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Can you “Adam and Eve” it? The Lions have picked Phil
Vickery to take on the Beast in what can only be described as “Round 2” given
what went down in that first Test in Durban. Reading a story on Sport24 this
morning, talking about the psychological battle Vickery would face if he were
picked to play in the final test, I had it in my mind that no one in their
right mind would select Vickery again. Not after the massacre that saw him get
his pilot’s wings in Round 1 …
Well, blow me down with a feather. Not just in the 22,
but in the run on XV nogal! And the Lions got to see the Bok side before they
selected theirs! I know scrum coach Graham Rowntree has been talking up little
Phil’s character, but no need to put it on display like this!
That said, one Andrew Sheridan gets a Test start for the
first time on tour, and that will surely have John Smit at the squat machine
this week, along with spending a few hours with the video editing man, taking a
close look his technique. Make no mistake – Sheridan is a colossal scummager,
and Smit will have to be on top of his game - but against a well drilled pack, a
category into which the Bok pack certainly fit, his individual strength does
tend to get nullified a bit. And of course, there are also the new boys in and around
the props. Chiliboy gets a start, so that will be slightly disruptive to what
was an “All Sharks” front row, and of course Johann Muller comes in to replace
the banned Bakkies Botha. Both are known for the scrumming, so one would hope
that it would not be too disruptive to the bok cause, but in Bismarck and
Bakkies, the Boks loose a lot of very solid muscle …
Still - John Hayes, that solid if unspectacular Irish tighthead,
would surely have been a better bet? He is on the bench, though, and my money
is on the Irishman spending a fair amount of time on the Ellis Park turf after
Vickery has been dispatched …
The teams for Saturday:
The Springbok team:
15. Zane Kirchner,
14. Odwa Ndungane, 13. Jaque Fourie, 12. Wynand Olivier, 11. Jongi Nokwe, 10.
Morné Steyn, 9. Fourie du Preez, 8. Ryan Kankowski, 7. Juan Smith, 6. Heinrich
Brüssow, 5. Victor Matfield, 4. Johann Muller, 3. John Smit (c), 2. Chiliboy
Ralepelle, 1. Tendai Mtawarira
Bench: 16.
Bismarck du Plessis, 17. Gurthrö Steenkamp, 18. Deon Carstens, 19. Steven Sykes,
20. Pierre Spies, 21. Ruan Pienaar, 22. Frans Steyn
The British and
Irish Lions team:
Rob Kearney (IRL); Ugo Monye (ENG), Tommy Bowe (IRL),
Riki Flutey (ENG), Shane Williams (WAL); Stephen Jones (WAL), Mike Phillips
(WAL); Jamie Heaslip (IRL), Martyn Williams (WAL), Joe Worsley (ENG); Paul
O'Connell (IRL, capt), Simon Shaw (ENG); Phil Vickery (ENG), Matthew Rees
(WAL), Andrew Sheridan (ENG)
Bench: Ross
Ford (SCO), John Hayes (IRL), Alun Wyn Jones (WAL), David Wallace (IRL), Tom
Croft (ENG), Harry Ellis (ENG), James Hook (WAL)
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