NICK CAIN EVALUATES THE SPRINGBOKS PREPARATION FOR THE UPCOMING LIONS SERIES

WHEN Faf de Klerk was buried by a brutal Jake Ball tackle in Llanelli last weekend the whole of South Africa held its breath. The incident took place just after half-time, with the Scarlets already trailing 30-0 to a supercharged Sale side in a European Cup tie in which de Klerk was the pivotal figure.
The reaction was prompted by video replays of the giant red-haired wrecker’s attempt to turn the Springbok world champion scrumhalf into a flattened version of SpongeBob Squarepants, as it was aired everywhere from t...