Boks will bounce back
Springbok coach Allister Coetzee is adamant that his team will bounce back in their next match.
The Springboks suffered a 57-0 defeat in the Castle Lager Rugby Championship at the hands of their old foe New Zealand in Albany.
Coetzee returned to South Africa alongside a very down-looking Bok group on Sunday night and said his side had simply hit “a perfect storm” in Albany, and that the score-line was hardly a reflection of how good the team were.
“Definitely not, we did get that on Saturday but I would say that we are definitely not 50 points. It is a bad day at the office to be honest but should we get them at Newlands, then we will see,” the defiant Coetzee said ahead of the October 7 rematch between the two sides in Cape Town.
Coetzee looked to explain the tsunami of points the team conceded to post the worst ever defeat at the hands of the All Blacks, a result which can't be sugar-coated no matter how good the spin.
“It is disappointing obviously and I think we really prepared to put up a good performance or an improved performance from the Australian one. The week went very well but obviously we had a few setbacks, but that is no excuse. We just hit a perfect storm, where you had the All Blacks being criticised for their performances in the second test against Australia, the one they almost lost and the one against Argentina. You don't need to motivate the All Blacks when they play the Boks.
“It was almost like it was a perfect day for them. We hung ourselves in a way because we didn't execute. And if you don't execute against the All Blacks then you will be punished and in the first 20 minutes we were dominating collisions. We felt we were looking in good nick, but every time when we needed to go one more phase, or one more pass, they ripped the ball and we were behind the poles.
“A little kick behind from a quick tap and we were behind and they scored. Great defence until they used the cross kick and the ball bounced awkwardly and it was 24-0 before we had any answers.
“We did a lot of attack and had some good passages of play, some good territory, dominated possession but had nothing to show for it. From that point of view it shows again you really have to be accurate when you play against New Zealand. You can't give them points on a platter.”
Coetzee said the team now knew very well where they were in comparison to the All Blacks. And while he wouldn't concede the point, the evidence of Saturday's massacre is pretty compelling.
“Like you rightly say, they are the best team in the world. And now we have a clear indication of where we are. I don't think in terms of the physicality stakes, the effort stakes, we are far behind. Our intensity isn't far behind. But in terms of depth in our squad and in terms of execution on the day, we've had a great lineout success story.
“The great lesson for our players and what they experienced is the amount of pressure that New Zealand can exert on a team, and that is what you need to cope with. That is the rush defence, how they forced those errors and in the contact holding. That is crucial; there is a lot of learning. I don't always want to say learning but there were a lot of players who played for the first time against New Zealand and they have experienced it themselves.”
Yet the record books will show Coetzee has now lost to the All Blacks by 50 points within a 12-month period, and while as coach he needs to find answers before the two home games, Saturday's result was a clear assessment of just where this Springbok team is right now: Loads of promise, but lacking depth and a killer instinct, lacking game-breaking superstars and composure to compete with the best in the world.
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Coetzee returned to South Africa alongside a very down-looking Bok group on Sunday night and said his side had simply hit “a perfect storm” in Albany, and that the score-line was hardly a reflection of how good the team were.
“Definitely not, we did get that on Saturday but I would say that we are definitely not 50 points. It is a bad day at the office to be honest but should we get them at Newlands, then we will see,” the defiant Coetzee said ahead of the October 7 rematch between the two sides in Cape Town.
Coetzee looked to explain the tsunami of points the team conceded to post the worst ever defeat at the hands of the All Blacks, a result which can't be sugar-coated no matter how good the spin.
“It is disappointing obviously and I think we really prepared to put up a good performance or an improved performance from the Australian one. The week went very well but obviously we had a few setbacks, but that is no excuse. We just hit a perfect storm, where you had the All Blacks being criticised for their performances in the second test against Australia, the one they almost lost and the one against Argentina. You don't need to motivate the All Blacks when they play the Boks.
“It was almost like it was a perfect day for them. We hung ourselves in a way because we didn't execute. And if you don't execute against the All Blacks then you will be punished and in the first 20 minutes we were dominating collisions. We felt we were looking in good nick, but every time when we needed to go one more phase, or one more pass, they ripped the ball and we were behind the poles.
“A little kick behind from a quick tap and we were behind and they scored. Great defence until they used the cross kick and the ball bounced awkwardly and it was 24-0 before we had any answers.
“We did a lot of attack and had some good passages of play, some good territory, dominated possession but had nothing to show for it. From that point of view it shows again you really have to be accurate when you play against New Zealand. You can't give them points on a platter.”
Coetzee said the team now knew very well where they were in comparison to the All Blacks. And while he wouldn't concede the point, the evidence of Saturday's massacre is pretty compelling.
“Like you rightly say, they are the best team in the world. And now we have a clear indication of where we are. I don't think in terms of the physicality stakes, the effort stakes, we are far behind. Our intensity isn't far behind. But in terms of depth in our squad and in terms of execution on the day, we've had a great lineout success story.
“The great lesson for our players and what they experienced is the amount of pressure that New Zealand can exert on a team, and that is what you need to cope with. That is the rush defence, how they forced those errors and in the contact holding. That is crucial; there is a lot of learning. I don't always want to say learning but there were a lot of players who played for the first time against New Zealand and they have experienced it themselves.”
Yet the record books will show Coetzee has now lost to the All Blacks by 50 points within a 12-month period, and while as coach he needs to find answers before the two home games, Saturday's result was a clear assessment of just where this Springbok team is right now: Loads of promise, but lacking depth and a killer instinct, lacking game-breaking superstars and composure to compete with the best in the world.
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