Boks address defensive frailties ahead of Italian job

INTERVIEW: Springbok defence coach Jerry Flannery addressed the Boks’ defensive frailties during the first leg of the Nations Championship and subsequent games heading into their match against Italy this weekend.

The Springboks conceded an average of 23 points during their nine Tests played so far this season, which doesn’t seem like such an alarming number, but what’s concerning is how teams scored those points against them.

One can take into account that playing arguably the best attacking side in the form of New Zealand four times would influence that average.

*Also read: Why Rassie didn’t back rookies to face Italy

Still, there are issues that Flannery wants to tighten up that he wasn’t happy with, and it wasn’t in the games against New Zealand, but rather their trans-Tasman rivals Australia and Scotland.

“I don’t think the two games [Australia and Scotland] mirrored each other, although we conceded a lot of points in both outings and we were disappointed with that,” Flannery told Rugby365 from the team’s hotel in Turin on Tuesday afternoon.

“But we conceded [points] when teams went through us; for instance, in the Scotland game.

The Australian game was more because of poor discipline from our side, which allowed them to get into our 22, and they broke us down from there.

“They managed to get a few scores from retaining contestable kicks. The Scotland game was probably more disappointing for me because they managed to go through us.

“We tried to rectify that, which I think we did the following week against Wales, where we didn’t concede any points.

“If we’re not making our first-up tackles, they’ll go through us.”

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Italy will pose a different challenge on the defensive front, as Flannery referred to how they got the better of the Boks last season in Pretoria before the World Champions blanked the Azzurri a week later (45-0) in Gqeberha.

“They are a really good direct team, because they’ve got a good set-piece they can launch effectively off that.

“If your players aren’t tackling well, they’ll make metres against us, and that’s what we saw when we played them in Pretoria as well.

“They’ve got a strong kicking game with good kickers in their team. [Alessandro] Garbisi have an excellent left foot, and they’ve got players who are very good in the air at contesting the high ball.

“So we need to be strong on those fronts and if there’s any scraps off the back of those contestable kicks the likes of Ange Capuozzo can create something out of nothing, so we’re looking to try and control those areas.”

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Flannery added that despite missing some key players, the hosts remain a threat on attack and revealed how the Boks will deal with them on the defensive front.

“We still respect Italy massively. When they came to Pretoria [last season], they were missing some key players as well, but they managed to run us really close.

“They’ve got a really strong set-piece, and their scrum is probably up there with some of the best in the Six Nations. That gives them a big advantage going into this game.

“They’re also a very well-coached team; they do the basics very well, and they still have guys like Ange Cuppuzo who can break a game open if you give them half a chance.

“If they’re missing Ignacio Brex, who is a really good footballer and Tommaso Menoncello, who is one of the best centres in the world and incredibly powerful, but they’ve shown that they’re building depth in their squad heading into the [2027] World Cup.

“It will benefit Italy in the long run if they get more caps in; we’ve had a look at them, and they have some dangerous individuals, but they’re a really well-coached team.

“So we’re looking at defending them as a team and not just as defending the individuals.”