Faith in Bok plan pays dividends
REACTION: Springbok captain Siya Kolisi singled out the effective use of their point-scoring opportunities as one of the main keys to success against Scotland at Murrayfield on Saturday.
The Springboks, who were down 8-10 at half-time, recorded a 30-15 win over Scotland after a strong second-half performance.
The result followed a victory against Wales in their opening match in Cardiff last week and will serve as a good confidence booster as the team enter their final match of the tour next week against England at Twickenham.
Springbok wing Makazole Mapimpi scored both the team’s tries, while Elton Jantjies, Handre Pollard (flyhalves) and Frans Steyn (replacement back) kicked a combined total of six penalty goals.
Kolisi said converting their opportunities into points was one of the key themes in the camp this past week and lauded his teammates for delivering on this.
“We didn’t change anything,” said Kolisi.
“The difference today [Saturday] was the way we used our opportunities, which we didn’t do as effectively against Australia and New Zealand.
“We scored two tries and there were times when we applied so much pressure they kicked the ball, and we won it back.
“That’s what [Bok coach] Jacques [Nienaber] has been driving – to see the opportunities and use them, and we did that today.”
An awesome performance
Meanwhile, Bok lock Eben Etzebeth, who was the man of the match, also said faith in the game plan helped them get past Scotland in the second half.
“We just said ‘keep to the structures and just have some patience’,” said Etzebeth
“The guys came out and it was an awesome performance in the second half.”
The Springboks will travel to London on Sunday for their final tour match against England.
“Really tough one to take.”@FagersonMatt speaks to us after today’s 15-30 loss to South Africa at @BTMurrayfield. pic.twitter.com/bBckFgkiwC
— Scottish Rugby (@Scotlandteam) November 13, 2021
