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Johannesburg - The Springboks' game against New Zealand on Saturday is crucial to their Rugby World Cup hopes, as the team desperately need some confidence before heading off to defend their World Cup title.
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After the poor second-half showing against Australia, where the Boks allowed the visitors to come back and steal the game, mainly thanks to their own lack of finishing, Bok flank Heinrich Brussow said it was critical that the Boks win on Saturday.
Laying most of the blame for the Australian defeat – their third in four years on South African soil – at the feet of his own team, Brussow said the Boks simply had to win on Saturday to avoid significant psychological damage ahead of the showpiece tournament in New Zealand.
While the Bok management continue to maintain they took a step forward in the 14-9 loss, the team has now lost eight of their last nine Tri-Nations games and face the distinct possibility of becoming the first Springbok team in Castle Tri-Nations history to be whitewashed in the competition.
All of this hardly points to a confidence booster, something the team need to give themselves by beating an under-strength New Zealand team in Port Elizabeth.
“It’s our own fault we lost,” Brussow said in his honest assessment of his team’s form on the day, “It was bad to lose but people out there need to be positive. We know what we can do and we know we have quality players. This is the team that can take us through to winning the world cup.
“But at the same time, the game against New Zealand is crucial because we do need to gain some confidence ahead of the World Cup and we need to win.”
Brussow agreed with coach Peter de Villiers assessment that this was a game lost by South Africa, rather than one won by the Australians.
“We had a lot of control in the beginning, and it was going well. We created chances and we didn’t finish and that cost us in the end, allowing them to come back in the game. We made it difficult for ourselves. A few small mistakes cost us the game.”
“The Aussies deserved to win. We had our chances and our self-confidence was good going into the game. When we played with the ball we were able to dominate and if we had kept that up we could have won. But we gave them the chance to come back in the game and they deserved to win.”
But with time running out before the World Cup, it would be an understatement to say that the alarm bells have started ringing for Peter de Villiers and his team.
The Port Elizabeth test serves as an opportunity for a timely redemption. The Boks need to remind the world, but more importantly themselves, of what they are capable of.
