August 20, 2024 • 9 mins
Former Springbok Joel Stransky joined D'Arcy Waldegrave to discuss the upcoming test matches over in the Republic.
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Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Sports Talk podcast with Duncie Wildergrave
from News Talks.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
It'd be mouth watering, but we have to wait. We
have to wait for a week and a half before
the All Blacks and the spring Box go at it
again and what will be a replay of last year's
World Cup. Man who knows more than a few things
about World Cup fix just between the All Blacks and
the spring Boxes. Joel Stransky, it joins us now, Joel,
welcome to the program. It's taken a while, but it
(00:32):
looks like in a week and a half we get
what we want.
Speaker 3 (00:35):
How are you, Dahci, I'm good, Thank you, my friend,
I'm very good, thank you, and hope you are well
and also looking forward to this game, isn't it. It's
one of those little unknown ones where we're not really
sure what to expect right now.
Speaker 2 (00:46):
I think after the first up game against Argentina, everybody
back here was starting to freak out a wee bit.
But the rights were wronged last week in But then
look across to what South Africa did, whatever team they
put out to Australia, there's a reasonable amount to fear
it that doesn't look like you've gone backwards at all
since the World Cup? The team looks stronger.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
Is that fair? I think it is fair. And what
I love about the way russ He's gone about things
is he's starting to introduce the young players and he's
thrown them to the wolves once or twice in the
easier test matches again and I say the Wolves with
all respect, but he's chucked them all in against Portugal,
He's chucked some of them in against Australia on the weekend.
He's played them as combinations together, and he's played them
(01:27):
with combinations with some of the oldest stalwarts. You can
help them along and I think it's been great. I
think to see the youngsters coming through, to see them
putting their hands up, to see them fighting in tough
conditions on the weekend, you know it really good. There's
no doubt we as South Africa have a plethora of
rugby talent and there's no doubt that Russi has a
wonderful ethos, a wonderful team, a wonderful way of going
(01:49):
about things as a coach, and marrying those two together,
bringing that those youngsters into that environment, it just seems
to be quite smooth. At the moment.
Speaker 2 (01:58):
Is there any area where possibly the Springboks are lacking
maybe in numbers or execution. Can he spy anything?
Speaker 3 (02:05):
Joel Oh, absolutely, absolutely so. I think we we still
struggle to create scoring opportunities. We have individual brilliance, we have,
you know, we have the muckers, Olam, a pimpy on
a turnaround ball, kick a wonderful grubber and Fussy goes
in at the corner. We can more. I think we
haven't quite mastered, you know, the sort of second third
(02:25):
wave of attack that we're seeing the Irish doing with
such a sophistication. We seeing England starting to do a
little bit better. We see the All Blacks do it
at times, and that, I guess is why Russis brought
in Tony Brown and we saw that influence in the
first Test against Ireland. We saw a real you know,
move towards it. Pollo may have kicked Pully, but I
thought the way he came around the corner and he
(02:47):
sent players up the next channel and into the outside
lanes and used the wedth of the field that it
was sensational. Then the second Test we didn't do it
at all. First Test against Australia a little bit of it.
U was back with Sasha Finberg and Gonezulu and then
on the weekend, obviously the conditions were just horrendous, they
were atrocious. But I can't help feeling that when we
get back to Ellis Park and then down to J
Charles Stadium in Cape Town, I'm hopeful, I'm really hopeful
(03:09):
that we will see that that that extra weapon added
to our armory.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
Well, that Joel strengths is your strength. I mean, in fact,
you managed to pull out of the bag like you
did last week with a slightly lesser team. He's a
B team. It was a different team and in those
conditions and now you're back to where it's hard and
fast and dry, they'll revel on that, or they even
know what's hurt them.
