Three must-see matches

Posted on September 25, 2015 by ClintonV

ARGENTINA v GEORGIA

Today, 5.45pm (SS1)

Don’t get too excited. This one isn’t for all the marbles, but it will pitch two of the world’s best scrummaging teams against each other.

Argentina aspire to greater things around the park these days, but their game is rooted in the power provided by the tight five. Just ask the Boks, who succumbed to Nicolas Ayerza’s dark arts a few weeks ago. The big guy is back for today’s clash.

Georgia, led by magnificent Mamuka Gorgodze, beat Tonga in their opener – producing more tackles (201) than any team in the RWC since 2007 – and will be looking for back-to-back wins, something they have never achieved at a World Cup.

Difficult by name, the front row of Mikheil Nariashvili, Jaba Bregvadze and Davit Zirakashvili are difficult by nature too.

It’s time to hide the women and children.

SOUTH AFRICA v SAMOA

Saturday, 5.45pm (SS1)

You would never have imagined a match against Samoa shaping up as one of the most important of the last 20 years. But here we are.

The self-doubt that has crept into the Springbok beast will only be banished if they beat Samoa at Villa Park, preferably by a couple of scores.

The defeat to Japan was shattering, but beating Samoa will help right things. No team has ever won the World Cup having lost in the pool stages, but the Boks will be chasing their own sort of history.

Samoa will likely start with a hiss and a roar, but blow themselves out at around the hour mark – so long as they follow the script.

The Bok XV is far better than the one that buckled against Japan. With a captain playing for his life and the Springboks’ psyche badly bruised, the backlash ought to be vicious.

ENGLAND v WALES

Saturday, 9pm (SS1)

This one is for the heavyweight championship of the UK, a belter in the making.

Over 80 000 lucky souls will cram Twickenham for a match that will largely define the fortunes of each team. England have made some high-risk selections, chiefly Owen Farrell at flyhalf and untested Sam Burgess in midfield. His battle with James Roberts in the midfield might well go full nuclear.

Don’t expect any frills from England. They aren’t the most dynamic team at the best of times, but with the Group of Death to be overcome, they will play it safe and tight.

Ultimately, home ground advantage and Wales’ injury toll will probably determine the outcome, but not before some spicy twists and turns.

The Bok XV for an SOS job

Posted on September 22, 2015 by ClintonV

It’s all change, or at least it should be, if the Springboks are to rediscover their mojo this weekend.

Samoa loom like a bad headache and they must be beaten. No ifs, ands or buts.

It sounds nuts to be talking this way, but Samoa looked pretty useful against the US at the weekend and just a few months ago gave a good account of themselves by going down by just a handful of points – 25-16 – against the All Blacks in Apia. They’ll be drooling at the prospect of getting stuck into South Africa’s wounded.

They’re big and they can play, although they’re hot-headed and often lose their way. Ordinarily, you would expect the Boks to swamp them, but these are strange days. After the Japanese tsunami, all bets are off.

History says the Boks will retreat into the laager and come out firing. They often do when their backs are against the wall.

The team below is the one that would do the business. It’s all new with a razor-sharp edge.

It’s not the most profound or revolutionary selection in history – the Springboks’ current state makes the calls easy.

15 Willie le Roux.

14 Lwazi Mvovo.

13 Jessie Kriel.

12 Damien De Allende.

11 Bryan Habana.

10 Handre Pollard.

9 Fourie du Preez.

8 Duane Vermeulen.

7 Schalk Burger.

6 Francois Louw.

5 Lood de Jager.

4 Eben Etzebeth.

3 Frans Malherbe.

2 Adriaan Strauss.

1 Trevor Nyakane.

Potholes litter Boks’ path

Posted on September 14, 2015 by ClintonV

There are two contrasting statistics that embody the depth of the challenge facing the Springboks, who arrived in England on Saturday to launch their sixth World Cup challenge.

South Africa have the best overall win rate in Rugby World Cup history: 25 wins in 29 matches (86.2 percent).

However, there’s a catch: they have not beaten Australia or New Zealand in regular World Cup play since hosting (and winning) the 1995 edition.

