South Africans are well known for their love of a physically attritional brand of Rugby, and we can see a shining of example of that in the above clip from an amateur game.

The tackler, known as Big Andy, despite being slightly late with his hit absolutely smashes the opposition player just after he offloads the ball.

Youtube Credit: Johan Wandrag

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Prior to next months South African leg of the HSBC World Sevens, the Cell C Nelson Mandela Bay Sevens Tournament , the tournaments organizers have produced this funny video depicting stereotypical characters from some of the participating nations, England, Scotland, Australia & France.

Also, the South African 7’s team provide a cameo appearance.

Youtube Credit: BokTube SARU.

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Munster have today confirmed that they will sign Western Province and former South Africa U20 centre Patrick Howard on a three month deal.

Howard, 22, was a part of the the Springboks victorious Junior World Cup squad of 2012 and will provide much needed depth in Munster’s midfield, after injuries to Keith Earls, Cian Bohane and the deferral of Crusader utility back Tyler Bleyendaal’s arrival as he recovers from a serious neck injury.

Speaking on Howard’s signing, Munster coach, Anthony Foley, is pleased with the support that the South African can offer his squad at a key juncture in their season.

With players ruled out due to injury and a few other niggles we want to make sure we have a full spread available to us before we enter the next crucial period and Howard can provide that additional support.”

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Only a day in and the Gold Coast 7’s has provided us with some epic moments, including this amazing try saving tackle by South Africa’s Seabelo Senatla versus Wales.

Wales’ Will Harries made a break and looked almost certain to score before Senatla intervened tackling and rolling the Welshman into touch, only inches short of the try-line.

Senatla’s perseverance paid dividends.

Youtube Credit: irb

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The Springboks are ranked second and the Wallabies third going into the penultimate-round southern hemisphere contest at tradition-steeped Newlands stadium. But the Wallabies would rise to second behind world champions New Zealand if they can end a 22-year Cape Town jinx.

Since a 26-3 win there in 1992 over opponents making only their second appearance after years of apartheid-induced isolation, the Wallabies have suffered six consecutive losses.

Australia turned the tables this month with a 24-23 win in Perth that proved anything but a celebration for Springbok wing Bryan Habana as he reached the 100-cap milestone. He was controversially yellow-carded late in the second half for a tackle on Adam Ashley-Cooper and the Wallabies took advantage to snatch victory via a late Rob Horne try.

South Africa lost again one week later, going down 14-10 to nemesis New Zealand, albeit after a much more passionate, defensively strong display. Those losses and Australia being beaten away to New Zealand have left the Springboks and Wallabies six points adrift of the All Blacks with two rounds to go.

And if New Zealand gain an expected win in Argentina later on Saturday and collect a four-try bonus point they will seal a third consecutive Championship title. Given they have the tougher final-round fixture – at home to the All Blacks – South Africa must overcome Australia to have a realistic chance of finishing runners-up for the second successive season.

“This will be a tough outing and we have to fire on all cylinders for the full 80 minutes,” said Springboks coach Heyneke Meyer. “It is great to be back in South Africa after three tough games on the road and we are looking forward to playing in front of our supporters.

“We have had a couple of great training sessions and there is a definite resolve to improve the quality of our performance on Saturday.”

Australia coach Ewen McKenzie believes the set-piece contests are set to play a crucial role in the outcome of the test.

“Set pieces are always an important focus for us – even more so when you play South Africa,” said the former Wallaby prop. “We realise the outcome of the scrums and line-outs will be vital to the final result. The Springboks always rise to another level when playing at home and we are under no illusions as to the challenges ahead.

“But we are looking forward to those challenges, in South Africa and in Argentina, as we continue evolving and improving our game.”

South Africa have made two injury-enforced changes to the side that started against New Zealand with scrumhalf Francois Hougaard and flanker Teboho Mohoje replacing Ruan Pienaar and Francois Louw.

Meyer has dismissed concerns about run-on debutant Mohoje, a 24-year-old who made his senior rugby debut only this year, being ring rusty.

