'I just defend what's in front of me': De Allende unpacks Boks' midfield defensive blueprint
INTERVIEW: Springbok centre Damian de Allende unpacked the Boks’ midfield defensive system ahead of the Greatest Rivalry series decider against New Zealand in Baltimore.
In rugby, the midfield is generally where a missed defensive read could lead to an opposition linebreak and a possible score against the defensive team.
And that’s why the long-standing midfield combination of De Allende and Jesse Kriel is such a key cog in the Boks’ success over the past decade.
It’s no coincidence that the Boks started to leak tries in the first RGR Test when Kriel shifted to wing after Kurt-Lee Arendse got injured, which caused a disruption in midfield.
This past weekend, the centre duo made a combined 20 tackles, with De Allende making the third most tackles (11) in the process.
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De Allende revealed how they prepare defensively and the key role Kriel plays in ensuring the system remains intact.
“For us [myself and Jesse Kriel] on defence, it comes down to preparation; it’s the work our coaches do in the background to prepare us with their analysis.
“A guy like Jesse is one of our defensive leaders; he’s the one who takes control of it.
“The way he speaks about defence, he’s got a lot of pride in his role. He brings that across a lot and gets all the players to buy into believing that what we’re doing is correct.
“Sometimes on the pitch it does come down to instinct – there are times when we have to make a split-second decision, and sometimes you get it right and other times you get it wrong.
“But 90 percent of the things come down to preparation, what we plan for and what we expect to see from the All Blacks.”
*Also read: The chilling warning coming out of Bok camp
When asked if he had a preference for defending against a forward or a back, De Allende added:
“I just defend what’s in front of me, that’s how we are coached.
“Sometimes I’ll have to defend against a forward, but mostly it’s against a back.
“I don’t mind who it is; I don’t really have a preference.”