The comparison is apt. The Boks go in with great expectations, but they will likely have to subdue their two major southern hemisphere rivals to become the first nation to lift the Webb Ellis Cup on three occasions.

Pencilling in probable outcomes, South Africa’s route to the final on October 31 is pock-marked with potholes and pitfalls, chiefly in the shape of the Wallabies in the quarterfinal and then the All Blacks in the semifinal. By comparison, 2007 was a breeze.

Don’t be fooled by the hype. South Africa will top Pool B, notwithstanding slugfests against Samoa and Scotland before these pretenders blow themselves out.

It’s a soft group compared to Pool A where Australia, England and Wales will fight it out for the top two spots and Fiji will look to mess things up with one of their traditional shake-ups. Twice they’ve made the last eight. Wales, who hate playing them, will be particularly terrified by the prospect.

England could theoretically make the final without playing the All Blacks or the Boks, the one team they have yet to beat under Stuart Lancaster. It’s a shrewd bit of scheduling.

You wonder how Wales could have ended up in that deathly pool, but it’s their fault. The seedings were done in 2012, when they were hopeless (seven straight defeats) and had dropped to ninth.

I’m betting they will be the unlucky ones who end third, remembering that they’ve lost 10 on the bounce against the Wallabies, plus they’ve been ravaged by injury. Plus they will be playing in London, away from their Millennium Stadium fortress.

As tough as it sounds, South Africans could do worse than support England initially. The Boks would rather play Australia (or Wales) than the World Cup hosts in the quarter-final. The Boks have had the wood on England for 10 years, but all bets are off in a World Cup where the Twickenham roar is easily worth 10 points. We must hope England win their pool, which pits them most likely against Scotland in a quarterfinal.

Pool C will be a doddle for New Zealand with only Argentina offering meaty resistance. Their reward could be a quarterfinal against France, their old bêtes noires who won’t be intimidated in the least.

This, however, assumes that Ireland will top Pool D with France running second. Ireland haven’t looked too tidy in their recent friendlies and France recently beat England with something to spare in Paris, but Ireland boast a better pedigree in recent years.

The quarters would then stack up as follows: SA v Australia; New Zealand v France; Ireland v Argentina; England v Scotland.

There are no gimmes here, but if logic and common sense have any say, the semifinals will see the Boks against New Zealand in the one half of the draw and Ireland against England in the other.

The Boks haven’t looked too flash in recent months, but if a miracle or three comes through for Fourie du Preez, Duane Vermeulen and Jean de Villiers, our lot could put out a thoroughbred XV able to rumble with anyone. Everything would have to go right.

World Cup rugby suits the Boks’ style; that is, it’s typically hard, grinding and chanceless, characteristics that embody much of the Boks’ DNA.

October 24 could be massive for the Boks; a showdown against the All Blacks for a place in the final. Don’t be conned: the All Blacks will always start as favourites.

They are the defending champions and assuming they don’t implode against France, will be ferociously difficult to beat. The smart money (and mine) is on a New Zealand-England final a week later.

I’m just thrilled the World Cup is again upon us. England will be magnificent hosts and the rugby ought to be dramatic and full-blooded.

Game on. – © Sunday Tribune

Rugby World Cup the SuperSport way

Posted on September 1, 2015 by ClintonV

It was Francois Pienaar who once said there is no vision in sport without television.

Smart man.

We get our fixes from all sorts of mediums, but when the big events come round, short of attending the matches, we assemble around the television. It’s a tribal custom among sport tragics everywhere. We do it because, well, it’s what we do.

The World Cup starts in 17 days’ time and will herald a call to arms to rugby fans everywhere. The colour, pageantry and competition will draw us all in yet again to watch the unfolding of rugby’s great shindig. Much beer will be drunk, many tears will flow.

I’ll be getting my kicks from SuperSport (disclaimer: it’s where I work) which has put together an outstanding offering. Today, a 24-hour rugby channel cranks up and will run until October 31, the day of the World Cup final.

It will have something for everyone. Apart from the action guaranteed from 48 matches, SuperSport will have eight different magazine shows, ranging from hard core analysis (Master Plan) to soft features and colour (Show Me Your Passport). There will be something for everyone.