“His match sharpness is a concern having last played in July, but he is very fit,” said Meyer of a forward expected to play 50 minutes before veteran Schalk Burger comes off the bench.

McKenzie has changed both wings from the team that edged Argentina with Adam Ashley-Cooper and Joe Tomane replacing Peter Betham and Horne. The other alteration is at hooker with Saia Fainga’a coming in for injured Tatafu Polota-Nau, and the inclusion of experienced prop Benn Robinson is among the bench changes.

KEY MATCH-UPS

Joe Tomane v Cornal Hendricks

Finally injury-free, Tomane makes a welcome return to the Wallabies backline for his first Test start since Australia’s win over Wales last December. Tomane replaces Rob Horne on the left wing, and the Brumbies flyer can expect anything other than a quiet reintroduction to Test rugby. That’s if the Wallabies follow the instructions of Fox Sports Rugby expert Rod Kafer, who says Tomane’s direct opponent — Hendricks — represents a weakness in the Boks backline.

“This is where the opportunity is for the Wallabies — get the ball and target Cornal Hendricks,” Kafer said on Rugby HQ. “He gets caught a lot in defence. There’s absolutely an opportunity for the Wallabies, if they can move the ball to the far left they’ll score some tries down Cornal Hendricks’ wing.” Of course, Hendrick does pose a big attacking threat of his own having scored five tries in his seven Tests to date, so Tomane will also have to aim up in defence.

Ben McCalman v Duane Vermeulen

Wycliff Palu’s continued absence through concussion provides McCalman with another chance to lock down a starting role for the Wallabies. The Western Force star has shrugged off the challenge of Scott Higginbotham to hold on to the No. 8 jersey, but will have his hands full up against the big Boks pack and particularly Vermeulen.

The abrasive back-rower was a powerhouse when he went toe-to-toe with reigning world player of the year Kieran Read in Wellington a fortnight ago. The Wallabies — in particular prop James Slipper, who was on the receiving of a brutal hit that was harshly penalised in Perth a fortnight ago — also know full well the damage that Vermeulen can cause. McCalman was solid in Australia’s narrow win over Argentina last start, and his ball-carrying and strong work-rate will be needed to help the Wallabies match the Springboks up front.

Bernard Foley v Handre Pollard

Foley’s return to the No. 10 jersey has coincided with back-to-back victories for the Wallabies, and he has the chance to steer them to a drought-breaking third-straight win when he starts a Test on the road for the first time. The Waratahs star’s attacking stats make for good reading — two line breaks, six tackle busts, and 122 run metres in those two triumphs — and he continues to impress as a goal-kicker.

Along with his clutch match-winning conversion against South Africa in Perth, Foley is yet to miss a penalty goal attempt in this season’s Rugby Championship, landing nine from nine. This weekend he’ll line up for the first time against young gun Pollard, who wins his first Test start against the Wallabies after being overlooked for the Perth loss. The occasion certainly won’t worry the 20-year-old, who was thrust into South Africa’s subsequent clash with the All Blacks in Wellington. He looked right at home against the world champions on their home turf, and should feel even more comfortable on home soil.

Prediction

The Wallabies are yet to find consistency this year, but will need to do so if they are to have any hope against the Springboks at their hoodoo venue.

Both the Wallabies and the Springboks need to win to stay in contact with the All Blacks at the top of the table, while at the same time hoping Argentina can pull off an upset against the All Blacks.

The Springboks have the obvious strength in the forwards and will be looking to exploit that later today. The Wallabies will need to ‘hang-tough’ to be in with a chance of pulling off an upset against the No. 2 ranked team.

The Wallabies have made a habit of making matches close, and I don’t expect that to change tonight, however, I can’t see them getting on top of the Springboks in Cape Town. I’m tipping the South Africa by 5 in a last 10 nail-biter.

