CHRIS HEWETT
THINKING ALLOWED

THERE was much wailing and gnashing of teeth at the unveiling of the 2023 “supreme” side by the planet brains at World Rugby, not least among those many South Africans who could not for the life of them work out why the lock forward Eben Etzebeth was the only Springbok deemed worthy of selection. Hadn’t their champion side just retained the Webb Ellis Trophy?
That they had, but these Springboks, rather like their forerunners in 1995, were far greater than the sum of their parts. And anyway, the non-governing governing body’s judgement was based on a whole ye...