SuperSport itself could probably assemble a World XV of fantastic quality using its pundits, who will pop up in a variety of places and guises.

A couple who come to mind include Sean Fitzpatrick, Lewis Moody, Nick Mallett, Bobby Skinstad, Justin Marshall, George Gregan, Ashwin Willemse, Taine Randell, Colin Charvis, Gavin Hastings, Joel Stransky, Johan Erasmus and Breyton Paulse.

There are a couple of caps and World Cup winners’ medals among that lot.

SuperSport will also have regular access to the Springboks, ensuring fans get to see what goes on behind the scenes.

Aware of the clamour for commentary options, SuperSport will offer four language options for Springbok games: international English; SA English; Afrikaans; isiXhosa.

All others will have three options: International English; Afrikaans; isiXhosa.

Happily, most of the matches take place during “down time”, but there are agreeable options for those who can’t catch the action live.

DStv premium PVR subscribers with a DStv Explora will be treated to 26- and nine-minute highlights available on CatchUp for every match. All knockout and Springbok games will be available in their entirety.

Also, every RWC match will be streamed live to subscribers (who have a DStv connect ID linked to their DStv Premium PVR subscription) via supersport.com or through the DStv Now app and SuperSport App.

It’s the fifth such tournament SuperSport will be broadcasting. Even if the Boks don’t bring Bill home, I reckon SuperSport will smash it.

Rugby’s phoney war at its height

Posted on August 30, 2015 by ClintonV

These are exciting times in international rugby.

The World Cup is three weeks away and the phoney war is already at full tilt. Almost everyone seems to be keeping their powder dry, reluctant to reveal too much too soon.

At least we know what the Springboks will bring to the party after Friday’s squad announcement in Durban. They’re big and strong. We just don’t know if they will press on with their ambition to play a wilder, wider game. World Cups are less about the fripperies than the fundamentals, though, so I’m expecting grinding rather than rousing rugby from the Boks. They won’t risk getting too loose against Samoa or Scotland in their pool matches. Those teams thrive on scraps.

As ever, the big question is over New Zealand’s state of mind. They were bowled over by Australia a few weeks ago, but in the context of World Cup year it wasn’t a big deal. You could see New Zealand trying new things, their eyes on a cup a little bigger than the Rugby Championship.

The following week they belted the Wallabies as only they can. New Zealand don’t tolerate upstarts.

Even so, there are question marks, albeit small ones, over their oldies like Richie McCaw and Dan Carter. They were both influential in the Rugby Championship, but their bones are beginning to creak. Can they still string together four or five imposing performances?

France, the most maddening of teams, have predictably raced in from left field to stake a claim. France’s inconsistency has become a cliché, but they really are a team who play only if the mood takes them. Last week, they beat England handsomely with long-in-the-tooth former Sharks hero Freddie Michalak kicking a bucket load of points and right wing Yoann Huget looking potent from first minute to last.

We can’t ever be sure which France will pitch up, but their pool match against Ireland in Cardiff on October 11 will be nuclear in nature. France haven’t beaten Ireland since 2011, but you’d be nervous betting against them at a World Cup.

You may have forgotten, but in 2011 they were shocked by Tonga, only to have the All Blacks hanging on for their lives in the final a few weeks later. Ever French, ever capricious.

Talking of Fiji, no-one bar Australian legend George Smith is giving them a chance. He’s picking them to emerge from the group of death which includes England, Australia and Wales. Can’t see it myself, especially as the island nations play so seldom. But it will be fun watching them try.

There’s also Argentina. Three weeks ago they pulled off the biggest win in their history in Durban. The South African response was to climb into the Boks, but the broader reaction was more sensible.

We cry out for world rugby to be more inclusive and to create more powers, yet when one, such as Argentina, gives big brother a bloody nose, we get uptight.

We should acclaim their growth and development. They’ve finally arrived at the big table.

Argentina have a style all their own and play the game with a sense of abandon. Given the right circumstances, they could beat anyone at the World Cup in a one-off.

Their gains are coming along slowly, but the next step must be to become consistent and reliable. They always tend to shape well at the tournament. Their pool match against the All Blacks will tell us much.