Teams

Australia: Israel Folau, Adam Ashley-Cooper, Tevita Kuridrani, Matt Toomua, Joe Tomane, Bernard Foley, Nick Phipps; James Slipper, Saia Faingaa, Sekope Kepu, Sam Carter, Rob Simmons, Scott Fardy, Michael Hooper (captain), Ben McCalman.

Bench: James Hanson, Benn Robinson, Ben Alexander, James Horwill, Scott Higginbotham, Nic White, Kurtley Beale, Rob Horne.

South Africa: Willie le Roux, Cornal Hendricks, Jan Serfontein, Jean de Villiers (captain), Bryan Habana, Handre Pollard, Francois Hougaard; Tendai Mtawarira, Adriaan Strauss, Jannie du Plessis, Eben Etzebeth, Victor Matfield, Marcell Coetzee, Teboho Mohoje, Duane Vermeulen.

Bench: Bismarck du Plessis, Trevor Nyakane, Marcel van der Merwe, Bakkies Botha, Schalk Burger, Cobus Reinach, Pat Lambie, JP Pietersen.

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More often than not when these two teams meet, it’s a match-up of the top two nations in world rugby, and there is no difference today. The Boks have looked a little shaky as of late, narrowly scraping past Argentina twice and losing narrowly to the Wallabies last weekend.

The tourists must settle on their game plan, too often this year it almost looks as if they’re not too sure what to do, kick-chase or play expansive. The All Blacks are missing some key players for this game, but on paper, would still appear to have more cohesion and flair.

While most nations can only dream of beating the All Blacks, South Africa’s Springboks have won against them 34 times. New Zealand has dominated in recent decades and still has the edge in the head-to-heads, with 50 victories, but the win percentage of 57% is its lowest against anyone.

New Zealand has won their last 35 matches at home, easily a record – 13 more than the next nearest nation has managed. The All Blacks last loss in New Zealand can exactly five years ago. And the opponents on that day was South Africa who departed Waikato Stadium with a 32-29 victory. The Springboks have now lost to New Zealand in their last five meetings.

Steve Hanson’s job has been made a little more difficult with injuries to Sam Whitelock and Liam Messam. Aaron Cruden moves into the starting line-up and Beauden Barrett shifting to the bench.

The Springboks have shown they are set on attack, naming 20-year olf Handre Pollard at fly half. “The forwards are settled, but we’re struggling to get continuity in the back-line.” Meyer said.

Referees have come under the spotlight in the Rugby Championship and adapting to Frenchman Jerome Garces could be crucial. Avoiding yellow cards and getting on the right side of scrum and technical ruck rulings are vital in tight Tests. Both teams have won five-from-five under Garces.

Key Match-Ups

Brodie Retallick v Eben Etzebeth

Two of the best young locks in world rugby will face off when Brodie Retallick and Eben Etzebeth do battle in Wellington on Saturday night.

The 23-year-old Retallick burst onto the scene with the Chiefs a couple of years ago and is now regarded as one of the most mobile locks on the planet. Busy in defence and a wonderful support player, Retallick has virtually become the prototype for the modern-day tall timber.

22-year-old Etzebeth probably doesn’t work as hard as his All Blacks rival but what he lacks in runs and tackles, he more than makes up for in raw aggression.

The Stormers giant is an excellent lineout option and although discipline can sometimes be a worry, he is capable of producing the kind of bone-jarring tackles that can turn a game.

Ma’a Nonu v Jean De Villiers

Springboks captain Jean De Villiers wouldn’t have it any other way, yet another showdown with great rival Ma’a Nonu is surely the skipper’s dream result in what is his 100th Test.

De Villiers was quoted earlier this week saying that he thought he’d never play another Test such was the horror show that was his debut way back in 2002, yet the blond bomber will go down as one of the great Bok backs when he eventually wraps up his stellar career.

The centurion has faced off with Nonu in many a Test, and the hard-running, hard-hitting duo know exactly what to expect from each other. The All Blacks No.12 has the advantage of having the experienced Aaron Cruden back at No.10 and that could be crucial early on.

