The Springboks in a huddle. Photo: SA Rugby website
Boks insist: We are still ‘world-beaters on the right track’
The Boks are remaining positive despite suffering back-to-back defeats in the Rugby Championship in recent weeks.
The Springboks in a huddle. Photo: SA Rugby website
On Monday, prop Steven Kitshoff and assistant coach Deon Davids reiterated that they remained confident in the Boks’ abilities to turn the corner despite recent disappointments.
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The Boks will have a re-match with Australia at the Allianz Stadium in Sydney on Saturday, where the team has been based since Sunday afternoon, and a victory will be vital to keep alive their Rugby Championship title hopes. Kitshoff insisted the team were up for the challenge.
“The back-to-back defeats was a bitter pill to swallow, but I still believe this team has the potential and skill to be world-beaters,” said Kitshoff.
“We have three games left in the competition and we have the opportunity to turn things around. We are settled in Sydney. We had our first training session of the week today (on Monday) and it went well, and since we’ve been in Australia for more than a week now, everyone is acclimatised to the time zone.”
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Davids was equally confident that the team was still on course despite the recent setbacks in their campaign.
“We are definitely still on the right track. We are blessed with a balanced squad with a good mix of youth and experience, and with a few experienced players out with injuries, we have been able to give a few young players a chance in the last few matches, and we believe they will gain a lot from that going forward.”
Both Davids and Kitshoff attributed the team’s 25-17 defeat against the Wallabies in Adelaide to missed opportunities, with the coach saying it would be one of their key focus areas this week.
“We did a thorough review of last week’s game and in the end, it came down to Australia creating opportunities, which they used, while we also created a lot of opportunities, but we didn’t capitalise on them, and that’s our main focus this week,” said Davids.
Kitshoff agreed and said from a player’s perspective they realised where things went wrong after a match review.
“After a review of the match, we saw how many opportunities we created, which we didn’t score points from and that gave us more confidence. It doesn’t change the result, but it has made us more positive.
“The guys had a great attitude at training today and we are up another big Test this weekend.”
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With Argentina and Australia leading the Rugby Championship log with nine points after winning two of their first three matches, and New Zealand on five log points and the Springboks on four after winning one of their matches respectively, Davids said it showed the quality of the teams in the competition.
“The fact that the competition is so competitive shows how challenging this tournament is,” said Davids.
“With the teams playing so well it also means you have to be the best every Saturday to get the result. One can also see the growth of the teams in the competition, and this is great preparation for us a year out before the Rugby World Cup.”
Coach Jacques Nienaber will name his 23-man squad on Tuesday, 30 August at 11:00 (SA time).
Ahead of him doing so, The South African website’s Craig Lewis, Garrin Lambley and Dean Boyle have selected the starting XVs they believe the Springboks’ brains trust will read out.
Kick-off for the Test in Sydney on Saturday, 3 September is at 11:35 (SA time) and, as always, the best place to follow the action LIVE is on The South African website.
TEAM PREDICTIONS FOR THE BOKS-WALLABIES REMATCH
CRAIG LEWIS’ EXPECTED SPRINGBOKS STARTING XV
15 Willie le Roux, 14 Canan Moodie, 13 Lukhanyo Am, 12 Damian Willemse, 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 10 Handre Pollard, 9 Jaden Hendrikse, 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Siya Kolisi (captain), 5 Lood de Jager, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Trevor Nyakane, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Steven Kitshoff
GARRIN LAMBLEY’S EXPECTED SPRINGBOKS STARTING XV
15 Willie le Roux, 14 Canan Moodie, 13 Lukhanyo Am, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 10 Handre Pollard, 9 Jaden Hendrikse, 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Elrigh Louw, 6 Siya Kolisi (captain), 5 Franco Mostert, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Trevor Nyakane, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Steven Kitshoff
DEAN BOYLE’S EXPECTED SPRINGBOKS STARTING XV
15 Willie le Roux, 14 Canan Moodie, 13 Lukhanyo Am, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 10 Handre Pollard, 9 Jaden Hendrikse, 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Kwagga Smith, 6 Siya Kolisi (captain), 5 Lood de Jager, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Trevor Nyakane, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Steven Kitshoff
