If fortune does indeed favour the brave, then South Africa should triumph in the Rugby World Cup final on Saturday evening. For the third time in two months, they have opted for the controversial 7-1 split of forwards to backs on their bench and, in the process, have taken a huge gamble in the biggest game on the calendar.
For the uninitiated, rugby teams almost always opt for a 5-3 or 6-2 split among their replacements. The laws of the international game dictate that you must have three front-row specialists (hookers and props, who count among the forwards) on your bench, and then teams will usually have a roughly even division of forwards and backs for the remaining five slots to ensure adequate cover for all position.
