WHERE ARE THE SUPERSTAR SCRUM HALVES IN THE SOUTH? | Is it Harder to be a GREAT 9 Now?

Watching the Rugby Championship I was struck by the quality of the Number 9's now compared to my memories of the GREAT scrum halves down the years, most of which have come from the big Southern Hemisphere Nations. Are thew young players coming through going to be world beaters but just not there yet? Or have the law changes in rugby made the position more difficult to be great at? Or is there something else going on?

[johannkotze]

The trio of Joost, Gregan, Marshall in one era!

[indochinaconnex]

Reinach has always been special but never got given all the time he deserved and is now past his prime.

[adamvanderriet]

Anyone who doesn't rate Faf de Klerk's attacking skills needs to go back and watch his seasons at the Lions, or the WC-2019 final!!! It's not his fault that every coach he's had since his move to Sale (including Rassie) were devoted to the tactical kicking / defensive game-plan. The guy got into the Bok team in the first place because he was an absolute attacking menace, as good as anything I ever saw from Joost or FdP. As a legit double world cup winner (played all but 7 minutes of both finals), Faf is an all-time great on principle! 🤘

[neilshrekpurves]

I think it's all rosy, the greats of the past grew into their greatness, let's give the youngsters a chance

[glenpeters]

Joost stood out from day one. He was incredible at sevens as well.

[JuiC]

What an interesting conversation to start, and I agree with you Tim.

[woesmevrou]

And … about Connor Murray. As a Bok supporter I was in Ireland in 2015 and watching many a game in an Irish pub. Murray regarded as talismanic - and even now when he is on the field it seems as though his presence boosts the team.

[ChasSimpson]

So glad you included Agustín Pichot in the list of greats! He was an incredible leader and player.

[thomaseskenazi]

Very interresting take from a French standpoint. I would add to all that Tim said about how we conceptualize rugby is not only about the 9 but about the 9-10 relation.

Indeed we have a word for the 9-10 couple, we called them "la charnière"(the hinge) of the team. As far as I know, the closet concept in other coutty is the pivot, and that id genreally limited to the 10. But for us, half-scrum is a position, half-fly is also position, but both halves makes another position. La charnière is a part of the game just as the front line is one, and both halved equally share the responsability to pace the game. This is why Jalibert is genrally a best player with Lucu than Dupont, because they learnt to complement each other over the years. So, all our 9s share the burden with the 10s in the Top14, and both positions are seen as prestigious.

[SleepyObi]

I think Faf will be in that convo in the years to come. He is a presence on the field.

[kevinsummerley]

Great discussion and analysis, Tim. Your grasp of the game shines through.

[zootarootoot]

I think Faff de Klerk is often underrated.
He is a solid anchor for the team, always there. So much interaction with the ball and his workrate is incredible. He does not shy away from the giants, make huge dives, try saving ankle taps an tackles, and he generally keeps that up for 80 minutes every game.

[dustinalessi]

Thank you for this video. As someone new to rugby I appreciate this type of content over your player rating videos.

[timanderson]

Out of a great Springbok team Fourie du Preez was just about the most important cog in that machine, always two steps ahead of the game....what a player

[superdrog]

It wasn't just New Zealand that didn't anticipate how good Gibson-Park could be. Leinster only saw him as backup to Luke McGrath. It was Andy Farrell that saw his potential and plucked him from the Leinster bench and started him for Ireland. Just shows what an eye for talent Farrell has, that he could see something in JGP that others didn't.

[wauzer]

Great video. For me it is Fourie Du Preez "Die Generaal". He was marshaling that great Bulls teams in Super Rugby, then for the Boks, but to me, his epitomy of performance and intelligence came to fruit in the 2009 British and Irish Lions tour to SA. Behind him, I'd rate Joost van der Westhuizen very high.

[paulcavanagh]

Good discussion. The game has changed, players are quicker, general law changes, ruck crocodile pick ups, have all had an effect, for good or bad!

[adamvanderriet]

We're only two games into the RC, with the latest round hamstrung by rain, so far too soon to judge. From a Bok perspective, we're only just starting to move on from the double world cup winning Faf de Klerk era (a guy who effectively owned the Bok jersey for the past 8 years), and Reinach is in the twilight of his career too, so the newbies are going to take at least the rest of the season to make their marks 🤘

[theoneandonly_]

As a kiwi Cam Roigard is something special. Out of all the good traits he's got I think his work ethic and resilience stand out, hope he comes back firing from a horrible injury. We also have Noah Hotham coming through, always looks so composed and you don't start games for the crusaders as a teenager if you aren't good

[phillipsugwas]

Love the observation on France vs England vis a vis scrumhalves....I think you hit the nail on the head.