Hansen highlights Bok problem

ALL Blacks coach Steve Hansen believes the Springboks’ inability to settle on a game plan has held them back, writes Liam del Carme.

The Boks have won three of their six Tests in 2016 and with that underwhelming return critics have been quick to point at the way they have gone about their business.

“Maybe that is part of their problem so far, they are not sure how to play‚” said Hansen when asked what he expected tactically from the Boks in the Rugby Championship Test on Saturday.

“Most of their side is from the Lions. South Africans play a bruising‚ physical and reasonably direct game. The Lions don’t play like that, he said.

“When you mould your team sometimes it takes you a while to get them to where they need to be‚” he said at the All Blacks’ team hotel near the Christchurch city centre which still carries deep scars from the devastating 2011 earthquake.

Competition runners-up‚ the Lions‚ were lauded for their freespirited approach in Super Rugby which saw them top the try-scoring charts in the league stages.

The way they play‚ however‚ is a fundamental departure from the way the Springboks have traditionally played.

“I’m not sure which style Allister [Coetzee] wants to play‚” said Hansen. “It looks like he wants to play a more expansive game. They are going through that process. They’ll get it right one of these days soon. When they do‚ look out.”

Coetzee‚ however‚ seems clear in his mind about the way his team should play.

“When it comes to Test rugby there will always be a battle of the set-piece‚” the Bok coach said from the team’s Fancourt-like base outside the city limits.

“If you don’t win your set-piece there is no style you can play. The other battle is for territory. You cannot score 50m or 70m tries in Test rugby.

“You have to make sure you play the percentages right. Then it is about decision-making,” he said.

His players don’t seem to be endowed with the same clarity. But Coetzee begs to differ.

“I’m really pleased with how switched on we’ve been on turnover possession. We scored two brilliant tries last weekend. However our contact skills have disappointed us.

“We build pressure but then we give away possession. When we click and get it right for more than 60 minutes it will be a different picture,” he said.

In the meantime the Springboks’ game plan is a bit like the landscape in and around Christchurch — under construction. TMG Digital