Bob Dwyer Rugby Workshops

Ellis Park, Johannesburg. 4th July, 2009

When it is played at its best, to the full scope that the laws of the game allow, with ambition and courage and a belief in your own ability, rugby is a beautiful game. Surely, it is the best game.

Many will say that soccer football, at its best, offers the same beauty, but, for me, the addition of the enormous physicality required, tips the scales hugely in favour of rugby.

This was a great series. At different times, the play of each team was irresistible and we anticipated a clear-cut victory. Then gradually the momentum changed and it was the other team who looked unstoppable. The height of elation, then the depths of despair. Great theatre and we loved it.

None of this yesterdayhowever.

This final test belonged to the Lions.

Unflagging defence resisted numerous Springbok opportunities and inspired flashes of speed and skill brought a steady supply of points for the Lions. The Springboks were a little down on their normal commitment. Initially they were short on passion and enthusiasm and finally they descended into petulance and nastiness. They let themselves down.

They clearly came into this game under-prepared.

First of all they made ten (10) changes to the run-on team from the second test. “No problem fellas, we’ve won the series. We’ll give the second stringers a go. You can finish ‘em off for us.” Then we had the constant harping about the unfairness of the suspension of Bakkies Botha. I agree that he receives unfair treatment. If it was fair, he’d be still serving his tenth suspension, and that’s only for this season!

The wearing of the pathetic arm-band protest was an insult to the rugby judiciary and served only to distract the Springbok players still further from the task at hand.

No such problems for the Lions though. They had a clear goal in front of mind and clear strategies on how to achieve that goal.

They also had leadership on and off the field that was determined not to let this last opportunity slip.

The tour party leaders deserve great acclaim. Gerald Davies, Ian McGeechan,  Warren Gatland, Shaun Edwards and Graham Rowntree have all contributed to this great victory. That it was achieved against the odds, with a team that had been decimated with injury, against a great rugby nation and in a stadium where visiting teams rarely celebrate, made it great.

It occurred to me that all of these “tour leaders” are great blokes and I think that this is a significant factor. The stories coming from the team of harmony, team spirit, a determination to succeed, a ready acceptance of responsibility - e.g. Phil Vickery  - a respect for your opponent – e.g. Lions’ support for Botha’s on-field action – speaks volumes for the character of these men.

And then we come to the fantastic leadership of Paul O’Connell. I don’t know Paul at all, but I’ve watched him now for, I guess, for seven or so years.

His actions surely speak louder than his words, although, as an Irishman, he’s no doubt pretty good with the chat as well. Shane Williams has been quoted as saying that his skipper’s pre-match words were inspirational. That was certainly true in terms on Shane’s inspired performance on the field, but for me, the Man-of-the-Match was Paul O’Connell.

There were plenty of other Lions players in the reckoning for the award also, with superb contributions from Heaslip, Phillips, Jones, Martyn W, Worsley  and Flutey . Both props did great work at the scrum, although it was a lottery for the penalty, but around the field, both in defence and in the ball carry, they were superb.

A couple of factors in the Lions’ attacking play stood out for me.

First of all, the backs ran straight, passes were short and in front of the receiver, and support was always on hand, “on the natural loop”. “Early pass and back up” was the order of the day. I’ve borrowed the quotes from an old master, Mark Ella, and he wasn’t too bad. This kept the Springbok defence busy and, more often than not, one-on-one. The Bok defence subsequently struggled with the steppers, notably, Riki Flutey  and Shane Williams. Food for thought for the Tri-Nations opposition.

Then, there were “numbers at the tackle contest” in support of the ball-carrier! This is a hallmark of Warren Gatland teams. He has this strangely old-fashioned idea that the forwards should get in and do the donkey work and the backs should get back into position to take advantage. Sure, you can help your mates out occasionally, but, by and large, these are the required roles. Turnover ball from immediate counter-rucking was therefore not uncommon. More food for thought!

This is straight out of my appreciation of how the game should be played and I loved it. How we have ever allowed the in-vogue style of play to depart from this simple and beautiful style is outside of my comprehension. It’s in for a dig, but I’ll say it anyway. “You can read plenty about it on my web site!”

The Lions defence was inspired and inspiring. Front-on was good, but scrambling back was perhaps the best I’ve ever seen. Top of the class, Shaun Edwards.

There was a tackle, early in the game, on Odwa Ndungane, who seemed certain to score, by Matthew Rees. Rob Kearney was immediately on hand to steal the ball. This is not a common tackle for a hooker and it was vital, as immediately after, the Springbok lineout ball was disrupted; the Lions backs realigned to spread the attack and from the tackle, Heaslip broke away from a less-than-committed tackle and Shane Williams scored. A 10-14 point turn-around from Rees’ marvelous work!

Soon after, Ndungane broke away again, this time down the right wing. The ball came back infield at the tackle only to be fielded by Heaslip running back. A promising Springbok 5 metre scrum-feed followed but the Boks were penalised, not for the first time. Another try-scoring situation relieved by a tireless Lions defence.

The Springboks on the other hand were not prepared to do the hard yards. If someone could break away and score, then fine. If we can smash our way through from a 5 metre lineout, then that’s fine also. But, if we have to knuckle down, play quality rugby and ask questions of the defence, right across the paddock, then we’re not up to it this week! That’s what I was seeing.

Alignment was haphazard, realignment almost non-existent. Long passes were the order of the day, just ask Ugo Monye. Running an unders line into a gap and moving defences to make space for support players was unheard of; we could ask Zane Kirchner. There were no support players anyway; they were getting ready for the next play.

Good attack is about asking questions of the defence. If the only question is “Are you physically strong enough to stop me?”, then that has only one answer possible. If however, the attack poses a few more possibilities, such as changes of angle, looping runner/s and an inside runner arriving from depth, then that’s a far more difficult question. More so if you add the physical question also. Alas, although we saw some of this in the first two tests from the Boks, there was none of it yesterday.

Their sole “inspiration” was the Hail Mary – the long floating pass over (generally) the umbrella defence employed by the Lions. I hate long passes at the best of times – they’re an excuse for lack of ball skills and lack of ambition – but to fail to take advantage of the attacking opportunities offered by a rush umbrella defence is downright criminal.

The Lions were clear victors in all departments.

It was a great series with some truly great moments.

There were controversies, which is ok also. Makes for some good topics of conversation over a beer.

A lot more can and will be said. Maybe some more next week!