Mallett names the next Marx

Jan-Hendrik Wessels could be a valuable Bomb Squad member, says Nick Mallett, who expects Rassie Erasmus to select a new-look Bok team to face the Wallabies next up. mchezo.co.za

The versatile Wessels played off the bench in the 22 August Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series opener, with Deon Fourie and Gerhard Steenekamp since deputising for hooker Malcolm Marx and loosehead prop Ox Nché, respectively.

Erasmus has confirmed Wessels is in the mix as a deputy for Marx and according to Mallett, the 25-year-old should be the go-to No 2 for the one-off clash in Perth on Sunday, 27 September, or at least among the match-day replacements.

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“I’m not sure why they’ve stopped investing time in Jan-Hendrik,” the former Bok coach said on the Talking Boks podcast.

“He’s the guy, for me, who is the closest to Marx. He’s a big, strong guy and must be close to 120 kilos. He’s very fast, he throws in well.

“I feel that he’s a guy who, if they really spent time with, he could sort of emulate a bit of what Marx does. He’s very fast and he could learn to be a very good stealer.

“They’ve used [Johan] Grobbelaar a lot and they brought Deon back into the mix. They’ve used André-Hugo Venter, he’s had one or two Tests.

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“But Wessels, for me, if he concentrated on being a hooker, he’d be a very good Bomb Squad guy and assist us to dominate those last 30 minutes.”

Handré Pollard and Franco Mostert are expected to return from injury Down Under, while the likes of Aphelele Fassi, Paul de Villiers and Ntuthuko Mchunu set for game time with first-choice Boks needing a break.

“I would expect there to be quite a number of changes, maybe nine or 10,” Mallett said. “I’m not sure where Grant Williams is. Canan Moodie obviously needs a good run there.

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“The guys have really taken knocks in this Greatest Rivalry series and have got through it, but that Australian trip might be a bridge too far for quite a few of those guys.

“It might be a sort of Argentina-type team, pretty much your back-up guys.

“[De Villiers] did so well and then, because of Siya [Kolisi] coming back and the need to look for a different style of replacement in Cameron Hanekom, he’s also missed out.

“There are a number of players who could do the job for us.”

Photo: Anton Geyser/Gallo Images

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Djamel Sedjati a une nouvelle fois marqué les esprits sur la scène internationale. L’Algérien a livré une finale de très haut niveau à Budapest, face à plusieurs références mondiales du 800 mètres, pour s’offrir le titre de la première édition de l’Ultimate Championship.

The post Athlétisme : Djamel Sedjati frappe encore et s’offre une médaille d’or ! appeared first on Football Algérien - DZFOOT.COM.

Springbok head coach Rassie Erasmus said they would have been proud to be part of the inaugural Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series even if they hadn’t won it.

The Boks clinched the series 3-1 with a 43-28 win in the final game against the All Blacks in Baltimore on Saturday.

It was South Africa’s third consecutive victory over the New Zealanders, after bouncing back from a 33-16 defeat at Ellis Park – which broke their 12-Test winning streak – with a 33-26 win in Cape Town and a 29-24 victory in Soweto.

The Boks dominated all areas of play but only led 17-14 at the break. But instead of falling short as they did from a similar position in the second half in Johannesburg, the Springboks scored two early second-half tries and maintained their momentum, ultimately winning six tries to four.

Arendse changed the game

Erasmus said Kurt-Lee Arendse’s individual effort, when he picked up a loose ball in his own half and ran through defenders to the All Blacks’ try line, was probably the moment when the Boks stretched the gap over their opponents.

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“Kurt-Lee started burning guys,” the coach said after his 100th match in charge of the Springboks.

“Kurt-Lee himself admitted he had been going through a mental and physical dip. He had concussions and stuff. I thought when he scored that try it was pivotal. Until then it was anyone’s game.”

The All Blacks trailed 43-21 for the final 15 minutes before their consolation try. Still, Erasmus said the difference between the sides was not as great as the scoreboard showed.

Springboks proud to be part of Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry

The coach also spoke of the value of the first proper tour between the two greatest rugby nations since New Zealand won 2-1 in South Africa 30 years ago, in 1996.

“I grew up in the era when there wasn’t [Springbok] rugby, and we only watched New Zealand and the [Boland] Cavaliers tour and the flower-bomb Test [in 1981]. My heroes were [former All Black No 8] Murray Mexted, those kind of guys.

“When this came up on the radar we said we would support it.”

Erasmus said every week had intrigue on and off the field, with the media and public arguing about the legality of scrums, making the series all the more interesting.

“I think it’s great for the game,” he said, adding that even if they lost the decider and it ended up being a 2-2 tie, the series was a success.

“New Zealand were getting into communities in South Africa. South African New Zealand supporters got to see their heroes in the flesh. And then they produced.

“We are proud to be part of this. Not necessarily because we won. One day when we are old we’ll say we played in 2026, in that first tour when the Greatest Rivalry started. So, massive privilege, massive respect for both sides. I like it.”

Un succès qui permet aux Hamraoua de lancer véritablement leur championnat et de se hisser dans le milieu du classement, en attendant la mise à jour du calendrier et notamment le match retard face au MC Alger. Au-delà du résultat, cette première victoire constitue un signal positif pour une équipe qui entend jouer les premiers rôles cette saison. Si le tableau d’affichage laisse apparaître une victoire relativement confortable, la réalité du terrain a été bien différente. Le CRT a longtemps tenu tête aux Oranais et leur a posé de sérieux problèmes durant les différentes phases de la rencontre. Les hommes de Cherif El- Ouazzani ont dû faire preuve de patience et surtout de caractère pour parvenir à prendre le dessus sur une formation témouchentoise particulièrement combative. Pour son retour parmi l’élite, le nouveau promu a affiché de belles dispositions et n’a jamais renoncé, même après avoir concédé les deux buts. Cette résistance donne davantage de relief au succès décroché par les camarades de Ghenam.

Des enseignements encourageants

Le staff technique du MCO a, de son côté, pu tirer plusieurs enseignements positifs de cette sortie. La solidité affichée dans les moments importants, la capacité à gérer les temps forts
adverses ainsi que l’efficacité retrouvée devant les buts constituent autant de motifs de satisfaction. Cette victoire devrait également permettre aux joueurs de gagner en confiance après une entame de championnat qui ne leur avait pas encore permis de récolter les trois points. Le public oranais, même s’il n’a pas répondu en grand nombre au rendez-vous, a ainsi pu repartir du stade Miloud- Hadefi avec le sentiment d’avoir assisté au véritable départ de son équipe dans ce nouvel exercice.

Deux déplacements pour confirmer

Le plus difficile commence toutefois maintenant pour les Hamraoua, qui devront rapidement confirmer cette bonne impression. Le calendrier leur réserve en effet deux déplacements consécutifs, à commencer par un rendez-vous à Chlef face à l’ASO vendredi prochain. Les Oranais enchaîneront ensuite avec un déplacement à Alger pour affronter le MC Alger, le 22 septembre, dans le cadre de leur match retard. Deux sorties qui s’annoncent importantes pour mesurer les ambitions du MCO et sa capacité à maintenir la cadence. Les camarades de Ghenam devront afficher la même détermination et surtout davantage de maîtrise afin de négocier au mieux ces deux rendez-vous et poursuivre leur progression au classement.

– BACHIR ABDELALI

L’article ALG : Un début satisfaisant pour le MC Oran est apparu en premier sur Foot Afrique.