Snyman was 'phenomenal'
WORLD CUP SPOTLIGHT: Lock RG Snyman put his hand up to be a starter for the Springboks in the play-offs after his “phenomenal” performance against Canada on Tuesday.
The 24-year-old was picked out as the player of the match after the 66-7 win, although Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus was quick to point out that stiffer challenges lay ahead.
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The @Mastercard #RSAvCAN Player of the Match – RG Snyman 👏
A physical and dynamic display from the giant lock 💪#RWC2019 #RWCKobe #POTM pic.twitter.com/XcQFVeRhWX
— Rugby World Cup (@rugbyworldcup) October 8, 2019
“He [Snyman] played well, but one must always see it in context,” he said.
“The tougher the opposition, the less time you get for decision-making, and the more pressure and more there is at stake. They also got a red card and were down to 14 men.
“I wouldn’t take anything away from RG, because he was phenomenal. He made great decisions, didn’t always look for the offload, and had nice balance in his game.
“But the moment you go into quarterfinal mode against teams like England and New Zealand, as it’s totally different to a game like tonight [Tuesday].
“It’s obviously frustrating if you’re a squad member and never get a start; but everyone has had a start now; Frans Malherbe scored his first try, Damian Willemse scored his first try, Cobus [Reinach] had a hat-trick so there were a lot of good things but now it’s make-or-break.”
The Boks scored 27 tries in qualification to just three conceded – 10 of them coming against Canada, seven of which in an explosive first half.
“I thought we were nice and clinical and decisive, especially with a bunch of guys who haven’t played a lot in the last four to five weeks; I thought that was really well done,” said Erasmus.
“Only conceding one penalty in the first half, and then the second half started bad in a way as we conceded five penalties in the first five minutes. Overall, I thought it was a solid performance, especially in the first half.
“We thought where we could target Canada were in the areas that we did. I’ve coached a lot against Kingsley [Jones, Canada coach] and they have a certain style of playing and defending.
“I thought the way our backs exploited the space was good, but I wouldn’t say that we planned to score with our backs. Our forwards weren’t as dominant as we were against Namibia and Italy.”
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