What of England?

The hosts are coming to the boil nicely, even if overrated number eight Billy Vunipola gave away a raft of penalties last week.

They will play the conditions smartly and might have the biggest, angriest pack at the World Cup. The thing with England is that they do the fundamentals so well, but they lack something magical; the spark to set them ablaze.

The local desperadoes cling feverishly to the hope that it may be Sam Burgess, the league convert. Don’t bet on it.

England may not even need his theatrics. World Cups are mostly battles of attrition and the grinders dominate the glory boys.

Even so, this one is wide open, perhaps more than ever. – © Sunday Tribune

Heyneke still the man for the job

Posted on August 10, 2015 by ClintonV

(Despite this column being written two days before the Boks were belted by Argentina, the sentiment remains – any suggestion of jettisoning Meyer is daft. With no obvious replacement in the wings, he should be going nowhere).

Heyneke Meyer may have his detractors, but the one thing he has added is stability to the Springbok cause. It’s not something you could say of his three predecessors: Peter de Villiers, Jake White and Rudolf Straeuli.

All three endured rows and ructions – and sometimes caused them – but mercifully Meyer’s tenure has largely been free of such issues. He’s been able to concentrate on the rugby.

Statistically, Meyer now ranks in the top third of the 10 Bok coaches who have held the position since readmission in 1992. Kitch Christie, with his 100 percent return, including the 1995 World Cup, stands atop the list, followed by Nick Mallett (71 percent) and White and Meyer (both 67 percent).

Meyer hasn’t worked out the magic formula to dominating the All Blacks – De Villiers won more often than not against them – but two wins in every three Test matches against all-comers is a solid ratio. It means he isn’t nearly under the sort of pressure that was exerted on the like of Ian McIntosh (33 percent), Carel du Plessis (37 percent) or Rudolf Straeuli (52 percent).

Not unexpectedly, word on rugby’s verdant grapevine is that Meyer has been offered a two-year-extension on his four-year contract. He started in 2012 and his natural term of office would have ended after this World Cup.

There’s nothing wrong with this habit, particularly as coaching cycles often run this way. Coaches often get bored and complacent. Bringing in fresh energy and ideas is no bad thing.

But this doesn’t necessarily apply in Meyer’s case. Although the Boks could implode at the World Cup, you suspect they won’t. Apart from 2003, when there were other factors at play, not least the Staaldraad shemozzle, the Boks have always been well in the mix. World Cup rugby suits them.

Meyer’s broad plan seems to be shifting into place and his enthusiasm for the job is undimmed. He’s still juggling the mercury in balancing experience with form, but he’s moving the right way. He’s also making solid strides towards tacking onto the Bok game. He has them playing with more ambition and belief, something the players have often struggled with.

Meyer will be glad to secure another two years because his tenure would have flown by and he will feel the job is unfinished, whether they win the World Cup or not.

The other reality is that no-one else is banging down the door to do the job. Until recently there were always top names in the mix, but many have faded away.

Mallett isn’t interested, Brendan Venter is too busy, Allister Coetzee is packing for Japan and John Mitchell, an uitlander, has no hope.

There are probably only three realistic candidates who line up, none of them convincing. Johan Ackerman of the Lions is a coach on the rise. He’s done great work with a team of bricklayers and plumbers (almost) and you wonder how he might go with real gold in his hands.

Still, he hasn’t won anything of substance. The jury is still out on him.

Dawie Theron is in SA Rugby’s coaching structures – he looks after the under-20s – and has enjoyed some success. But the step-up to the big leagues is something altogether different. He would need to make an impact here to stake a real claim.

Little-known Johan van Graan is another. He is one of the quiet tinkerers in Meyer’s staff. The one measure of his excellent abilities is what the players think of him. To a man, they believe he is outstanding.

His one failing is that he, too, hasn’t held down a frontline job, although he was recently courted by both the Bulls and the Stormers. He has a familial connection at the Bulls (his dad is chief executive), so sensibly opted out of that move.

He couldn’t come to financial terms with the Stormers, so stayed put with the Boks where he continues to grow and learn.

