Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Boks plan to snip Blossoms
THE Springboks look set to beat host nation Japan in tomorrow’s World Cup quarter-final in Yokohama.
And after the warm-up game, which the Boks won 41-7, they are looking to restore some pride after the “Brighton miracle” when Japan beat South Africa in the last World Cup.
“I’ve been trying to forget about that for the last four years,” Brave Blossom’s coach Jamie Joseph said.
“We’re a different team. That was an amazing achievement for the last World Cup. We’re sort of working on our own thing.”
Bok coach Rassie Erasmus was content doing his own thing, too. He announced his team for the quarter-final a day ahead of schedule, figuring there was no point holding back a lineup clearly picked with the intention of battering Japan.
He went for the most aggressive forward pack he could start with and loaded the eight-man reserves bench with six forwards.
Then he reiterated, step-by-step, the plan to grind down Japan’s highenergy game.
“It’s no secret,” Erasmus said of the plan to try to out-muscle the smaller but faster Japan pack.
The idea is to “nullify the space around the tight forwards, with the pace that they have. And to play toward our strengths, which is physical rugby, set phases, mauling, scrums”.
“It’s clear what South Africa is going to do,” Joseph said. “Being very direct, very physical... a clear sign of the intent. That’s what we’ve been preparing for all week.
“What’s not so clear is what we’re going to do – that’s what I’m looking forward to.”
Japan captain Michael Leitch said the Blossoms had achieved their pre-tournament target by reaching the knockout stage on home soil.
Time to reset, Leitch said.
“This is not the end of the story,” he said. “We’re not satisfied. The match we had four years ago, the world started to focus on the Japan rugby team – surprised – and the fans of Japan were struck with how we played. We’ve got the chance to do it live in front of the Japanese people again.”
Lock Lood de Jager and flanker Pieter-Steph du Toit started in the loss to Japan four years ago and are more prepared this time after the big win in the “rehearsal” in Kumagaya.
“They definitely try to pick up the pace of the game in all aspects. For us, it’s about being ready for it – to expect the quick lineouts, to be set early,” De Jager said.
“We weren’t that well prepared in Brighton. But they still beat us fair and square that day – we are not making any excuses. I think that warm-up game we played before the World Cup against Japan really puts us in good stead for the quarter-final.”
The bookmakers favour a Springboks win of more than 15 points, but Bok
flyhalf and backline general Handre Pollard told the media that a onepoint win would be good enough to secure their place in the tournament’s final four.
The Springboks will be playing in their seventh successive quarter-final. This will be Japan’s first World Cup quarter-final.
Springbok captain Siya Kolisi emphasised that while the Boks respected the strengths of Japan’s allout attack approach, it was vital the Boks played to their own strengths, which were based on a forward-orientated strategy.
He said the key was for South Africa to keep it simple.
“We have been playing knockout rugby since the loss to the All Blacks in the first game of the tournament and ever since we have been in the mental space of knowing we had to win.
“We haven’t changed much in our approach. Win and we get to stay in Japan, lose and we are on our way home. We have got to stick to what we know best.”