Du Preez feels the weight of expectation
World Cup-winning scrumhalf Fourie du Preez described us “unfair” the expectations heaped on himself and Heinrich Brüssow to right the listing Springbok ship.
Bok coach Peter de Villiers De Villiers on Thursday recalled most of his senior players for Saturday’s Test against Australia, making 13 changes to the starting XV.
However, the spotlight shone brightest on Du Preez and Brüssow at a media gathering in Durban, as South Africa look to bounce back from the heavy defeats in Australasia.
Du Preez and Brüssow feature in a Bok starting XV for the first time in 21 months.
De Villiers did not pull any punches when he said that much is expected from the duo.
“It’s great to have Fourie and Heinrich back,” De Villiers told a media gathering at the team’s base north of Durban.
“Aside from bringing comfort to the guys around them, especially Fourie, they are world-class players.
“They bring a kind of element that we’ve missed in the last year and I’m looking forward to them slotting in as quick as possible.
“They know the responsibility that’s on their shoulders, the pressure is mounting on them, but we know they can handle the pressure.”
Du Preez missed the 2010 international season because of a shoulder operation and Brüssow was ruled out by a knee ligament injury.
However, Du Preez said it was unfair to expect so much of them.
“I think it is a bit hard on both of us,” said Du Preez, sitting next to the Bok coach at the same media conference.
“Heinrich is in the same position as me … it [the pressure] is pretty hard on us.
“We just want to get back on the field and do our best for the team – help the team get back on track and hopefully we can start that on Saturday
“I think I can talk for him [Brüssow] also in saying that we are just there to do the best for the team.
“To heap the sort of expectation that is being heaped on us is unfair. We want to concentrate on our form and getting back into international rugby.
“Hopefully we can help the team perform a little better than they did last time [against the All Blacks and Wallabies], but it won’t be because we are back … it will be because everyone [of the players] want the team to be on top again.”
De Villiers felt the class of the two, Du Preez and Brüssow, will make a difference.
“They were two of the leading players in world rugby when they last played in 2009, and they contributed a lot to Springbok success that season.
“This is the first step back for them, but we’re looking to them to have the same impact in due course.”
The team would be the most experienced Springbok side in history with 810 caps, although most of the players have played no rugby over the past five to seven weeks.
“Most of the guys have proved themselves on the world stage already,” said De Villiers. “These guys are world class players.
“They might struggle the first 15 to 20 minutes, but then after that I believe their natural talent will kick in again and because they are such good footballers, they will come good.”
He urged the country to forget what had happened during the recent trip to Australasia, where they were also well beaten by the Wallabies.
“What happened in the past wasn’t good for our country and wasn’t good for us, but we leave that in the past,” he said.
“Our focus now is solely on Saturday’s game.
“We want to again be the respected team we were two seasons ago and I think that alone is enough motivation in itself.”
