Proudly South African
Due to a sport boycott during the apartheid era, South Africa only participated in eight Rugby World Cup tournaments, which is two less than the other first tier rugby playing nations. Yet, our national rugby team, aka the Springboks, won the Webb Ellis Cup four times, which is more than anybody else - even though they had less opportunity to do so, effectively winning the world cup 50% of the times they participated.
They won every single final they played. They made it to the semi finals five or six times. Regrettably I cannot find the exact number but I'm sure somebody will correct me. And, together with France and New Zealand, they never failed to make it to the quarter finals.
Twice they lost a pool game and still went on to win the Rugby World cup; something else nobody else could do.
But the most remarkable thing is that there are no big names in the Springbok team, nobody that is best in the world in his position; just a very efficient rugby machine running on all cylinders. A team of selfless players playing for their country. A team that never gives up.
In a country like South Africa where there is very little to be proud of, this is huge; a sport that has never failed to unite our rainbow nation.
Comments (9)
South Africa - 4/8 - 50% success
New Zealand - 3/10 - 30% success
Australia - 2/10 - 20% success
England - 1/10 - 10% success
Easy to see in which hemisphere the rugby strength is. It's no wonder the European press were so crazy to predict all northern hemisphere semi finals.
I have a vague idea that the 'high lift' used for lineouts caused huge controversy when the Springboks re-entered the rugby world, as they lifted higher than was usual and other teams complained bitterly, then learned how to do it themselves? Can't be sure as I wasn't a particular fan of rugby way back then, it was Jonah Lomu who got me watching avidly. He recruited a lot of fans ...
As a spectator I like the players I can recognise easily, even when covered in mud, which put Faf de Klerk and Eben Etzebeth, little and large, in the pound seats - I miss Percy Montgomery, handsomest player EVER
Well done SA for winning and thrilling the country to the core. France would have been the crowd pleaser, since they hosted, but not to be. The final was better than expected but I still think the quarterfinals this year had the most exciting rugby for spectators!
Just a little too much in my opinion.
At the start of the tournament the rankings were:
1 Ireland
2 France
3 South Africa
4 New Zealand
5 Scotland
8 England
After the tournament:
1 South Africa
2 Ireland
3 New Zealand
4 France
5 England
6 Scotland
Interestingly, other than itself, South Africa had to play every country in this list.
This head contact rule is going to kill rugby. Hell man, rugby is a contact sport. They will have to change that law even if they have to make scrum caps compulsory. Players are being send off for bullshìt.
I see some wandering soul has grown tired of troubling me. Or maybe he just doesn't want to be drawn into such a conversation given the dismal performance of his team.
Pool B was the dearth pool. At least one of Ireland(1), South Africa(3) and Scotland (5) had to be eliminated. As it is, Scotland had to go.
The quarter finals were even more dooming. Either ireland(1) or New Zealand(4) and France(2) or South Africa(3) would not reach the semi finals. As things went the two top teams, Ireland and France, went home. This four teams should not have met until the semi finals.
Very poor organisation.
jmo.
And he cost us the game when he did nothing when Ireland pulled down a mail a meter from the he try line. It should have been a penalty try.