Although the man in the street will largely judge Meyer on how the Boks shape at the World Cup, it will be no bad thing if he keeps his office at SA Rugby’s HQ in Plattekloof.

For now, there is no-one better. – © Sunday Tribune

Happy defeat not a good look

Posted on August 3, 2015 by ClintonV

Jannie du Plessis was bang on the money last Saturday.

Speaking in the aftermath of the ferocious Springbok match against the All Blacks, he waxed philosophical: “When they say you’re good, you’re not as good as they say – and when they say you’re shit you’re not as shit as they say!”

He was referring to himself after weeks of enduring quiet whispers about his form and fitness. Yet he might have been talking about the Boks, who are caught in that twilight zone, in the public consciousness at least, between being good and perhaps not very good.

The one thing that is palpably dangerous is being satisfied with a brave, heroic defeat, but a defeat nonetheless. It says something about our psyche that we took the path of highlighting the positives rather than going into mourning for losing to the All Blacks. That’s how it used to be, when defeats were only ever ugly, sombre affairs.

We’ve dropped our standards in recent years – 15 wins out of 52 Tests against the All Blacks since readmission – and mostly resort to a shrug of the shoulders.

It’s not a good look.

South Africa’s chief failing remains one that has hobbled them in recent years: wasted chances. It’s not enough to aspire to an extravagant game, and occasionally produce one, without providing a flourish. You could often see at Ellis Park how the team produced opportunities only to be frozen by uncertainty. They had their foot on the throats of the All Blacks, only to release the pressure.

It’s like a dog that chases a car and doesn’t know what to do when it finally catches up.

Such weakness matters little against Scotland or Samoa, but elite teams like Australia and New Zealand present few chances. You can’t afford to show frailty. If you do, they will savage you.

The difference between the Boks, as world number two, and the world champion All Blacks, is how they back themselves. They never panic and have enormous reserves of self-belief. They soak up pressure and exert it themselves, always confident that they will find a way. Any way, as we saw with Richie McCaw’s cocky try that spoke of their swagger and innovation. They’re always daring, always different.

Was it legal or not? It doesn’t matter. The score is in the book. Chalk it up to All Black cunning.

Easily the best feature of the Boks is their hard physical edge. Watching closely from the sidelines, it was staggering to see how brutal players like Schalk Burger and Bismarck du Plessis are. Big men, they throw themselves about and smash into players constantly. I’ve seen car crashes that were less violent. Too bad the Boks ran out of gas towards the end; a worrying reality.

Last week’s game was of an incredibly high standard and it was obvious the Boks are trying to broaden their game. Many of their best moves were inspired by Damian De Allende and Jesse Kriel providing punch and panache in the midfield. It was a combination that came together through accident rather than by design and it looks outstanding. Quite how, or where, Jean de Villiers fits in will be a major problem for Heyneke Meyer to ponder. Maybe De Allende could switch to wing.

There were other small victories. Lood de Jager was compelling. He’s a real giraffe of a man; busy, bustling, bruising. Francois Louw remains the quiet, sinister assassin and Willie le Roux has shaken off his self-doubt. When his instincts are tuned in, he’s as lethal as Ben Smith and Israel Folau.

The one thing we should get used to is the certainty that the Boks will not be at full strength come the World Cup. But neither will the other big guns.

Injury has visited all the major teams and it will be touch and go whether some top players get on the plane. Such is the nature of the modern game with its enduring fixture list and violent physical cost.

Although Argentina lie in wait, the Boks can take heart from Du Plessis’ homespun wisdom. They are there or thereabouts. With a little tinkering and greater conviction, they might even scare the All Blacks. – © Sunday Tribune

Riding rugby’s hell road

Posted on July 28, 2015 by ClintonV

You would think that a city as large and as ugly as Joburg would have learned by now how to stage big events.

Fat chance.

For more than 30 years Ellis Park has hosted Test match rugby and other major fixtures. And it’s still a dog’s breakfast.

Getting to and from the stadium for the South Africa-New Zealand game on Saturday was an exercise in frustration and bother. My instincts tell me this will always be the case, but I foolishly go against my better judgment, somehow hoping the next time will be different.

