Azzurri coach: Italy had no answer for Boks' power game
REACTION: Italy head coach Gonzalo Quesada conceded that South Africa’s power game was simply too much for his side to contain in their 7-66 Nations Championship defeat to the world champions on Saturday.
The Boks were ruthless from the outset and forced the Italians to make 147 tackles compared to South Africa’s 110.
South Africa made just 13 more ball carries than Italy but made those carries count far more efficiently.
The Boks made 129 post-contact metres, while Italy managed just 59, and outscored the Azzurri in the linebreaks department by 12 to two.
*Also read:Rassie bolsters squad with Bok powerhouse as playmaker heads home
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Despite the scrum being the sole silver lining for Quesada, he admitted that his team was bullied by the Boks’ brutality and had little to no answers for it.
“We had placed a big focus on the scrum, but we knew it’s an area where we could compete,” Quesada told Rugby365.
“Our players love to scrum; it’s in our culture and an important facet of the game.
“We knew if the scrum didn’t go our way, the score could’ve been even uglier.
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“But South Africa were simply too good; the first try [Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu] scored came from a scrum which lasted several minutes.
“The Boks played a power game with and without the ball; they were extremely aggressive.
“Every ruck was dirty and slow, and they created pressure on our halfbacks.
“They were absolutely dominant in their strengths and played an amazing game, and it would help us do better in the future.”
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