Speaker 3 (03:28):
Well, they will revel in it. Yes, And I think
you know, for us, as much as the All Blacks
surprisingly lost to Argentina two weeks ago and they were
much much better on the weekend, they were really good
on the weekend. For us, the All Blacks will always
be the arch enemy, the old foe, you know, the
traditional team that we judge ourselves against. It's great to
win World Cups, but we lag behind, I think in
(03:48):
the in the stakes against the All Blacks and for
Springbok player. For a young man growing up in this country,
you dream you aspire to play for South Africa against
the All Blacks. So these two tests will be enormous
and they'll want to, you know, go out there and
deliver top notch performances. They know against Ireland they weren't
particularly good. They were decent the first test scrape tam
got beat in the second by two drop goals. But
(04:10):
they want to be better. They Russy wants warriors. He
wants them to go out there and play for their country,
play for pride. Think I watched his interview this morning,
thank the nation by putting in all the effort in
you know, and I think I think that sort of
sums them up. They are so difficult to beat defensively, strong,
big and powerful. They rush, they put you under pressure
and when they do score tries, they get a sniff.
They do score those tries, you know. So to your
(04:31):
point that they're a formidable side, and they'll be unbelievably
difficult to beat, particularly on home soil.
Speaker 2 (04:36):
Interesting the All Blacks, even though they've lost a couple
of the old stages, and yes it was only Argentina.
I don't want to understay them and what they're but
I think they probably played the final of the week before.
But the pack over the weekend and the All Blacks
look fantastic. It looks like there's actually a bunch of
men there who might be able to fight with the
(04:58):
South Africans on on even standing. It's got a great
front row, a couple of young locks are looking amazing.
We've got some brutal loose forwards. Caine is on his
way back. You'd expect that Barrett will be back too
when it happens. And Ardie Savia so man for man,
it's not a pack contest there.
Speaker 3 (05:15):
No, it's not. It's not at all. It's a great contest.
And you know, the other thing we need to also
take into account is that is that raises It'll take
a little while for the team to settle under him,
to play the way he wants them to play, to
build his ethos and his character and his personality in
that team. And on the weekend there were signs of that.
You know, he's got such a wonderful record it has
(05:36):
to Volf at some point it has to come to
the Ford on the weekend. It showed, as you said,
the pack stood up, they were they were physical. But
but and again I said, with a little caveat, against
an Argentine and team that weren't nearly as good and
as physical as they were as they were the week before.
When you come to Ellis Park to play the Springboks,
you have to stand up big time. You have to
(05:57):
put your body and heart and soul on the line
and you have to take an absolute beating and hand
out a beating and hope you come out on top.
And so it will be a bit of a different
contest start of what.
Speaker 2 (06:07):
Could be a fantastic competitive era, not between the teams
but the coaches. The racy v Razor era. It's got
a lot about it, hasn't it. The two distinct characters
and the coaching ability that they have. I think this
is going to give us a lot to laugh to
enjoy right the way through. These guys are a couple
of huge characters.
Speaker 3 (06:27):
So it's interesting you say that. So yeah, so if
you look like where my head is around world rugby
at the moment, So the All Blacks are in that
transition stage a lot of great players one or two
star wars gone, but new coach evolving into raisers worth
of playing. Russi's in the evolution stage. He's got probably
ten or eleven players that are in their early to
(06:47):
mid fifties that he's probably going to have to phase
out over the next three years before the next World Cup.
Very much is a stage of evolution. Australia, Joe Schmidt
taking over now, you know, they trying to find their
feet and in a new environment with a new approach
and trying to you know, find players to play at
that level. Poorth Week starting to get results with thinks
world rugby is at a very interesting juncture, particularly in
(07:09):
the Southern hemisphere, and you know, I think a lot
will happen, a lot that all the coaches in the
last few days have said in rugby a week is
a long time, you know before the next World Cup.
There is a huge amount that's going to happen. And
these rivalries, these relationships, these are the ones we really
look forward to and we love about the game of
that that is just so special to all of us.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
What do you feel about the championship the way it's
the structured now being on this for a couple of years.
But the fact that there is no test matches between
New Zealand and Australia, for example, because it goes on
that rotate, does that take anything away from from the championship?
