Coetzee says Boks ready to counter ‘clever’ Wallabies attack
PRETORIA: Springbok coach Allister Coetzee is under no illusions over the attacking prowess of the Wallabies and has called on his side to have their wits about them on defence ahead of their Rugby Championship clash in Perth on Saturday.
The Wallabies have blown hot and cold since the competition kicked off, losing both of their Tests against the All Blacks, but it was in their narrow defeat in Dunedin that Coetzee realised the danger that the Australians pose on attack.
In that 35-29 loss, the Wallabies scored five tries, some built from several phases from set-piece play emanating primarily from the lineout.
It is the Wallabies lineout which the Springboks must target and nullify as the men from Down Under have apparently not lost a single lineout this year, according to Coetzee.
Coetzee’s concern is the Wallabies’ ability to generate waves of attack which inevitably leads to them crossing the whitewash in the same manner they did against the All Blacks, who generally have a rock-solid defence.
“We have a lot of respect for the Australians and they ask different questions to most of the other sides. They always come with different running lines to contend with when it gets to general attack,” Coetzee expanded. “They are a clever side and their lineout work is really intelligent.
“They have played two Tests against the All Blacks and even though they lost to Scotland, they haven’t lost a lineout all season. And the lineout is a platform used to launch your attack from, and according to stats the most tries are scored from turnover and lineouts,” Coetzee said.
But over and above the wisdom with which the Australians have been forced to revert to because of their limitations in mastering the finer arts of the game, there were enough glimpses of a sudden return to form of some of the Wallabies go-to men in centre Kurtley Beale, scrumhalf Will Genia, menacing flank Michael Hooper and the lanky Israel Folau. If the Springboks can suffocate the Wallabies lineout and leave little or no space for Genia and Beale to operate, then Hooper will be ineffective without ball in hand while Folau will also be obsolete without possession, especially out of the air.
Coetzee, though, is confident the Boks have examined all that the Wallabies will throw at them with ball in hand, and that his side have a firm grip of what is to come and how to stop the Australians in their tracks.
The Springboks have been very economical when it comes to defence and have conceded the least number of points and tries in the competition so far.
“They’ve got X-factor players if you look at Folau and his aerial skills and the way they kick those contestable cross kicks to him, we got to be aware of that. Genia is hitting his straps now and he is a threat, a running nine, and we have to make sure our defence is in check.
“We are facing defensively something different. Hooper and the way they have two lines of attack is something different. They will set you up and then they will strike on the third or fourth phase when your defence becomes unstructured. But we know what to expect, we have a good understanding and we will continue with what we believe in.”