Straeuli's still keen on Koen

Louis Koen's case for a place in the Springbok World Cup squad was immeasurably strengthened this weekend.

Koen's performance with the boot in the two-Test series against Scotland, along with Jonny Wilkinson's near-perfect exhibition for England against New Zealand in Wellington, underlined the value of a reliable place kicker at Test level.

Springbok coach Rudolf Straeuli has conceded that he can't do without a reliable sharpshooter.

"We won't go to the World Cup without a reliable place-kicker," Straeuli said after the Springboks' 28-19 victory over Scotland at Ellis Park.

Whether Koen's 42-point haul in the series saved the Springboks further embarrassment against the Scots is open to conjecture, but it certainly helped set up victory.

Koen is arguably the most reliable goal kicker in the country, but the Blue Bulls' Derick Hougaard can also advance a strong argument.

"People unfairly criticise Louis," Straeuli said. "He slipped through one or two tackles in the second Test and if people were able to play off him, then who knows?

"We know what we have in guys like Andre Pretorius and Butch James. Do I drop him?" Straeuli asked about Koen.

"Can you afford to go to the World Cup without a goalkicker? We need two guys with a success rate above 75 percent."

Straeuli is not convinced that Hougaard is ready for the big time, but he has not closed the door on the gifted kicker.

"I don't want to include the under-21s just yet. It's a while before we get to the World Cup and I don't want to make too many big calls before the injured guys return to the team.

"Derick has distinct talents. We have to look at his conditioning and some other areas. The guys have to have the desire to go to the World Cup."

Ironically, Koen may be left out of the Springbok squad for their next match against Argentina but he will remain part of the World Cup mix.

Former Springbok coach Nick Mallett also invested heavily in a reliable place-kicker when he called up Jannie de Beer for the 1999 competition. De Beer featured prominently in the tournament, but Mallett's decision to play the Free Stater was influenced by nagging injuries to Henry Honiball.