No quarter to be given in half-back battle

Brobdingnagian battles are expected all over Ellis Park today as the juggernauts of world rugby recommence their epic rivalry.

The last encounter between the Springboks and the All Blacks – the Rugby World Cup final last year – was attritional, the men in the Green and Gold walking away with the honours 12-11. The trench warfare that distinguished that clash is not expected in Johannesburg today (kick-off 5pm) in the first of back-to-back Rugby Championship matches, nor is such a low-scoring affair.

Perhaps one of the most intriguing match-ups will be between the two sides’ half-back pairings. The Boks have opted for veteran Cobus Reinach and greenhorn Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu for the clash, while the All Blacks will look to the old hand of TJ Perenara and the mercurial Damian McKenzie as their 9-10 combination.

Both Reinach and Perenara are in the twilight years of their career. It could be argued that Reinach’s selection into the No 9 jumper this weekend is a question of experience, while his opposite for New Zealand might be a question of depth.

Despite the undoubtedly prodigious talents of the flyhalves, the interrogation of Feinberg-Mngomezulu and McKenzie at No 10 will continue.

Many are not wholly convinced that McKenzie should be the incumbent in that channel at Test level, and how he deals with the attentions of Pieter-Steph du Toit, Ben-Jason Dixon, Siya Kolisi and Jasper Wiese, will be crucial to the All Blacks’ victory.

Equally, Young Turk Feinberg-Mngomezulu will be presented with his sternest of tasks yet in the Bok jersey, when he faces the collective outrage of an All Blacks team that has been branded as underdogs.

Earlier this week, Perenara weighed in on the debate, acknowledging the danger, while praising the opposition.

“They are both very good players,” the 32-year-old said.

“Sacha is quite young and new to the environment but he has played some amazing rugby. He has shown at all levels how good he can be.

“Then you have Cobus. He is one of the best in the world. You see him running with the ball and the speed he injects into the outfit, it is only going to be good for them, I think.”

His counterpart also mused in glowing terms his assessment of the opposition.

Said Reinach: “TJ is a bigger, stronger lad and he likes the confrontation. He is a bit more of a running nine.

“I don’t think their game has really changed too much … They have X-factor everywhere and they have another one at nine, who will try to break you and go around the fringes. It is a different threat you have to be aware of.

“(Whoever the No 9 passes the ball to) and whoever plays at 10 – now it is McKenzie – he is X-factor, Jordie (Barret) is X-factor or Baueden (Barrett) at fullback, they don’t really have to change the way they play.”

Of course, for the half-backs to get that go forward ball, their respective packs will have to do the hard yards. In the final last year, it was a real arm-wrestle.

The set pieces were rock solid, despite the Boks enjoying a numerical advantage after the red card to then captain and flanker Sam Cane in the 29th minute, while each team made a nuisance of themselves at the line-outs, stealing eight throw-ins collectively. The rucks were fiercely contested, with the Boks winning seven turnovers to the All Blacks’ two, while the breakdown success was near perfect from both sides.

Hooker Codie Taylor also started that match, as he will today’s, and he revealed they are expecting another bone-cracking encounter

“The Old Foe,” he said, “they are always going to come at the set piece.

“They really back themselves there and rightly so. They have been dominant in that area for a long time. We have to make sure that we get our stuff right and nullify that. We also have to take our opportunities that come our way.

“I don’t miss the feeling of playing them afterwards,” he added, referring to not playing South Africans in SuperRugby anymore.

“It was always unique coming over here. It is a different brand of footie. I feel like they have evolved though and now play a lot more attacking rugby.”

As the interlink between his pack and the backline, Perenara was short and sweet when asked if he believed his forwards would afford him quick, clean ball to unleash a dangerous unit: “Yeah, I am definitely confident.”