Springboks coach Heyneke Meyer opened his account as South Africa’s newest test rugby coach with a hard fought win against England, but said his team needed to strive for higher standards if they were to defeat the Red Rose in the upcoming test in Johannesburg.
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Meyer promised his players there would be plenty of hard work in the week ahead, for while the Springboks looked in complete control for long periods after halftime, the English were able to match the hosts throughout the opening 40 minutes.
England were able to, at the very least, gain a point’s decision over the Springboks at the breakdown in the first half, with no over the ball style flanker like Heinrich Brussow present in the team, with Meyer preferring to go with a back row of heavyweight ball carriers and hitmen.
“We have to look at the breakdowns, we didn’t get quality ball in the first half and we will have to look at the set phases in the first half as well,” Meyer said.
“I was unhappy with the defence and in particular that last try. It was unacceptable, but this group hasn’t defended as a team before. Defence is something you can coach but the commitment you can’t. It was great to see that sort of commitment on the field.
Meyer was clearly an unhappy man as he walked into the bowels of King’s Park Stadium at halftime, and he made his feelings abundantly clear to the Springboks forward pack.
“I said to the forwards it was not good enough and we needed to up the tempo, and get some better cleans. At some stages we really played great rugby,” Meyer said.
“We set ourselves higher standards and the team has embraced that. It is luckily easy to work with players like that.”
The Springboks backline could take a different shape this weekend, with injury concerns over Zane Kirchner, Francois Hougaard and Bryan Habana.
I agree with Meyer and said so on the Game Article just after the Test, that the Springbok breakdown work needs to improve.
Couple of tweaks here and there, get rid of the wurmpie which they form to give Hougie time to kick, and re-think that strategy to make it impossible for a defending England player to run straight at the scrumhalf. It happened at the wurmpie to Ruan Pienaar too… and the strategy is at fault, not the player!
Easiest way to rectify that is the have the back of the ruck wide rather than with a long tail, because the wide ruck players provide the best possible shield for a scrummie (behind that wide ruck), planning to kick.
Simple really, you just cut direct access to the scrummie off completely and legally, forcing the player(s) who are trying to charge the kicker to go round in a semi-circle in stead of running straight at the scrummie.
Also, our ruck ball needs to be made quicker… like was the case in a lot of the 2nd half, before and after Hougie was subbed, and when THAT quicker ball resulted in the Bokke controlling the game and playing bloody good rugby, specially minutes 40 to 65.
@ GBS,
True, the concern is, that the Bulls employed the same tactic ad nauseam in the Super 15, with the same result, surely Meyer has seen this, and taken steps to eradicate the Bennie Boekwurm tactic? Secondly, Hougaards clearing is slow in comparison to the likes of Genia, and Smith.
The sooner young Piet van Zyl gets game time, the better. Together with Goosen, they are the future. Hougiue, is better as a wing, or impact player imo.
We are never going to beat the AB’s with this kind of rugby. Aaron Smith gives his backs time a plenty, with a quick, long pass. That is why the AB’s get width on the ball!
2: kan nie vir Piet van Zyl kies nie, hy gaan die ref uithaal 😉
@ bdb, Ok, then play him when Bryce returns lol
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