Allister Coetzee is adamant that the selection of Pieter-Steph du Toit at blindside flank and Francois Louw at No 8 will provide the Boks with the best back-row balance. CRAIG LEWIS reports.
Coetzee sprung something of a surprise when he named both Du Toit and Louw in relatively unfamiliar positions in the back row for Saturday’s Test against the All Blacks, while also handing Lood de Jager his first start of the year ahead of Franco Mostert at No 5.
In the absence of the injured Uzair Cassiem, there was some expectation that Jean-Luc du Preez would receive another start, but Coetzee sought to explain the reasoning behind his loose-trio selections.
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‘I think there were two most important factors that I took into consideration. Firstly, I wanted us to go out and play with our most experienced players, and then secondly to ensure that we fix what didn’t go well in Albany, such as our lineouts.
‘I think for this game, we’ve got the perfect combination and balance. Pieter-Steph is a great lineout exponent, he carries the ball well, and then we’ve got the two loosies [Kolisi and Louw] who can play on the ground and carry in the wide channels.’
Although it will be a first Test start for Louw at No 8, Coetzee insisted that the position wouldn’t require a drastic change in approach from the regular openside flanker.
‘Flo is really confident playing at No 8, and it’s not that he hasn’t played there before. The big thing is that No 8 and No 6 are actually very similar positions, and as an openside flank, he is accurate in terms of playing towards the ball and securing possession.
‘It’s similar to when I coached Duane [Vermeulen], he was also a No 8 who played towards the ball, and the bonus is that we still have Flo who can also contest on the ground.’
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Du Toit has twice started on the flank at Test level, the first coming in an infamous loss against Japan at the 2015 World Cup, while against England last year he was horribly exposed in terms of his defence around the fringes.
However, Coetzee said Du Toit had worked hard at addressing those shortcomings.
‘I can’t comment on the performance against Japan, but yes, against England it maybe didn’t go well on the defensive front, but ever since then he has grown and improved a lot. I think you’ll see a much improved Pieter-Steph on the flank this Saturday.
‘He’s made a real conscious effort to be prepared to face a running scrumhalf, which presents challenges on defence. Being a tall man, he understands what to expect now, and we’ve worked at his body position and ensuring that with the guys around him, he stays within the mini unit.’
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The selection of Du Toit and De Jager in the starting lineup is also clearly in keeping with the Boks’ plan to rectify a lineout that horribly malfunctioned in the 57-0 loss to the All Blacks in Albany.
Coetzee said the first priority on Saturday would be to ensure the Boks secured and protected possession from their key phases.
‘I think the plan is just to get the ball. If you also look at Lood starting, it’s part of ensuring that we have the right options out there, and then we have Franco Mostert providing impact off the bench. Lood is an experienced lineout forward, and with Pieter-Steph there too, you can see that there is quality for our lineout plan.
‘We have to have an improvement at lineout time, Lood is an experienced player and he should add value in terms of both attacking and defensive lineouts, while Pieter-Steph will just add another option at the back. At the end of the day, you have to have loosies that can jump [at the lineout], especially now that Uzair is out.’
Photo: Kai Schwoerer/Getty Images
