Mike Greenaway
London: The exuberant second row of Lood de Jager and Eben Etzebeth have deservedly been getting the plaudits after the Springboks’ back-to-back World Cup wins, but the vastly experienced loose trio isn’t doing too badly either.
Duane Vermeulen (30 test caps), Francois Louw (38) and Schalk Burger (81) will start tonight’s Pool B game against the USA as a unit for the third game in a row, and their commanding presence in the wins against Samoa and Scotland suggest they are right up there with the best loose trios at this global gathering.
Australia boast two of the best fetchers in the world in David Pocock and Michael Hooper in a loose trio completed by Scott Fardy; the All Blacks have three of the best on the planet in Richie McCaw, Kieran Read and Jerome Kaino. But the South African loose-forward combination are moving towards that upper echelon.
At the beginning of the year, Bok coach Heyneke Meyer would have pencilled in Willem Alberts on the blindside flank in his ideal starting XV, along with Louw and Vermeulen, but that has changed.
The perpetually injured Alberts is now a bench man at best, and has come close to being sent home in exchange for a fit replacement. Burger has been in fantastic form and has played Alberts out of the starting equation.
Yesterday, Louw said he and his fellow loose forwards were looking forward to a third game together to further gel as a unit. They certainly know each other well enough, having started in this same formation in a number of games for the Stormers in the 2011 Super Rugby season, and the chemistry between them is increasingly explosive.
“Playing in this back row is special,” Louw said. “I feel privileged to be playing alongside a living legend in Schalk and one of the best No 8s in the world in Duane, and I feel we complement each other really well.
“We are bringing out the best in each other.”
Last year, Vermeulen was one of the nominees for World Rugby Player of the Year (won by All Black lock Brodie Retallick) and he scooped three awards at the SARU annual awards, including Player of the Year. Burger has evolved his game from a bruising bulldozer that took on brick walls, to a skilful offloader that can still crash over the advantage line when required. He attributes the increased versatility in his game to his first season spent in Japan playing a fast-paced game that demands higher skills from the forwards.
“Duane and Schalk bring a hang of a lot on defence and attack, and my role is more ball focused,” Louw said. “Schalk has become much looser in his play, more of a carrier looking to make a pass, and is a true link between forwards and backs. He puts himself in that role often.
“Duane has been immense since he came back from three months of injury and started in the most physical game possible — Samoa. I’m not sure if people realise what a leader he is in the team. He is very vocal and leads from the front when the guys need to be pulled together. The forwards follow him and he instinctively knows when the guys need a bit of direction.”
Louw added that Vermeulen had been an invaluable injection of positivity to the team after their shock opening round defeat to Japan.
“It makes my job of attacking the ball so much easier when I am playing next to guys that are so committed,” the 30-year-old said. “I am free to focus on the breakdown, which is what the coach wants from me, so it is great to play in this trio knowing that they are taking care of a lot of the dirty work.”
Line-ups for Olympic Stadium
South Africa:–15 Willie le Roux, 14 Bryan Habana, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Lwazi Mvovo, 10 Handré Pollard, 9 Fourie du Preez (captain), 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Schalk Burger, 6 Francois Louw, 5 Lood de Jager, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Tendai Mtawarira. Bench:16 Schalk Brits, 17 Trevor Nyakane, 18 Coenie Oosthuizen, 19 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 20 Willem Alberts, 21 Rudy Paige, 22 Morné Steyn, 23 Jan Serfontein.
USA:15 Blaine Scully, 14 Brett Thompson, 13 Folau Niua, 12 Andrew Suniula, 11 Zach Test, 10 Shalom Suniula, 9 Niku Kruger, 8 Samu Manoa (captain), 7 John Quill, 6 Danny Barrett, 5 Matthew Trouville, 4 Louis Stanfill, 3 Chris Baumann, 2 Phil Thiel, 1 Oli Kilifi.
Bench:16 Joe Taufetee, 17 Zach Fenoglio, 18 Mate Moeakiola, 19 Titi Lamositele, 20 Cam Dolan, 21 Al McFarland, 22 Mike Petri, 23 Chris Wyles.
Kickoff time:5.45pm