LONDON, 20 October 2007 — France 2007 culminates this evening with rugby union’s showcase World Cup final at the majestic Stade de France in St Denis in Paris.
Only a Martian recently landed on Planet Earth could have guessed that the final showdown for the William Webb Ellis Trophy would be between South Africa and the reigning world champions England.
Only a few weeks ago the South African Springboks in their famous green and gold strip, humiliated England in a 36-0 drubbing in the group stages of the competition.
A defeat from which England surely could not recover especially with Australia and France awaiting them in the subsequent quarterfinal and semifinal. England weathered both storms with dogged and typically English bulldog performances. The rest is history.
While England harbor the dream of becoming the first country to successfully defend its World Cup crown in back-to-back tournaments, a feat, according to England lock Ben Kay, that would eclipse its triumph in Sydney, Australia in 2003, the South African Springboks may yet have a secret weapon up their sleeves.
The International Rugby Board (IRB) and the French hosts have invited Madiba to attend the final which will be watched by over 80,000 spectators, and millions of armchair fans the world over. Madiba of course is more famously known as former South African President and peace icon Nelson Mandela.
“Seeing Nelson Mandela wearing Francois Pienaar’s (rugby) shirt in 1995 was so special. Without that inspiration, I don’t think I’d be here today. I really hope Madiba will be here in Paris for the final. I am looking forward to making him proud once again,” explained Bryan Habana, the fastest rugby player in the world and potentially England’s Achilles Heel, in the London Evening Standard earlier this week.
Habana, who is named after his football idol, Bryan Robson, the former Manchester United and England star, was referring to the 1995 Rugby World Cup final at Ellis Park in Johannesburg when South Africa beat the New Zealand All Blacks to clinch the title.
The newly-elected Mandela surprised both his countrymen and the world by donning the famous green and gold Springbok jersey and cap as he stepped onto the pitch to be introduced to the two teams just prior to kick-off. That was probably one of the greatest and poignant sporting moments in history, equalled perhaps only by the success of Jesse Owens in the Berlin Olympics during the Nazi rule which saw Hitler abruptly leaving the Olympic Stadium fuming that a black man had exploded his myth of Aryan superiority.
So, it is the potential history makers of England against the rampaging Springboks, who want to make their icon proud once again especially in the spirit of the New South Africa. To put it another way, England are keen to avenge their 36-0 slaughter by South Africa; and the Springboks in turn are chasing what they believe is their rightful destiny.
The match is deftly poised and could turn out to be a classic final in a spectacularly successful tournament thus far. South African head coach Jake White has been quick to dismiss any suggestion that the Springboks are hot favorites: “Anything can happen on a given day.
I wouldn’t say we are the favorites. It’s a 50:50 situation. Either team can win.”
Brian Ashton, school-master turned England rugby head coach, was equally sanguine but emphatic in his ambition for his warrior team that has defied all expectations by beating the Wallabies and the hosts France on their way to the final: “They want to create history by becoming the first team to defend their title successfully in back-to-back tournaments. I can’t imagine that this group of players would ever drop into a mindset that says that they cannot go all the way.”
In several respects, the two sides are evenly-matched. Both front fives are powerful and experienced. Os du Randt, the Springbok prop who is readying for his last big push before retiring, is more than match for England strongman Andrew Sheridan. CJ van der Linde on the other side of the scrum, on the other hand, should have the better of England captain Phil Vickery, who was actually dropped for the Wallaby game.
England may have the prodigious Jonny Wilkinson with his educated boot. But in Percy Montgomery, with his sun-tanned hair and pretty boy looks, South Africa have an equally brilliant match-winner who on last Sunday was on song amassing 17 points with the boot. On paper and in terms of current form, the Springboks have the edge in four areas. At scrum-half, Fourie du Preez, has lived up to his billing as the best scrum-half in the world, and given half a yard, he will punish England with his kicks and darting breaks from the base of the scrum or lineout.
Similarly, Victor Matfield is widely regarded as the best lineout specialist in the world. Perhaps where England are most vulnerable is the back row, where the South African trio of Schalk Burger, Danie Roussow and Juan Smith, have proven a thorn in the flesh of many a team.
They hunt and defend like a demented pack, although Burger’s temperament will be crucial. He used to have a tendency to kill the ball when tackled, thus conceding needless penalties. Jake White seems to have weaned him off this and he has matured into a much more rounded player.
The South African backs have far greater pace and depth in midfield. As such it will be crucial to see how England contain Bryan Habana and JP Pietersen, the two fastest players on the field.
Habana has a milestone to achieve not only for himself but also for his rainbow nation. He has already has equalled All Black Jonah Lomu’s record of eight tries in a World Cup and could very well prove to be the difference in next weekend’s final, given even half a chance.
England’s strength on the other hand is their inner belief especially the way they fought back against the odds by overcoming the challenges of the Wallabies and the French.
Perhaps they had Lady Luck on their side. Had Sterling Mortlock kicked the penalty in the dying moments of the game, the Wallabies would have won. Had Vincent Clerc evaded Joe Worseley’s ankle tap with the tryline begging, the French hosts would have been in the final instead of their English tormentors.
Perhaps their luck has run out today. They have failed to secure the ‘Home’ dressing room in the toss up as they did in the 2003 World Cup; and the English national psyche was further dented last Wednesday when the English football team crashed 2-1 to Russia, leaving the possibility that England may not qualify for the Euro 2008 championship.
What a burden on England’s ‘Grumpy Old Men’ at Stade de France this evening!
