Matfield gives Boks fitness boost
Coach Heyneke Meyer may have been handed a selection dilemma over the fortnight since captain Matfield has been out of action with a hamstring injury because 22-year-old De Jager and 23-year-old Eben Etzebeth have proved such a barnstorming combination.
Matfield, at 38, has had to watch from the sidelines as the pair have proved central to the South African revival following the sensational defeat by Japan, sparking a debate about whether Meyer should stick with their youthful dynamism for Saturday’s quarterfinal against Wales.
On Sunday at the Springboks' Teddington base, both Matfield and the team doctor Craig Roberts said they were confident the player would be fit to make his 126th appearance for his country now that he was running freely again.
"Hopefully I can get back on the pitch this Saturday and hopefully I'll make the side as well," Matfield said.
Yet when asked if he accepted that he might not expect to walk straight back into the starting XV because of the rumbustious excellence of stand-in De Jager, Matfield insisted that he was happy to play any role.
"They've [Etzebeth and De Jager] played very well the whole year and Heyneke is very lucky to have both of them and [another 23-year-old] Pieter-Steph du Toit, who played very well as well when he came on. It's up to the coach to decide," Matfield said.
"I'm very happy, it doesn't matter what role it is, as long as I can contribute to this team winning the World Cup. Whether it's from the bench to being in the squad, helping them with organising the line-out, it doesn't matter. The team comes first."
Noble sentiments from the old maestro, who was so instrumental in their 2007 World Cup triumph, yet there was a steeliness in his voice when he reminded everyone: "It's always easy to say you'll almost do any role but as a player you want to be on the pitch." That is evidently where he expects to be at Twickenham.
Meyer, who persuaded him to come out of retirement to help the Springboks regain the title in England, trusts in his excellence implicitly and Matfield would have taken over the captaincy from the injured Jean de Villiers if not for his own hamstring setback.
If Meyer selects him on Saturday, he may well also give him the captain's armband from the stand-in Fourie du Preez. There is an argument that De Jager, the top tackler in the tournament with 50, one of the leading gainline-breakers as well as being almost immaculate in the lineout, can now offer much more of an all-round threat than Matfield.
Partly, that is down to Matfield's own mentoring of the Springboks' next wave of second-row stars.
"I've been impressed by their performances," he conceded. "We know what Eben can do and I think Lood has been outstanding. He gets around the park, his line-out calling has been very impressive.
"I've enjoyed working with Lood on the line-outs and the kick-offs, doing the homework on the lineouts with him and also in the last two years being able to go up against each other in the week when we do line-outs. Spending time together has been good. He's a very clever guy and he learns quickly."
Of course, Matfield is still so commanding at the line-out, as he demonstrated against Samoa before his injury, that he is bound to still play a major role for the Springboks.
Yet the question is whether Meyer should start with him and use De Jager as an impact replacement or should he keep the young Free State Cheetah in the XV and utilise Matfield as a calming, experienced 'finisher' off the bench. It is the dilemma of a coach suddenly spoilt for choice.
Meanwhile, it appears wing JP Pietersen has also recovered from his knee injury. The speedster has been in top form in this year's World Cup scoring four tries in the Pool stages.
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