Springboks center-half Handre Pollard has offered his thoughts on his call-up to the squad, South Africa’s Rugby World Cup campaign, and their strategies throughout the competition.
Malcolm Marx sustained an injury on the training ground during the pool stages, which led to Pollard’s call-up after he had initially been left out of the squad due to injury.
He went on to score 33 points, including 12 in the championship game, and convert all 13 of his shots on goal, playing a crucial part in the Springboks’ title defense.
Absent from the first squad
The playmaker, who finished as the tournament’s top scorer with 69 points, was an important part of the 2019 team that won the World Cup in Japan.
Though he was expected to recover from his injury during the pool stages, he was not included in the first team to defend the championship in Japan.
Pollard said on the Big Jim Show that while he was first sad, he realized the choice was not “personal” and that it was in the team’s best interests.
“It’s very straightforward: you won’t be in the squad if you don’t train, are unavailable to play, and don’t show up,” stated Pollard.
“It makes no difference who you are. Given his knee injury, Siya [Kolisi] was in danger; we are all aware of the story behind that. That is a matter of fact. Nothing about it is personal; it is what it is.
“The guys on standby were just told to stay ready, return to their clubs, and in case something happened, we might call you back.”
Pollard did receive the call, but it wasn’t what you would have expected because hooker Marx had a knee injury that prevented him from competing in the competition.
“I certainly don’t think that I was going to get the call when Malcolm [Marx] went down because it’s such a specialized position, and we were thin there as well,” he continued. “But I got the call, and it was unbelievable.”
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Bench splits as well as following the trends
The Springboks went one step further in France, choosing seven forwards and one back for their pool stage match against Ireland, after they had previously made headlines for benching two backs and six forwards at the World Cup in Japan.
For the quarterfinals and semifinals, they went back to the traditional 5-3 split, but for the championship matchup with New Zealand, they brought back the 7-1 split.
Pollard clarified that the mood in camp was very different from the perception held by many, who believed that the tactics and the choice to use them were chaotic.
“No, no, no, I know that some of what we do looks chaotic and crazy, but it’s not; it’s a mutual trust that’s growing between the coaches and players, and vice versa. When they come up with these ideas, which may seem crazy to people outside, they always put a lot of thought into them,” he said.
We talk about it honestly. We are aware of the risks associated with these choices and strategies, as well as the advantages on both ends. We will therefore accept it, and although it appears chaotic from the outside, it is actually incredibly serene.
Springboks will play another Twickenham Test in their first encounter after winning the Rugby World Cup.
Worry about the 7-1 split
The fly-half disclosed that, despite the players’ buy-in, there had been some lighthearted banter early in the week on who would step in if the backline had injuries.
“It is present, but it can also be a little concerning at times. The front row is fine, but the backs are particularly concerning,” he clarified.
“We were thinking a lot like we had cover for one injury everywhere, but if we lose two straight, as we have when we split 6-2, and we lose two players in the first ten minutes of the game, we are not looking good.
After the second injury, Kwagga Smith was supposed to defend on the blind wing, and Cheslin Kolbe was practicing his box kicks during the weeks. We had a good laugh at that, and Kolbe was hitting the kicks beautifully. I wasn’t expecting anything more from this freak.
“You try to find the humorous side of it too, but by the time of the tournament, it was all business.”
