Bonjour to the battered and bruised Boks

The Springboks, who arrived home on Tuesday, must be dead tired, but fortunately they have kind, considerate employers in Sarfu who have generously granted them some time off.

They can have three whole weeks off, unwind in whatever way they choose to and then, roundabout January 3, most of them will be expected to report for squad training with their respective Super 12 squads.

Three weeks should be enough to allow all the bumps and bruises to clear up and Sarfu have even magnanimously agreed that in the new year they will play “only” 10 internationals – apart from the Super 12 and the Currie Cup, that is.

You never know what other games might be added to boost the coffers of the union – for additional payment of course – but for the moment it is only 10.

The Boks must be really relieved about that… but only until they stop to consider who they will be up against.

Next year they will face New Zealand and Australia in the home-and-away Tri-Nations as well as what is now the obligatory money-spinning visit to Twickenham to play England.

There’s also a little home-and-away two-test series against Italy and, just to round things off, three matches against France – two at home and one away

Easy programme that. Ten tests with eight of them against the four strongest teams in the world… all of whom might at present be ranked higher than the Boks.

The fixture list is not complete but that’s how it looks at the moment. According to the provisional itinerary the Boks, who last played the Tricolores at home in that epic 1995 World Cup semi-final, will play France in two tests in June at Ellis Park and Durban followed by one against Italy at a smaller union.

Next, in the Vodacom Tri-Nations, they look to have the advantage of for once starting at home, first against New Zealand at Newlands and then Australia in Pretoria, before the away games in Perth and Auckland.

For the end of the year three tests have been pencilled in – France, Italy and England, in that order, although attempts will be made to play Italy first.

That adds up to a programme even more punishing than the one the Boks have just completed. With all the attention on England’s victories over Australia and South Africa, the French have been pushed into the background but, judging by their stirring performance against the All Blacks in Marseille, they’re running into formidable form.

France have a pack that is potentially stronger than that of England and with their flair and sublime skills it goes without saying that their backs are better.

It’s early days rugby lovers, but start getting used to names such as Xavier Garbajosa, Christophe Dominici, Claude Dourthe, Frank Comba, Christophe Lamaison, Olivier Magne, Christophe Juliet, Fabien Pelous, Franck Tournaire, Fabrice Landreau and even one of our own, Pieter de Villiers. They’re on their way and they’re going to be a handful.