VIDEO: How Boks plan to stop All Black razzle-dazzle
New Zealand has the ability to turn on the charm, so to speak, and blitz any opponent – including arch-rivals South Africa.
It is exactly what they did the last time the two teams met – in a Rugby Championship outing in Auckland last month.
The Springboks were caught cold by the All Blacks, New Zealand racing into an early 17-0 lead, before winning 35-20.
Bok coach Jacques Nienaber warned his team about focusing too much on the Kiwis’ razzle-dazzle and ignoring the basic of the game.
“The All Blacks will provide a different challenge to Wales [whom the Boks routed 52-16 this past weekend],” Nienaber told an online media briefing after announcing his team on Monday.
“New Zealand play a high-tempo game, and they turn on the intensity from the starting whistle as they showed in Auckland, so it’s vital that we start well this week.
“We took the lessons from that match, and we’ve built good momentum since, so this will be a fantastic test before we enter our World Cup campaign.”
(WATCH as Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber unpacks the key to success for his team against the All Blacks at Twickenham on Friday…)
Nienaber made it clear that the All Blacks are not just ‘razzle-dazzle’ and has substance to their game.
“They have a proper set piece,” the Bok coach said.
“Sometimes you focus so much on the razzle-dazzle, that you forget they have a solid scum, a good maul, they stop mauls well and they stop your scrums well.”
He added that the All Blacks do the basics well.
“They have a good set piece and on top of that they have this fast, quick game that we will have to handle.”
South Africa and New Zealand, the only teams to win the World Cup three times, are in the same half of the draw for this year’s edition.
Depending on pool results, the two Rugby Union superpowers could meet each other again in the quarterfinals of the global showpiece.
South Africa and New Zealand have only faced another once at Twickenham, in 2015 – a World Cup semifinal the All Blacks by two points (20-18).
The rivals have faced off 104 times, with 62 All Black victories, 38 for the Springboks and there were four drawn matches.
Nienaber doesn’t read much into historical results.
Having lost to the All Blacks in the opening pool match at the 2019 World Cup, the Boks bounced back to win the tournament.
“It depends on how much you believe the past has an influence on the future,” he said.
He said both teams would like to win on Friday to take momentum into the World Cup, but they are not looking beyond Friday’s face-off.
“If we look too far ahead, on New Zealand first and then Scotland [opening round of the World Cup], we might not even get out of the pool.”
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