History of the South Africa national rugby union team on to criticise New Zealand referee Bryce Lawrence for "one-sided" refereeing, claiming that Australian openside David Pocock was allowed to "reduce the breakdown to a farce". Lawrence was dropped from the nine-man elite panel in 2012. Following the World Cup exit, several stalwarts of the 2007 World Cup-winning side and the 2011 squad went on to announce retirements or moves abroad. This included captain John Smit, influential lock pairing Victor Matfield and Bakkies Botha, and scrum-half Fourie du Preez. History of the South Africa national rugby union team The History of the South Africa national rugby union team dates back
Scrum (rugby) the ball directly under the legs of their own front row rather than into the tunnel, and the team with the put-in usually retains possession (thereby making the 40/20 rule workable). A rugby union scrum consists of two teams' eight forwards, with each team binding in three rows. The front row is composed of the two "props" and the "hooker". The two "second row" forwards (jersey numbers four and five), commonly referred to as the locks bind together and directly behind the front row with each putting their heads between the props and the hooker. Lastly the back row is