@SidBarret said in Springboks v All Blacks 2:
@FakatavaAllBlack
I really dont mean to put the boot in, but that is like third of the team. In the 20 odd years that i have been following the All Blacks I can't remember a time when there were so many holes to fill all at the same time.
As Springboks supporter ive seen us many times compounding one disaster with another while All Blacks were the model of consistently building a better side. Theyd deal with issues as they arise. On the rare occasion that they werent the best team in the world they were always one or two tweaks away from getting there.
This is the first time when i have seen all Blacks have multiple issues to resolve all at the same time.
I don't think foster is a good coach, but next man in that position will have very tough job.
Hi Sid. Personally, I don't think the personnel are the major problem. Sure, the players aren't as good as the 2015 team, but that isn't the main issue.
Whatever gameplan has been decided upon by Foster, it either hasn't been communicated effectively, or, it isn't the right plan for the test arena. Time moves on. The ABs are behind the curve in terms of where test rugby has moved onto.
For example, the ABs used to use their fitness and dynamism to wear teams down and blast them away in the last 20 mins. That just doesn't happen anymore. The game is too stop/start and the fitness of other teams has caught up, so any advantage is minimal. Add into that the drop in basic skill execution by the ABs when under pressure, and you have a problem.
Foster won the coaching ticket on the back of saying that he would evolve the team from where it had stagnated under Hansen, and yet, there has been no real evolution. Now the ABs are faced with needing a revolution as their play has become stale.
Many questions were asked of the Boks when they lost 57-0 in 2017. The players that went to the RWC were available (bar a couple that came through late on), but the gameplan the players were being asked to play didn't suit them. They played like they didn't know or trust each other. Rassie simplified things down and created an environment that everyone bought into.
Foster may be a decent hands on coach, but he has presided over the development of a poor culture in a team that used to pride itself on having the highest of standards. It doesn't anymore, and it shows. The players need some leadership to be shown to them, much like what Henry had to do in 2004. Is Foster capable of that? I don't think it is in his nature, so the answer is no.
So what is left is the decision to bring in an outsider, not tainted by being part of the current regime, to sweep the floors out and start again.
The RWC 2023 is gone for NZ. They might fluke it, but the plan has to be long term now. Each test needs to be treated as if it is the last and the high standards and high performance culture needs to be reinstalled.
Until that happens, SS All Black will keep on listing and take further damage.