Boks turn focus to Wallabies challenge
THE Springboks have spent the week in public at least trying to exorcise the ghosts of Albany, but behind the scenes their attention has turned to the challenge the Wallabies pose in their Rugby Championship clash this weekend.
Both the Boks and Wallabies have been humbled by the All Blacks this season, and so the two sides have to be content with playing for second place.
South Africa have a mathematical chance of winning the title, but coach Allister Coetzee rather oddly conceded that the title was out of reach.
Australia, by contrast, has no hope of winning the Championship, but a Bok scalp on the Highveld would do nicely.
The Boks are also desperate to show that the 57-0 hammering in Albany was a once-off abject performance.
Except that there have been several of those in the past 15 months – notably against the All Blacks – but also against Italy and Wales in November.
The only way the Boks can answer their critics is on the field, with a strong performance against Australia.
But even though they have to focus on the task this weekend, there is a feeling that regardless of the outcome against the Wallabies, nothing will change the Boks’ standing until they have proven that they can at least live with New Zealand on a rugby field.
The squad, though, does not have the luxury of dwelling on what lies ahead at Newlands next week.
They have to focus on the challenge the Wallabies pose.
Australian victories in South Africa are rare – with only 10 wins in 44 matches – but two of those wins have come in four outings in Bloemfontein, which included their last visit here in 2010.
That day, Kurtley Beale kicked a late penalty to give the Wallabies a 41-39 victory, and Beale will again be a threat to the Boks.
He is not quite the slippery character of seven years ago, but he has matured into a high quality playmaker around which the Wallabies base most of their attacking game.
“Kurtley Beale is a creative player and more of a threat by the way he puts people around him in space,” Bok backline coach Franco Smith said.
“We managed that aspect quite well in Perth [when the Boks drew 23-23 three weeks ago] and we will have to do it again.”
Fullback Israel Folau is another who poses a huge threat, especially if wayward kicking allows him space and time on the ball. Smith is wary of that particular threat as well.
“Israel Folau is extremely potent in the air and he has good feet, so it’s important to limit his space by keeping the ball away from him,” Smith said. “We have a specific plan for this weekend.”
Altitude could be a factor for the Wallabies, who have been preparing in Johannesburg, but it is no longer a massive issue, after years and years of Super Rugby intelligence on how to deal with a match at 1 300m above sea level.
“You can’t hide away from the fact that altitude’s a different atmosphere, but the players get used to it pretty quickly and adapt to it pretty quickly,” Wallaby skills coach Mick Byrne said.
“The big one is [that] it’s not at the front of your mind. You set your protocols before you come here, you know what you’re doing and then when you get here, you just get on with it.”