Traffic is a disaster. The lack of adequate public transport means that 50 000-odd cars head to Doornfontein in search of 10 000 parking spots. Do the maths.

Traffic control is a contradiction in terms with Everyday Joe suddenly adopting the habits of the average taxi driver. Cue chaos and gridlock.

We opted to hop out of our bus – there were no coach lanes, obviously – and hotfoot it from one kilometre away. It was faster, but meant traipsing our way through piss-filled puddles, broken pavements and the detritus so familiar to urban Joburg. Nasty stuff, but the happy banter around us made it tolerable. Barely.

The next challenge was getting into the stadium precinct itself. Our first port of call was the security check, which was horrendously overwhelmed. Two thousand-odd people, many of them kids, were bottle-necked and at a standstill. I’ve seen All Black-Springbok loose mauls that were less physical.

Check one negotiated and it was on to the shiny turnstiles. That’s not strictly true. Test match day, 61 000 people swinging by, and an entire row of the things was out of order. South Africans have the perfect word for this reality: slapgat.

The quality you really need for attending major rugby in Joburg is endurance. A bloody-minded attitude is what was required to then snake through the narrow security point where tickets weren’t scanned, but simply torn in half. This is how stadium disasters happen. They first simmer at the gates.

The legacy of 2010? Pull the other one.

Getting out was no less taxing, but you can imagine the cheery mood with many fans a dozen beers to the good and less than impressed that the Boks had lost. Throw in a couple of cars parked slap-bang in the middle of exit points and you get a sense of the bedlam that ensued. Guys were proper woes.

I’ve been fortunate enough to have attended big-time sport in many countries. I once took in an American Football game at Metlife Stadium (82 500 capacity) in New Jersey two years ago. It took us 10 minutes to get in, park and hand over our tickets.

(It did take us two hours to find the car later, but that was our fault).

The Johannesburg experience, which includes FNB Stadium, is unquestionably the most miserable, soul-destroying experience of them all. The average rugby fan is treated like crap. Pay your money and shut up.

To cap it off, my black colleague was told to bugger off as we negotiated our way out.

At least the rugby was world class.

Building towards RWC is a crock

Posted on July 24, 2015 by ClintonV

I’m no fan of “building” a team towards the World Cup.

This is what we have in the Rugby Championship with both the Springboks and the All Blacks openly talking about tomorrow’s match as a quasi-trial for World Cup selection, a chance to mix and match.

It’s true that all roads lead to Twickenham come September, but it’s a risky experiment. Instead of selecting teams for the here and now, they are chosen on the notion of what might work for the bigger picture. A team for tomorrow rather than a team for today.

Which puts a dent of sorts in the status of the Test match at Ellis Park. These games will always be full-bore, thunderous affairs, but it might have something of the phoney war about it.

If this is a Bok team in development phase – which might be a little late anyway – any chance of getting onto a roll could be destroyed. Remember, this is a single-round tournament because it is World Cup year. The scalp of the All Blacks, no matter how diminished they are sans Dan Carter and Sonny Bill Williams, must thus be claimed this weekend. The next time is likely to come in the World Cup semi-final itself. The momentum generated off a win at Ellis Park just 55 days out from the World Cup would be massive.

A reverse, however, would plant seeds of doubt, especially as it would be the third on the bounce (excluding the World XV lark). Not ideal.

The nature of Test rugby militates against being too cocksure about your World Cup picks, even now. Injury and form could wreak havoc with Heyneke Meyer’s plans. He would be the first to admit that he’s hardly ever selected a XV he was 100 percent satisfied with, mainly because injuries are an unhappy by-product of his job.

The same holds true for the All Blacks. This is by no means their best team. They too run the risk of blowing whatever momentum they have.

Joburg’s likely dank weather will be welcomed by the Boks – the softer the surface, the better for them against the hard-running All Blacks. This is especially true because two things were starkly evident in Brisbane last week: the Boks’ lack of out and out pace and a flagging of their energies.

The battle on the ground will be savage. Even if the Boks gain parity, or better, the All Black backs have serious gas to burn.

I expect them to rip our guts out.

