Springboks to take Ellis Park lessons into Wallabies clash – Mzwandile Stick
· Citizen
The Springboks will take the lessons from their chastening defeat to the Wallabies at Ellis Park last year, into their one-off Test at the Optus Stadium in Perth on Sunday (kick-off 11:45am), according to assistant coach Mzwandile Stick.
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Last year the Boks were heavy favourites against the Wallabies, who had struggled massively in previous years, but had impressed despite losing their British and Irish Lions series 2-1, and they took that form into the first Rugby Championship game of the season and stunned the hosts on the highveld.
In the match the Boks raced into a 22-0 lead within the first 18 minutes, but then spectacularly capitulated as the Wallabies battled back with 38 unanswered points to secure an incredible win.
Bounced back
The Boks did bounce back from that defeat with a hard fought 30-22 win in Cape Town a week later, and although they will be favourites again Down Under on Sunday they won’t be taking anything for granted.
“We’ve learned a lot from what happened at Ellis Park. Probably after 20 minutes when you’re leading by 22 points and then you drift away from your plan,” explained Stick.
“But if you look at the team they’ve selected, it’s going to be a tough challenge. Looking at their backline, they’ve got powerful runners in that centre partnership with Hunter Paisami and Len Ikitau, and they’ve selected Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii on the wing, who is strong against the kicking game.
“They are a team that showed that if you’re not good on the day, they can punish you. They’ve won three of their last five games, drawing one against Argentina, and with their new coaching staff (led by Les Kiss), there’s a renewed energy in their team, so they’re in a good space. The key thing for us is to stick to what works and keep getting better.”
The Boks can take plenty of confidence from the fact that they have largely dominated the Wallabies in recent history, they are in form, and they have backed a large number of hungry fringe players who have a point to prove in the match.
Aussie dominance
The Boks have won five of the last six games against the Wallabies, and last three played in Australia, after snapping a nine year winless run Down Under, when they went from 2013 to 2022 losing seven games and drawing one.
“I think for us the key thing is to make sure that we just focus on what we want to achieve in the game, in a sense of keep building our game and keep getting better at the things that we want to do,” said Stick.
“We take pride in how we defend, we take pride in our kicking game, and we take pride in our set pieces. It will also be an opportunity for the guys that are getting a chance to make sure that they keep building our game towards where we want to go.
“We are excited about the guys getting an opportunity after a tough four weeks against the All Blacks (during Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series), especially guys like Canan Moodie and Handre Pollard, who were close to playing in one of the games and then got injured.
“I’m also thrilled to see a guy like Herschel Jantjies. He’s probably only played about 25 minutes this season, but he’s been great in training sessions, so I’m very excited for him to get a chance.”