Rising star Handre Pollard will face the All Blacks for the first time and the young flyhalf is bound to feel a few nerves in the opening stages. De Villiers will need to be a calming influence.

Israel Dagg v Willie Le Roux

They may not possess the raw power and athleticism of Israel Folau but rival fullbacks Willie Le Roux and Israel Dagg boast other strengths in creativity and wonderful individual skill.

Dagg was left out of the Bledisloe clashes against Australia due to a lack of form but quickly rediscovered the magic in an ITM Cup stint with Hawkes Bay. His inclusion again keeps the classy Ben Smith on the wing and alongside Julian Savea, the trio make up the most fearsome back three in the game.

Le Roux has been one of the standout attack threats in Super Rugby over the last few seasons and is now matching those efforts on the Test arena. Coach Heyneke Meyer wants his side to play more attacking rugby and Le Roux would benefit from a greater licence to roam.

Both men have the ability to make the match-winning play.

Our Prediction

All Blacks v Springboks is the most anticipated match of the year, and this one promises to be a ripper. How the All Blacks copes with the power of the South African pack. As well as how the Springboks manage to shut-down the All Blacks out wide and take away the space the Kiwi’s thrive on, will be key for both teams, and who ever adapts their respective challenges, best and quickest will have gone a long way to winning this match.

However, the All Blacks are on a 35 game winning steak at home, and we can’t see that trend changing today. We tip the All Blacks to win by 8.

Teams

New Zealand: 15 Israel Dagg, 14 Ben Smith, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Ma’a Nonu, 11 Julian Savea, 10 Aaron Cruden, 9 Aaron Smith, 1 Wyatt Crockett,  2 Dane Coles, 3 Owen Franks, 4 Brodie Retallick,  5 Jeremy Thrush,  6 Steven Luatua, 7 Richie McCaw (c), 8 Kieran Read.
Bench: 16 Keven Mealamu, 17 Joe Moody, 18 Ben Franks, 19 Patrick Tuipulotu, 20 Sam Cane, 21 TJ Perenara, 22 Beauden Barrett, 23 Cory Jane.

South Africa: 15 Wille le Roux, 14 Cornal Hendricks, 13 Jan Serfontein, 12 Jean de Villiers (c), 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Handre Pollard, 9 Ruan Pienaar, 1 Tendai Mtawarira, 2 Adriaan Strauss, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 5 Victor Matfield, 6 Francois Louw, 7 Marcell Coetzee, 8 Duane Vermeulen.
Bench: 16 Bismarck du Plessis, 17 Trevor Nyakane, 18 Marcel van der Merwe, 19 Lood de Jager, 20 Warren Whiteley, 21 Francois Hougaard, 22 Pat Lambie, 23 Damian de Allende.

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In Australia’s 24-23 Rugby Championship win over South Africa on Saturday last, Duane Vermeulen unleashed the beast all over Australia’s James Slipper with a thunderous tackle.

This is, we would imagine, what would happen if a freight train hit a bull Rhinoceros.

Youtube Credit: NZAUTV Rugby Union.

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South Africa coach Heyneke Meyer has spent the week stressing the difficulty of the task at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria (kickoff 1505 GMT) when many of rest of his compatriots are looking further ahead to the meetings with Australia and New Zealand in the annual four-nation competition.

“Argentina have always been difficult to play against so we are going out there to play our best rugby possible,” he told reporters.

A bruising forward challenge is expected as Argentina have shown signs of becoming a scrummaging force again and they will have a polished set of exciting backs to boot.

“In the scrum it’s a huge contest, you have to scrum well to get your ball. They have some of the best guys at the breakdowns,”

Meyer added of an Argentine team who have spent close to a month working on their conditioning at a high performance centre in Pensacola, Florida.

South Africa, who have captain Jean de Villiers back from injury, will be firm favourites to get off to a winning start but the unpredictable nature of the South Americans means the Springboks can never be sure of what they will be up against.

Although they are yet to win a Rugby Championship game, Argentina show continuing sign of improvement but usually offer either stout resistance or implode as they did last year when the Springboks romped home in a nine-try 73-13 rout at Johannesburg’s Soccer City.

