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Cape Town - Former Springbok assistant coach Brendan Venter says the All Blacks won’t make the mistake of underestimating the Boks again when the teams clash in Pretoria on Saturday.
Kick-off at Loftus Versfeld is at 17:05.
South Africa stunned the rugby fraternity when they beat New Zealand 36-34 in Wellington last month - a game in which Venter believes the All Blacks players did not show their opponents enough respect.
“I know for a fact that the All Black coaches didn't disrespect the Springboks because they rate them and would never have picked their best side if they didn't. Sometimes what you say as a coach off the field doesn't necessarily translate to what happens on the field. The All Black coaching staff would have told the players to respect the Springboks, but deep down they didn't,” the former Springbok centre wrote via a column for the Stuff.co.nz website.
Venter warned his countrymen that it would be tougher to win at Loftus this weekend.
“I cannot foresee the All Blacks playing from their own tryline like the Wallabies did to their detriment in the first minute of the match in Port Elizabeth. For me, the respect factor is what is going to make the Test in Pretoria different to the one in Wellington. The All Blacks have also stated this week that they want to right the wrongs of Wellington, which underlines they are as motivated as the Springboks for the match.”
However Venter, who played 17 Tests for the Boks between 1994 and 1999, added that the Boks are in with a chance “because the All Blacks aren't at their sharpest at the moment”.
READ Brendan Venter’s full column on the Stuff.co.nz website
Teams:
South Africa
15 Willie le Roux, 14 Cheslin Kolbe, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Aphiwe Dyantyi, 10 Handre Pollard, 9 Faf de Klerk, 8 Francois Louw, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Siya Kolisi (captain), 5 Franco Mostert, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Steven Kitshoff
Substitutes: 16 Bongi Mbonambi, 17 Tendai Mtawarira, 18 Vincent Koch, 19 RG Snyman, 20 Sikhumbuzo Notshe, 21 Embrose Papier, 22 Elton Jantjies, 23 Damian Willemse
New Zealand
15 Ben Smith, 14 Waisake Naholo, 13 Jack Goodhue, 12 Sonny Bill Williams, 11 Rieko Ioane, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Kieran Read (captain), 7 Sam Cane, 6 Shannon Frizell, 5 Scott Barrett, 4 Sam Whitelock, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Karl Tu'inukuafe
Substitutes: 16 Nathan Harris, 17 Tim Perry, 18 Ofa Tu'ungafasi, 19 Patrick Tuipulotu, 20 Ardie Savea, 21 TJ Perenara, 22 Richie Mo'unga, 23 Ryan Crotty
