JOHANNESBURG: South Africa are banking on 20-year-old fly-half Johan Goosen against Australia in Pretoria today to kick-start a Rugby Championship season that has veered off course.
After a comfortable home victory over debutants Argentina, the Springboks snatched a lucky draw in the southern hemisphere championship return fixture before surrendering leads in away defeats by Australia and New Zealand.
Defeat in Dunedin by bitter rivals the All Blacks was all the more painful because once deadly fly-half Morne Steyn missed four of five kicks at goal, inside centre Francois Steyn two of two and replacement Goosen one of two.
These failures triggered a media and public outcry and coach Heyneke Meyer responded by axing Morne Steyn and giving a first Test start to a fly-half whose senior rugby union career began only 12 months ago in the Currie Cup.
A shoulder injury sidelined Goosen for half the 2012 Super 15 season and Free State Cheetahs coach Naka Drotske did not want Meyer to call up his ‘golden boy’ after just one Currie Cup outing on his return to action.
But the Springbok coach believes a player who thinks nothing of attempting 60-metre shots at goal is destined to become a great and used him off the bench in Perth and Dunedin.
Morne Steyn craved a chance to redeem himself at the Loftus Versfeld stadium which is home to his Northern Bulls team, but Meyer took the bold step of leaving him out of the match 22 with Elton Jantjies covering Goosen.
“I feel Johan is now ready to start a Test and I’m excited to see what he can bring. It is a great opportunity for him,” said a coach feeling the pressure after starting his Springbok tenure with a 2-0 mid-year series win over England.
Meyer has also changed his locks, recalling Western Stormers pair Eben Etzebeth and 2.08-metre Andries Bekker in place of Bulls duo Flip van der Merwe and Juandre Kruger, who lost five of their throws against New Zealand.
“Australia are very good in the line-outs and will put us under pressure there -- that is why we have gone for taller players in Eben and Andries,” explained the Springbok coach. AFP
