Boks ‘need to adapt’ to different style of play in Europe

THE SPRINGBOKS have learned as much out of their defeat to England in the third Test in June as they did from their wins in the first and second Tests, No 8 Duane Vermeulen said in London yesterday.

Vermeulen and hooker Malcolm Marx were on press conference duty at the Boks’ hotel in Kensington in West London, and when the English press at last finished quizzing the pair about Schalk Brits, a folk hero in England, they got around to the rugby, in particular the Test match at Newlands that their team managed to win in the wet.

The Boks bravely won the first two Tests, but floundered to defeat in the rain.

“I think the weather played a big part in Cape Town,” said Vermeulen, who has only just re-joined the Bok squad after having featured prominently in the England series.

“England were used to those conditions, we weren’t, and it could well be similar on Saturday,” Vermeulen said. “It is a different style of play here in the northern hemisphere and we need to adapt. We have made some changes to our game and we will see how it plays out on Saturday.”

England ground out a 25-10 win at Newlands in a much slower game than the two that had been played at a furious pace on the Highveld.

“They gave us a lot of pressure at the breakdown that day (in the slower conditions) and also in our exits. The set piece becomes even more important. If the opposition gets an upper hand, you are going to struggle, and we did not get that right in Cape Town,” Vermeulen said.

It was put to Vermeulen that he might be up against a former South African in flank Michael Rhodes, who is in the England squad, and how he felt about it?

With a naughty grin, Vermeulen said: “Whoever is front of you is the one you want to eliminate, it doesn’t matter who it is …”

Vermeulen was also on form in answering the inevitable questions about Brits, pictured.

“He is 37, but is the youngest guy in our squad. He is hyperactive, for sure. He is an awesome team man. He brings a different atmosphere to the team with his energy and knowledge,” Vermeulen said.

“When guys aren’t selected, he is the guy that lifts the spirits.”