 Scramble

A week later, however, albeit on Argentine soil, South Africa had to scramble two late penalties to squeeze home 22-17 in Mendoza.

Argentina have a familiar look about their line-up as well as a promise of freshness with the appointment of Daniel Hourcade as coach and hooker Agustin Creevy as new captain.

“South Africa are a thoroughbred team with strong players and a physical game both in attack and defence,”

Hourcade said on Thursday. He was appointed to a two-year contract after the end of last year’s Rugby Championship.

“Discipline will be crucial and we have talked a lot about this and trained hard for this. Defence is key but we will use our opportunities to attack,” he added.

The two countries meet again on Aug. 23 in Salta.

Prediction

As unpredictable as Argentina can be at times, this is easily the best Springboks side we’ve seen in recent memory. In what’s shaping up as the closest Rugby Championship/Tri Nations series we’ve seen in quite some time, I can’t help but feel for the Puma’s.

They will struggle against all opposition this year, and this game won’t be any different.

No matter which way I try to shed light on the game, it’s difficult to find positives for Argentina, and areas of the game where they may have an advantage.

I’m tipping South Africa to win in a canter – Springboks by 20.

Teams

South Africa: 15-Willie le Roux; 14-Cornal Hendricks, 13-Damian de Allende, 12-Jean de Villiers (captain), 11-Bryan Habana, 10-Handre Pollard, 9-Ruan Pienaar, 8-Duane Vermeulen, 7-Willem Alberts, 6-Francois Louw, 5-Lood de Jager, 4-Bakkies Botha, 3-Jannie du Plessis, 2-Bismarck du Plessis, 1-Tendai Mtawarira
Replacements: 16-Adriaan Strauss, 17-Trevor Nyakane, 18-Frans Malherbe, 19-Eben Etzebeth, 20-Marcell Coetzee, 21-Francois Hougaard, 22-Morne Steyn, 23-Jan Serfontein

Argentina: 15-Joaquin Tuculet, 14-Horacio Agulla, 13-Marcelo Bosch, 12-Juan Martin Hernandez, 11-Manuel Montero, 10-Nicolas Sanchez, 9-Martin Landajo, 8-Juan Manuel Leguizamon, 7-Juan Martin Fernandez Lobbe, 6-Paul Matera, 5-Thomas Lavanini, 4-Mariano Galarza, 3-Ramiro Herrera 2-Agustin Creevy (captain), 1-Marcos Ayerza
Replacements: 16-Matias Cortese, 17-Paz Lucas Noguera, 18-Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro, 19-Matias Alemanno, 20-Leonardo Senatore, 21-Thomas Cubelli, 22-Santiago Gonzalez Iglesias, 23-Lucas Gonzalez Amorosino

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Eben Etzebeth, so often a wrecking ball of a lock in the loose, was served a taste of his own medicine by Ireland and Leinster lock Mike McCarthy in a 2012 autumn international between Ireland and South Africa.

McCarthy, in a collision that was sure to have caused tremors at the other side of the world, smashed into his fellow lock like a rampaging bull and unceremoniously toppled the Stormers lock to the ground.

No, you’re not hallucinating and, yes, that actually happened. Yeah, the actual Eben Etzebeth.

Youtube Credit: Tap Tackle

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Sometimes, you see something on a Rugby pitch that makes you clamber for your remote so you can rewind and watch the incident again because it was so astounding that you think your eyes are lying to you.

That’s exactly the feeling we had during the Sharks and Stormers Super Rugby game in 2012.

After scoring a try, the Sharks Anton Bresler, weighing in at 112 KG, caught the restart, thanks in no small part to the freakish strength of Tendai ‘The Beast’ Mtawarira.

The Zimbabwean born loose-head picked up his team-mate suspending him in mid air by the shorts for a time that you would have previously considered impossible.

One things for sure, the Beast is an apt nickname.

Youtube Credit: RugbyDump.com

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