s those little things that maybe go unnoticed and are not flashy. That’s what Adriaan brings to the team. And also his calm and collectedness when it comes to decision-making – he’s got a great demeanour of handling everyone’s input and filtering that, and hitting the right notes.”
But the manner in which Warren Whiteley brought some spark to the Boks in the second half in Johannesburg shouldn’t go unnoticed, and if the Lions No 8 forces Duane Vermeulen out of the team going forward, he is certainly a viable candidate for the long-term Bok captaincy.
Strauss was appointed for the Irish series only, with Vermeulen having originally been regarded as the favourite, but being based in France made it difficult for Coetzee. There were moves afoot to try and bring him back to South Africa from Toulon to play at home again, but it’s going to be hard to compete with a Euro-based salary.
Even if Strauss continues as the first-choice hooker for the foreseeable future, he has to do so much more than just find his jumpers in the lineout – even though that is the most important part of his responsibilities.
While Best possesses that typically fighting Irish spirit, he is a long way off matching the likes of All Black hooker Dane Coles and even England captain and No 2 Dylan Hartley.
Strauss needs to up his work-rate drastically in terms of carries in broken play, making tackles and competing for turnovers at the breakdown. And it is something he’s done before, as he was sometimes preferred by former coach Heyneke Meyer ahead of Du Plessis for his industrious play.
The Boks can’t afford to have just a “typical set-piece type of hooker” in the modern game. Strauss needs to be more dynamic around the field, and inspire his team as a captain through his actions.
ashfak.mohamed@inl.co.za
@IndyCapeSport