Boks to ramp up World Cup campaign
The Springboks are determined to raise the bar considerably when they host the Pumas in Durban on Saturday and then ramp it up some more in their final trial run against Los Pumas in Buenos Aires a week later.
It is not good news for an Argentinean team that has focussed more on experimentation than the other teams in the Rugby Championship this year.
The Pumas have lost both their outings by considerable margins – 9-34 to Australia in Mendoza and 18-39 to New Zealand in Christchurch.
In contrast the Springboks suffered to narrow defeats – going down 20-27 to the All Black at Ellis Park, with the match-winning try coming six minutes from time, and 20-24 to the Wallabies in Brisbane, the winning try coming in injury time.
Damian de Allende, one half of South Africa's exciting new midfield combination, said they are well aware of the shortcomings that saw them stumble in their last two outings.
He said it is vital that the Boks start finishing off the many opportunities they create in games.
"If you play against quality opposition like New Zealand and Australia and you don't take all your opportunities, it can come back at the end of the game and bite you," De Allende said.
"We have another two Test matches against Argentina and hopefully we can make massive improvements and take two big steps forward before the World Cup," he added.
He felt the Boks already took a step in the right direction against New Zealand last month.
The 23-year-old midfielder – who played his first two Tests at outside centre and then came off the bench in the third – featured at inside centre in the last two matches, where he formed an impressive centre combination with Jesse Kriel.
"I enjoy No.12 more than No.13, but it [outside centre] is a position I can play," he said, adding that it is quite difficult to play there – with the defensive roles and decision-making key aspects.
"If I have to play at No.13 I have to improve on my defence," De Allende said.
While he is well aware that the return of Jean de Villiers this week will likely cause a midfield shake-up for the Durban Test, De Allende said in the past two weeks Kriel and himself enjoyed playing together.
"We are still getting to know each other and learn how to run off each other," he said, adding: "We still have a long way to go.
"We are both still young and want to play with ball in hand."
De Allende said he is not fazed by pressure after the meteoric rise of the new midfield combination and refers to himself as someone who is 'chilled' and very 'laid-back'.
"I just want to be ready for the next opportunity and grab it with both hands," he said.
Having now faced off against arguably the world's best midfield combination in All Blacks Ma'a Nonu and Conrad Smith, he is ready for the next challenge.
"You always want to test yourself against the best and we know we still need to improve.
"We still have a lot to learn – we still have long careers ahead of us and hopefully we can continue improving."
By Jan de Koning
@King365ed
@rugby365com
