Coetzee guns for first-quarter improvement
ON A night when the South African back three of Andries Coetzee‚ Courtnall Skosan and Raymond Rhule were rudely introduced to the realities of international rugby and the All Blacks‚ there had to be a silver lining in the dark cloud.
Of the changes Springbok coach Allister Coetzee will be forced to make after the historic 57-0 drubbing at the hands of the All Blacks on Saturday‚ there’s a possibility Coetzee may be handed a stay of execution.
Rhule and Skosan may not be so fortunate with Australia lying in wait in Bloemfontein on September 30.
Coetzee wasn’t looking far ahead as the All Blacks result requires a fair bit of reflection in the aftermath of the record defeat, and the Bok coach felt they didn’t make the most of the first quarter.
“To forget about this defeat‚ we have to take it day by day and our next focus is the Wallabies, with our last game being [against] the All Blacks in Cape Town.
“We’ll have to prep for the Wallabies and make sure we win that game‚” Coetzee said.
“The first 20 minutes is an important period and that’s when you want to put points on the board.
“I think that’s where we can improve .... I definitely believe that we can improve department.”
Coetzee will have learnt that New Zealand don’t operate with margins of error and when one is made‚ punishment is swift and brutal.
The Boks made four firsthalf mistakes that led to tries and a 31-0 lead they couldn’t overhaul.
One of those mistakes was Jean-luc du Preez’s pass that was intercepted by Nehe Milnerand led to a try that knocked the stuffing out of the Boks.
“When you make a mistake in Test rugby‚ chances are you will pay for that mistake with big points and teams with the armoury will know how to capitalise on errors‚” Coetzee said.
“You have to be very clinical and you can’t be making regular mistakes as teams will punish you‚ like this New Zealand team.
“This is what I’ve learnt – even though I’ve enjoyed Test rugby.
“It’s difficult to concede when you’re on attack, but you can’t drop your head after a try.
“You have to pick yourself up and soldier on.
“The try wasn’t going change, or anything else.
“It was a case of us trying to put points on the board.
“That’s something I think we can improve on.” in this to