4. SECOND ROW: ALL BACKS LOCKS VS SPRINGBOKS LOCKS
This battle of the engine rooms could not be narrowed down to just a single face-off, so we expanded our reach for the fourth key battle of the Rugby World Cup Final. Both packs boast a handful of the best locks on the international rugby scene, with some certifiable greats walking amongst the All Blacks and Springboks ranks.
Starting with the All Blacks, Sam Whitelock is on the verge of making history with New Zealand, and becoming the first player to win a hat-trick of Rugby World Cup titles. This unbelievable feat is so impressive we’ve said it twice in the same article, as Whitelock continues to break records throughout the Rugby World Cup. The soon to be Pau man became the most capped All Black of all time, in New Zealand’s 96-17 hammering of Italy.
Whitelock made his 149th test cap in that match, with the Rugby World Cup Final set to be his 153rd run-out in the iconic black jersey. The Crusaders legend is now also the most capped player at the Rugby World Cup with 25 appearances, and the most winningest player too, with 23 wins (and counting…). Helping Whitelock on his journey to World Cup immortality is his long-time Crusaders running buddy Scott Barrett. One third of the brotherly trio alongside Beauden and Jordie, Scott Barrett has stepped into his own with a real ferocity to his game.
Barrett has made 43 tackles throughout the Rugby World Cup, and knows what it takes to score against the Springboks on the biggest stages. Just four years ago, Barrett strode through the back-field to cap-off a wonderful All Blacks move, as New Zealand stunned South Africa with two tries in just four minutes, during the 2019 Rugby World Cup Pool Stage. New Zealand have also demonstrated an astute awareness on line-out success, with Whitelock, Barrett and Brodie Retallick all capable leaders at the set-piece.
Having already mentioned the defensive work rate of Franco Mostert, we lead South Africa’s pack discussion with Eben Etzebeth, who’s had a rollercoaster of a World Cup campaign. The titanic lock suffered a shoulder injury against Scotland, with RG Snyman providing ample cover to the Sharks man. Etzebeth roared into life and scored a powerful effort against France, with the blue wall crumbling as he broke the line. However, Etzebeth lost the arm-wrestle with Maro Itoje and George Martin against England, prompting his earlier with-drawl in favour of RG Snyman.
Snyman is steadily putting Etzebeth on notice, and could well elapse the lock for the Final should Erasmus want to throw a 6ft 9″ curveball at the All Blacks. Steadily one of South Africa’s best players for the entire tournament, Snyman’s crowning moment has so far been his late try against England, which ignited the Springboks’ eventual comeback victory. Along with his bruising size and physicality, a key skillset that Snyman possesses is his off-loading ability.
The Munster lock draws so many defenders in with his powering carriers, that his supporting players can benefit from a mis-matched defensive line. Snyman has executed six offloads at the Rugby World Cup, the most from any Springboks player. This unorthodox yet proven technique may well come into fruition against New Zealand, as open space is more often hard to find in the Rugby World Cup Final.