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Nché: SA teams can cope with the schedule, just need to rotate players

Springbok prop Ox Nché says South African rugby’s heavier schedule since joining European competitions is manageable, provided teams strengthen their fringe players and rotate more. The increased load has been a topic of debate since South Africa left Super Rugby to join the United Rugby Championship in the 2021/22 season and the EPCR Champions and Challenge Cups the following year. Moving from one tournament to two, with more matches, and travelling more, and switching from the Southern Hemisphere calendar (February to August) to the Northern Hemisphere’s (September to June) has been more demanding, especially when factoring in the international season. So much so that last year Nché’s head coach at the Sharks, John Plumtree warned the extensive injury list at the club – created by the increased load – could impact Springbok performances. SA teams must grow their depth Plumtree’s solution at the time was to rotate teams, blooding fringe and young players to strengthen the overall squad. He often did this for away matches but failed to find a balance between rotation and being able to compete in important games. He saw his second-string team exit the Challenge Cup in the round of 16 last year after a poor performance against Lyon. This strategy continues under new interim coach JP Pietersen, who rested 13 Springboks who played against the Lions in the URC two weeks ago, for last weekend’s Champions Cup pool match against Sale. Led by 22-year-old Nick Hatton, the younger team went down 26–10 but showed plenty of fight. The Stormers, who rested several Springboks but played four debutants against Harlequins, were hammered 61–10, bringing their 10-match winning streak to a close. Stormers boss John Dobson called it a “desperately disappointing performance”. ‘It is our job to play rugby’ Nché argued, however, that playing more fringe and younger players is the answer to the tough schedule. “It is our job to essentially play rugby. From my personal point of view we just have to find a way,” he said when asked if the tough schedule was too much. “We have always been used to playing in just one competition. Now these competitions require a much bigger squad and much more rotation than we are used to. We have to find a way to adapt to that.” He said it helps if quality players come through the ranks and can slot in when needed. “We just have to find our own plans, and every team has their own. We just have to find a way to make sure we always get the freshest guys playing and everyone is on the same level and on par.” Nche will start for the Sharks in their final Champions Cup pool match against Clermont in Durban on Saturday. Hatton will again lead a team missing several first-choice men.

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