Meyer's quest for Bok perfection
Heyneke Meyer's quest for Springbok perfection could lead to 'coach burn-out', but will make the team a more consistently competitive outfit.
The new Bok mentor has made a solid start to his tenure with two promising if unconvincing victories over England, and with the results in his favour he has taken the opportunity to point out that no matter how well the team does he will be looking for constant improvement.
"I don't even look at the score, for me the challenge is to play perfect rugby for 80 minutes, but it is tough to get there and it is going to take time with this team," he said.
Meyer's passion and intensity cannot be questioned if the way he barks into his walkie-talkie during matches is anything to go by, and he has admitted that leading the squad for the last fortnight has raised his awareness of what it means to coach the Springboks.
He explained: "I always knew that people were passionate about the Boks but driving in the bus and seeing the awesome support from the people it puts even more pressure on me to make them proud.
"I know that South Africa needs a Springbok team that does well. I think you are always under pressure and as a coach I am very emotional, so I am not just saying it as a PR exercise, I really want our country to do well," said the Springbok coach.
It is one thing working yourself into a frenzy of stress and shouting about how much you want to win, but making sure that all the effort is productive and effective is another matter entirely.
It is here that Meyer must strike the right balance, and his biggest test will be once he loses a few games, but for now he is making all the right noises about his plans for the development of his side.
After having made a few controversial calls by leaving out some big names, Meyer's team have shown glimpses of immense potential in his first two matches in charge, but by his own admission they have not been flawless performances.
He has made it clear that the defensive effort in Johannesburg was not acceptable, especially as the tries conceded were more a case of losing focus rather than a problem with the system employed.
He said: "I really believe that we gave soft tries away, and they were not defensive errors or coaching errors they were just soft moments.
"That is one thing I have said to the team – your defence is part of your culture, it is part of who you are and your character, so I wasn't happy with that.
"Take nothing away from England, and to score 30 points and four tries in a Test match is great, but we can't give away soft tries and we need to up the focus.
"There was speculation in the media that it was the impact players, but most of those guys came on for injuries and that is not an excuse, those soft moments in a game are non-negotiable and unacceptable," added the Bok boss.
This shows an encouraging ability to be critical of the details of every performance, and this along with his belief in picking the strongest available team should ensure that the Boks play to a consistently high standard under his watch.
The next challenge for Meyer will be adversity. He has answered the early criticism of some of his selections with positive results and a committed attitude, but the way he reacts to his team being beaten remains to be seen.
By Michael de Vries