Speaker 3 (07:43):
Do you think I think it does. I think it does.
I think so that I would have quite a fair
bit of criticism of rugby in the Southern Hemisphere right now.
That is certainly one the championship is. It's odd, it's odd,
it's peculiar crads matchups, but it is a little bit
strange and it doesn't seem round it or fair. But
I do understand the financial implications and the costs and everything,
(08:05):
so you can sort of I think the All Black
teams and the New Zealand teams, the Australian teams in
particular are missing Super rugby big time. And I miss
our teams playing against you know, the Crusaders and the
Brumbies and you know those big Super rugby games. I
think we're at a strange place in the Southern Hemisphere
and we have to We can go back and start
(08:25):
a game, but we have to also evolve to find
a platform for the game that makes much more sense
for everyone South Africa. I'm never going to leave Europe now,
but let's at least fix the championship yees.
Speaker 2 (08:35):
So how would that work? I don't know how much
time you've had to mull over this, but the idea,
because we know that the New Zealand teams do miss
playing the South Africans, there is the needs about them
that we just simply haven't gotten expect. It's the same
with the New Zealand team. Is there a way through this?
Speaker 3 (08:51):
I don't know, you know, so probably the big thing
that stands in front of something like that is the
fact that, you know, the management, the powers that be
are restrictive in terms of the amount of game time
per player, how many games that play season, how many's
they play a season, how many bumps on the head
they get at training in the game. You know, there's
a massive move to play safety and player welfare, and
(09:13):
quite rightly so for me, the ideal scenario would almost
be to have a global rugby season. We know, we
play you know incoming test matches in this point, we
have the we play Super Rugby, voticom Us Championship Rugby
all in one particular point, and then maybe you find
a little gap where you can have like a mini
(09:33):
Super Rugby champions League of some sort. But I don't know.
I haven't really thought about it, but it would be
an interesting prospect.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
For more from sports talk, listen live to news Talks
they'd be from seven pm weekdays, or follow the podcast
on iHeartRadio
You're listening to the Sports Talk podcast with Duncie Wildergrave
from News Talks.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
It'd be mouth watering, but we have to wait. We
have to wait for a week and a half before
the All Blacks and the spring Box go at it
again and what will be a replay of last year's
World Cup. Man who knows more than a few things
about World Cup fix just between the All Blacks and
the spring Boxes. Joel Stransky, it joins us now, Joel,
welcome to the program. It's taken a while, but it
(00:32):
looks like in a week and a half we get
what we want.
Speaker 3 (00:35):
How are you, Dahci, I'm good, Thank you, my friend,
I'm very good, thank you, and hope you are well
and also looking forward to this game, isn't it. It's
one of those little unknown ones where we're not really
sure what to expect right now.
Speaker 2 (00:46):
I think after the first up game against Argentina, everybody
back here was starting to freak out a wee bit.
But the rights were wronged last week in But then
look across to what South Africa did, whatever team they
put out to Australia, there's a reasonable amount to fear
it that doesn't look like you've gone backwards at all
since the World Cup? The team looks stronger.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
Is that fair? I think it is fair. And what
I love about the way russ He's gone about things
is he's starting to introduce the young players and he's
thrown them to the wolves once or twice in the
easier test matches again and I say the Wolves with
all respect, but he's chucked them all in against Portugal,
He's chucked some of them in against Australia on the weekend.
He's played them as combinations together, and he's played them
(01:27):
with combinations with some of the oldest stalwarts. You can
help them along and I think it's been great. I
think to see the youngsters coming through, to see them
putting their hands up, to see them fighting in tough
conditions on the weekend, you know it really good. There's
no doubt we as South Africa have a plethora of
rugby talent and there's no doubt that Russi has a
wonderful ethos, a wonderful team, a wonderful way of going
(01:49):
about things as a coach, and marrying those two together,
bringing that those youngsters into that environment, it just seems
to be quite smooth. At the moment.
