Lood: England are the favourites
But Boks have foot in door and anything can happen
Towering Springbok lock Lood de Jager looked down at the media in the bowels of the International Stadium Yokohama after their Rugby World Cup semifinal win over Wales and calmly declared England as favourites for Saturday’s final.
Towering Springbok lock Lood de Jager looked down at the media in the bowels of the International Stadium Yokohama after their Rugby World Cup semifinal win over Wales and calmly declared England as favourites for Saturday’s final.
There was no gasp‚ or “can you say that again?”.
De Jager stated it as a matter of fact, and on the evidence of both semifinals it is a point that is hard to argue.
De Jager was hugely impressed with England’s semifinal dismantling of the All Blacks on Saturday.
“England are the favourites‚ if you look at their performance in the semifinal. For us‚ we have a foot in the door. Anything can happen‚” said De Jager.
He had expected more of an arm wrestle from England’s clash against the All Blacks.
“We were surprised by how comfortably England actually beat the All Blacks‚” he said.
“If you look at history‚ semifinals have always been decided within one score.
“That always helps when you go into battle knowing you have to win those big moments.
“At the end of the day it’s the team that executes their plan the best. We did that [on Sunday]‚” De Jager said‚ after the Boks’ 19-16 win over Wales in their semifinal. England‚ though‚ are the team of the moment.
“England played very well. Their defence actually won them that game‚” he said. “They attacked well, but their defence was immense.
“They were really physical, so we know it’s going to be a massive physical battle. We pride ourselves on our physicality, so I think it’s going to be an interesting one to watch.”
And that is perhaps why De Jager seems so undaunted.
If there is an element to the Springbok make-up that can be used to match and better their main rivals‚ it is their ability to rise to a physical challenge.
They eventually pummelled Wales into submission.
Wales were unlucky with injuries‚ particularly to gamebreakers such as Liam Williams before the match and George North during the game‚ but tighthead Tomas Francis’s sin was that he stood in the way of
Duane Vermeulen in full flight. Apart from gain-line dominance‚ De Jager knows that if the Boks are going to be successful on Saturday they had better win their individual battles.
“He had a fantastic game‚” De Jager said of England’s man of the match in the semifinal, Maro Itoje. “He’s a great player‚ a big player for them. They rely on him a lot. He has a lot of big moments‚ he brings a lot of turnovers.
“It’s going to be a great challenge coming up against him.
“We’ll go and have a look at what they do at lineout time and analyse them and come up with a good plan.”
The lineout challenge will certainly be crucial.
While England did wonders in disrupting the All Blacks in that discipline‚ the Springboks have reason to go into that aerial contest emboldened. They’ve won 62 of their 63 lineout throws at this World Cup.
De Jager could not stop smiling. It was as if the weight of the Boks’ 2015 semifinal exit had been lifted off his shoulders.
“This is a huge relief. We lost in the semifinal and that is bad. To play for third and fourth place is very bad. It hasn’t sunk in yet‚” he said about the Springboks reaching their first World Cup final since 2007.
“If we go on and win this thing it is going to be amazing.”
WE WERE SURPRISED BY HOW COMFORTABLY ENGLAND ACTUALLY BEAT THE ALL BLACKS
Lood de Jager Springbok lock