BATTLE GROUNDS
THE TOUR is roaring and the Test series will soon be upon us. Can these Lions replicate the feats of 1974 and 1997 or will the Boks come out on top? We’ve canvassed the views of modern experts to look at the areas likely to be most impactful when determining the winners. We drill down into the importance of the maul, the kicking duel and whether leaders can get their team playing the ideal style. But first, it’s all about the scrums…
THE SCRUM
HYPE FOR the Test series isn’t exactly lacking as we prepare to see the Lions and Springboks throw down. But when it comes to battles within a battle, the heavyweight clash of two scrums gets top billing. And you can understand why.
In 1997, a supposedly lightweight Lions unit got under the monstrous South Africans and bloodied the nose of the world champions. In 2009, one Tendai ‘Beast’ Mtawarira wrought havoc as the men in green marched right over the tourists. And in the most recent World Cup, the South African set-piece and their self-styled ‘Bomb Squad’ caused merry chaos, as their front-line forwards and then brawny replacement front five went to work. In the final, they made shrapnel of the England eight.
So if we agree that victory in Africa is only possible if your set scrum is highly effective, we need to take a closer look at that set-piece. You might well think all scrums are created equal or hark back to the 1997 series for some sort of blueprint, but in 2021, in a world of hyper-professional forwards units who hear “crouch, bind, set” in their sleep, you need a definite identity.
Throughout the Test summer you will hear mention of the sheer size of the Springboks pack. Of their power. Their familiarity and their depth – that Bomb Squad again. They have lost loosehead Mtawarira to a well-earned retirement, but there are still so many familiar faces in there. And as Sharks scrum coach Etienne Fynn explains to Rugby World of the discourse around the Boks: “There is a very open and very evident focus on wanting to dominate that facet.”
In short, the