Speaker 2 (01:58):
Is there any area where possibly the Springboks are lacking
maybe in numbers or execution. Can he spy anything?
Speaker 3 (02:05):
Joel Oh, absolutely, absolutely so. I think we we still
struggle to create scoring opportunities. We have individual brilliance, we have,
you know, we have the muckers, Olam, a pimpy on
a turnaround ball, kick a wonderful grubber and Fussy goes
in at the corner. We can more. I think we
haven't quite mastered, you know, the sort of second third
(02:25):
wave of attack that we're seeing the Irish doing with
such a sophistication. We seeing England starting to do a
little bit better. We see the All Blacks do it
at times, and that, I guess is why Russis brought
in Tony Brown and we saw that influence in the
first Test against Ireland. We saw a real you know,
move towards it. Pollo may have kicked Pully, but I
thought the way he came around the corner and he
(02:47):
sent players up the next channel and into the outside
lanes and used the wedth of the field that it
was sensational. Then the second Test we didn't do it
at all. First Test against Australia a little bit of it.
U was back with Sasha Finberg and Gonezulu and then
on the weekend, obviously the conditions were just horrendous, they
were atrocious. But I can't help feeling that when we
get back to Ellis Park and then down to J
Charles Stadium in Cape Town, I'm hopeful, I'm really hopeful
(03:09):
that we will see that that that extra weapon added
to our armory.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
Well, that Joel strengths is your strength. I mean, in fact,
you managed to pull out of the bag like you
did last week with a slightly lesser team. He's a
B team. It was a different team and in those
conditions and now you're back to where it's hard and
fast and dry, they'll revel on that, or they even
know what's hurt them.
Speaker 3 (03:28):
Well, they will revel in it. Yes, And I think
you know, for us, as much as the All Blacks
surprisingly lost to Argentina two weeks ago and they were
much much better on the weekend, they were really good
on the weekend. For us, the All Blacks will always
be the arch enemy, the old foe, you know, the
traditional team that we judge ourselves against. It's great to
win World Cups, but we lag behind, I think in
(03:48):
the in the stakes against the All Blacks and for
Springbok player. For a young man growing up in this country,
you dream you aspire to play for South Africa against
the All Blacks. So these two tests will be enormous
and they'll want to, you know, go out there and
deliver top notch performances. They know against Ireland they weren't
particularly good. They were decent the first test scrape tam
got beat in the second by two drop goals. But
(04:10):
they want to be better. They Russy wants warriors. He
wants them to go out there and play for their country,
play for pride. Think I watched his interview this morning,
thank the nation by putting in all the effort in
you know, and I think I think that sort of
sums them up. They are so difficult to beat defensively, strong,
big and powerful. They rush, they put you under pressure
and when they do score tries, they get a sniff.
They do score those tries, you know. So to your
(04:31):
point that they're a formidable side, and they'll be unbelievably
difficult to beat, particularly on home soil.
Speaker 2 (04:36):
Interesting the All Blacks, even though they've lost a couple
of the old stages, and yes it was only Argentina.
I don't want to understay them and what they're but
I think they probably played the final of the week before.
But the pack over the weekend and the All Blacks
look fantastic. It looks like there's actually a bunch of
men there who might be able to fight with the
(04:58):
South Africans on on even standing. It's got a great
front row, a couple of young locks are looking amazing.
We've got some brutal loose forwards. Caine is on his
way back. You'd expect that Barrett will be back too
when it happens. And Ardie Savia so man for man,
it's not a pack contest there.
Speaker 3 (05:15):
No, it's not. It's not at all. It's a great contest.
And you know, the other thing we need to also
take into account is that is that raises It'll take
a little while for the team to settle under him,
to play the way he wants them to play, to
build his ethos and his character and his personality in
that team. And on the weekend there were signs of that.
