The Springboks are targeting a return to their high standards when a new-look team tackles Portugal in the first-ever Test between the nations in Bloemfontein.
Saturday’s historic clash gives the Springboks a chance to not only test out their squad depth, but also get back to the benchmark they set at last year’s World Cup, ahead of the Rugby Championship.
Having started the season with back-to-back victories over Wales and Ireland, the Boks were brought down to earth in a 27-24 defeat to the Irish in Durban, which saw the two-Test series end in a draw.
While they are facing a tier-two nation in Portugal, assistant coach Deon Davids emphasised that the Boks are determined to bounce back strongly from last week’s defeat and to build on their standards.
“As a team we pride ourselves on the standards we’ve set, and for our respect for the opposition, no matter which team we face,” said Davids.
“Having looked back at our performance last week, we need to be more focused going into this game and play the quality of rugby we want to play.”
Davids emphasised that he expects Portugal to come out firing, when the visitors run out for what will be one of the biggest Test matches in their history.
“Portugal beat Fiji in the World Cup, so they are no pushovers,” said Davids.
“They like to move the ball around a lot and their head coach [Simon Mannix] has a New Zealand background, which says a lot about the way they want to play, so it will be important to keep them at bay, to dominate on attack and defence, and deny them momentum. We want to play the match on our terms.”
“They will be highly motivated to show that they can play well and perform at this level, and they certainly won’t need more motivation knowing that they will be facing the world champions.
“They also have a good support base in Bloemfontein and will want to make the most of the occasion of playing in front of a sold-out stadium, so it’s going to be a good test for both teams.
“They beat Namibia on Saturday, who have a good coaching team, so it won’t be a case of us pitching up and winning the match. We have to deliver a quality performance and give our best for the full 80 minutes.”
Davids further explained Rassie Erasmus’ plans for the squad this week, as a number of senior players will be rested ahead of the two opening Rugby Championship matches in Australia.
“We have a clear strategy about where we are as a team now and what we need to do going forward, so there are two key factors for us this week, and those are managing the players and building squad depth,” said Davids.
“We have a tough and long season so it’s vital that we manage the players effectively, but we also want to build squad depth for the future, so we’ll probably try to balance those aspects as well as possible this week.”
Photo: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile via Getty Images
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Src: sarugbymag.co.za
