Scotland will ask serious questions
ERASMUS: THEY ARE A DIFFICULT SIDE TO BREAK DOWN
Afew telling uncertainties surround the Springboks’ penultimate game of their international season against a resurgent Scotland side in Edinburgh tonight.
A one-point loss to England and a three-point win over France on their tour thus far underlined that the Boks had not yet fulfilled their true potential, but the tough northern hemisphere conditions had been a major mitigating factor.
While the spotlight this weekend would be on robust lock RG Snyman and nippy scrumhalf Embrose Papier’s performances, coach Rassie Erasmus admitted the genuine pace in his back-row could be a concern after the injury to No 8 Warren Whiteley.
“Against Scotland you will need some pace in your back-row and some speed in your second row, and we will miss Warren in that regard,” Erasmus said.
“But Duane (Vermeulen) will bring different attributes. He gives us good engagement in the scrum and he definitely gives us go-forward.”
Papier faced a tough first start, Erasmus admitted, but after five caps off the bench he was at least not a new cap.
“I think the first thing we must realise is that he is young. He doesn’t have a lot of Super Rugby caps and sometimes plays under Ivan van Zyl at the Bulls.
“But potentially he is up there in my opinion, especially on attack, with guys like Joost van der Westhuizen, but he is going to take some time to make good decisions ... and that is just the process in his growth.
“He is a young guy and just a few months back he still played U-20 for the Junior Boks.”
With Scotland captain and scrumhalf Greg Laidlaw and flyhalf Finn Russell expected to ask big questions of the Boks’ below-par tactical kicking display in recent matches, a Bok win could require a balanced approach.
“Scotland are a well-coached side. They are difficult to break down and they will present us with a very tough challenge at Murrayfield,” Erasmus said.
“Matches in the northern hemisphere are all closely-fought encounters, with the set-piece battle key, and it’s important to grab the big moments and finish your opportunities.”
Erasmus felt the bench would also play a big role, and the only time they hadn’t produced of late was at Loftus Versfeld against the All Blacks, for which he took some responsibility.
“We will probably lose a bit of pace around the park which we will need against Scotland, but prop Thomas du Toit and hooker Bongi Mbonambi have made a big impact, while we’ve seen what Elton (Jantjies) can do,” he said.
“And with Siya’s (Kolisi) pace and Francois Louw coming off the bench, I think we will be okay.”