Springboks continue to play risky hooker game

The Springboks are walking a tightrope in the hooker department at the World Cup after they turned down another chance to bring in a specialist No 2 after the unfortunate tournament ending injury to Makazole Mapimpi against Tonga.

A few weeks ago the Boks suffered a heavy blow when they lost arguably the world’s best hooker, Malcolm Marx, to injury, and in his place called up flyhalf general Handre Pollard.

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Pollard was always expected to be first in line if there was an injury at the tournament, but hooker was the one position that the Boks were light at after they decided to select utility player Deon Fourie as their third choice option.

Although Fourie started his career at hooker and has played over a hundred franchise games in the position, he was never considered Springbok material in it.

It was only when he made the switch to loose forward late in his career that he evolved into a superb openside flank that he was finally considered good enough for the Boks and if he had started his career at flank he may have had a much more prolific international career.

Second choice hooker

But Fourie is suddenly the Boks’ second choice hooker at the World Cup, behind their only specialist in the position, Bongi Mbonambi, while Marco van Staden, who has played all his senior rugby at flank, is now considered the third choice.

Both players have acquitted themselves decently in the position in the two games they have featured in it so far, especially Fourie who picked up the man-of-the-match award in the big win over Tonga.

But both of those games were against tier two nations, Romania being the other, and it remains to be seen how they will manage against one of the best teams in the world in France or the All Blacks, one of whom the Boks will likely be facing in the quarterfinals next weekend.

The Mapimpi injury gave the Boks another chance to strengthen the hooking department, but they instead chose to bring in Lukhanyo Am, even though their backline is well stocked.

Am is a maverick player and there is no doubt that his arrival will give the team a boost, as Pollard’s arrival seems to have done as well.

But we can only hope that Mbonambi does not suffer an injury during the knockouts as the Bok management clearly have no faith in their stand-by hooker Joseph Dweba.