You know, he's got such a wonderful record it has
(05:36):
to Volf at some point it has to come to
the Ford on the weekend. It showed, as you said,
the pack stood up, they were they were physical. But
but and again I said, with a little caveat, against
an Argentine and team that weren't nearly as good and
as physical as they were as they were the week before.
When you come to Ellis Park to play the Springboks,
you have to stand up big time. You have to
(05:57):
put your body and heart and soul on the line
and you have to take an absolute beating and hand
out a beating and hope you come out on top.
And so it will be a bit of a different
contest start of what.
Speaker 2 (06:07):
Could be a fantastic competitive era, not between the teams
but the coaches. The racy v Razor era. It's got
a lot about it, hasn't it. The two distinct characters
and the coaching ability that they have. I think this
is going to give us a lot to laugh to
enjoy right the way through. These guys are a couple
of huge characters.
Speaker 3 (06:27):
So it's interesting you say that. So yeah, so if
you look like where my head is around world rugby
at the moment, So the All Blacks are in that
transition stage a lot of great players one or two
star wars gone, but new coach evolving into raisers worth
of playing. Russi's in the evolution stage. He's got probably
ten or eleven players that are in their early to
(06:47):
mid fifties that he's probably going to have to phase
out over the next three years before the next World Cup.
Very much is a stage of evolution. Australia, Joe Schmidt
taking over now, you know, they trying to find their
feet and in a new environment with a new approach
and trying to you know, find players to play at
that level. Poorth Week starting to get results with thinks
world rugby is at a very interesting juncture, particularly in
(07:09):
the Southern hemisphere, and you know, I think a lot
will happen, a lot that all the coaches in the
last few days have said in rugby a week is
a long time, you know before the next World Cup.
There is a huge amount that's going to happen. And
these rivalries, these relationships, these are the ones we really
look forward to and we love about the game of
that that is just so special to all of us.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
What do you feel about the championship the way it's
the structured now being on this for a couple of years.
But the fact that there is no test matches between
New Zealand and Australia, for example, because it goes on
that rotate, does that take anything away from from the championship?
Speaker 3 (07:43):
Do you think I think it does. I think it does.
I think so that I would have quite a fair
bit of criticism of rugby in the Southern Hemisphere right now.
That is certainly one the championship is. It's odd, it's odd,
it's peculiar crads matchups, but it is a little bit
strange and it doesn't seem round it or fair. But
I do understand the financial implications and the costs and everything,
(08:05):
so you can sort of I think the All Black
teams and the New Zealand teams, the Australian teams in
particular are missing Super rugby big time. And I miss
our teams playing against you know, the Crusaders and the
Brumbies and you know those big Super rugby games. I
think we're at a strange place in the Southern Hemisphere
and we have to We can go back and start
(08:25):
a game, but we have to also evolve to find
a platform for the game that makes much more sense
for everyone South Africa. I'm never going to leave Europe now,
but let's at least fix the championship yees.
Speaker 2 (08:35):
So how would that work? I don't know how much
time you've had to mull over this, but the idea,
because we know that the New Zealand teams do miss
playing the South Africans, there is the needs about them
that we just simply haven't gotten expect. It's the same
with the New Zealand team. Is there a way through this?
Speaker 3 (08:51):
I don't know, you know, so probably the big thing
that stands in front of something like that is the
fact that, you know, the management, the powers that be
are restrictive in terms of the amount of game time
per player, how many games that play season, how many's
they play a season, how many bumps on the head
they get at training in the game. You know, there's
a massive move to play safety and player welfare, and
(09:13):
quite rightly so for me, the ideal scenario would almost
be to have a global rugby season. We know, we
play you know incoming test matches in this point, we
have the we play Super Rugby, voticom Us Championship Rugby
all in one particular point, and then maybe you find
a little gap where you can have like a mini
(09:33):
Super Rugby champions League of some sort. But I don't know.
I haven't really thought about it, but it would be
an interesting prospect.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
For more from sports talk, listen live to news Talks
they'd be from seven pm weekdays, or follow the podcast
on iHeartRadio
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