SuperSport rolls with heartening RWC campaign

Posted on July 16, 2015 by ClintonV

France’s Franck Mesnel.

What do Princess Charlene, Ladysmith Black Mambazo and Miss World Rolene Strauss have in common?

They are all members of the star-studded cast assembled by SuperSport for its ambitious Rugby World Cup campaign which kicks off this weekend.

The campaign incorporates famous South African and international personalities pledging “Our Hearts Are In It”, the SuperSport slogan crafted for the tournament.

The campaign is highlighted by two 90-second promos and more than a dozen 60-second vignettes with famous people recalling their best rugby memories.

Among those in the promos, in clips featuring them clutching at their hearts, are PJ Powers, Trevor Noah, Morné du Plessis, Bryan Habana, Chester Williams, Strauss, Sean Fitzpatrick, Franck Mesnel, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Princess Charlene, Ryk Neethling, Hekkie Budler, Sam Warburton and Richard Hill.

Francois Pienaar.

Ogilvy, DStv’s advertising agency, presented the strategy of rallying the nation around the “Hearts Are In It” call and this formed the brief SuperSport put to various production houses.

“We have to get people behind the Boks. We are also a broadcaster of the event, so we couldn’t be aligned solely to the Boks. We had to truly be the World of Champions,” explained Katherine Hughes, SuperSport’s on-air marketing manager.

Admit One Productions won the pitch on the basis of their concept, which encompassed multiple platforms, in line with SuperSport’s broadcast strategy.

“They produced so much content that one 60-second promo became two 90-seconders with much more for online and elsewhere,” added Hughes. DStv’s Catch Up service and digital platforms will also showcase the campaign.

While the bulk of the shoots took place in South Africa, many did not. Admit One also travelled to Wales, Ireland, England, France and Monaco to secure big names like Fitzpatrick, Princess Charlene and former World Cup winner Richard Hill. In all, they were allocated 23 shoot days to secure all the footage.

The man we love to hate – Sean Fitzpatrick (who could not have been more helpful or friendly).

Said Ruette Steyn, chief producer of Admit One: “The concept and timeframe was so easy to understand. It was an emotional thing, so everyone knew what we wanted. We needed 15 minutes, tops.”

She was delighted with the outcome: “This campaign was the one we were waiting for. You dream of putting content like this together.”

Voiceover artist Patrick Willis has years of experience and even he was blown away by the impact. “It’s one of the most powerful pieces I’ve ever seen and even my bokkie was close to tears,” he remarked.

There were some quirky moments along the way, like seeing Miss World manage a wardrobe change in a car in front of the Union Buildings.

One-time All Black nemesis Fitzpatrick hosted the crew at Stoke Park golf club in Nuckinghamshire. Former England football player and manager Glenn Hoddle wandered past and then Fitzpatrick walked up holding a bacon sandwich and a coffee.

“He was the consummate pro, just lovely,” said Steyn. “He asked how Naas Botha was doing.”

Noah was as funny as you would expect and ad-libbed his way through any number of humorous moments.

As John Smit was preparing for his shoot on Durban pier, a jogger ran past. “So when are the Sharks gonna win again?” he blurted out.

“Ja,” said Smit, the Sharks’ chief executive, “I get a lot of that these days.”

There was a hairier moment during a crowd scene shoot that required a podium and seating for a crowd shot. At one point an extra’s hair caught alight, to which Springbok Oupa Mahoje enquired “I think someone’s smoking at the back.”

Fortunately no great harm came to the unfortunate woman.

Hughes said the Springboks were great fun to work with. “You would be surprised at some of the antics. They have amazing camaraderie and were so patient. ‘Take 100’ would be no problem for them.”

The vignettes boast content gold with the like of Ashwin Willemse, Springbok PR manager AnneLee Murray, 1995 World Cup announcer Malcolm Gooding, Hall of Fame TV producer Scott Seward and Fikile Mbalula sharing heartfelt rugby cameos.

PJ Powers.

The two promos will play out tomorrow, to coincide with the Springboks’ first match of the Rugby Championship against Australia.

The 13 stories will begin flighting on August 1.

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