u/Educational_Play9910

Are the front rowers of U85kg squad that travels to Sri Lanka annually originally props/hookers, or did they have to learn how to play these positions from scratch for the tour?

In terms of playing + following

I'll start, Siya for South Africa.

This upcoming series will be the true acid test for the mighty Boks because two areas of risk brewing under.

1. ⁠The depth media outlets have been praising is either marginally better or on par with that of AB. The gap between world champs and younger replacements in line has not narrowed as much as hoped. SFM and Ruan Nortje are about the only blokes that have cemented themselves as S-tier players. The rest still have LONG ways to go and their growth seems to have stunted. I’d say they’re as good as the kiwis in Super Rugby that haven’t even made the national team. The true formidable depth is when the majority of the squad are S-tier, not one level below. ABs can also easily field a 40-man roster of similar strength.
2. ⁠Boks still rely too much on the old dinosaurs. Aging curve is a bitch and will sneak up on them soon and there is no turning back. Multiple champs have already been washed and the ones left to bite the dust are: Eben, Lood, Siya, PSdT and DDA. The Boks are very thin in the hooker, lock and centre departments. ABs on the other hand, have loads of starters in their 20s. Their transition has discreetly been smooth and successful.

As a Bok supporter, I sincerely hope this post won’t age well 🙏🇿🇦

Why is Hanekom not getting enough minutes in green and gold? Had barely played vs Wales last year and only 40+ min against England...

He is unequivocally the best 8 marginally behind Jasper

Does anyone know if Kai Pratt is still nursing his injury? I noticed he wasn’t called up for the U20 WC

The selection of AB squad for the test season was announced today. The player that stands out is Anton Segner. He is from Germany, but came through the NZ pipeline. There is a good chance he and fellow European, Fabian Holland, will play in the WC next year. Both are solid players who can cause significant damage to the Boks.

Should our scouts poach potential talent from overseas and develop/train them in SA schools? (if this isn't happening already)

Today’s match vs Cardiff, SFM scored an “easy” try. If he had dove into the in-goal area, would he have not sustained an ankle injury?

I am super gutted that he’s expected to be out for at least three months. Losing him and Ethan Hooker is such a bummer 😣

Do they have enough of their own staff for all facets of operations, or is most of the work delegated to City of Vancouver to figure out and execute? From the smallest task such as standardizing and installing decor around the city

As the title suggests, one would think such dangerous area would be a ghost town, but you see kids, ladies, elderly walking on the streets and plenty of vendors that appear to be fine

*edit* Not attempting to sugarcoat it, simply pitched the question solely out of curiosity from watching youtube vidoes. I am not from SA