Meyer optimistic over Bok leap to the fore
ONE way of looking at it is that the Springboks are two days way from winning their World Cup quarter-final; another is that the next 48 hours could bring defeat and, in all probability, the end of the line for coach Heyneke Meyer.
The possibility of a quarterfinal exit in a year of humiliating defeats by Argentina and Japan have put on hold Meyer’s negotiations for an extension of his contract through to the next World Cup in Japan in 2019.
“Yes, there have been voices in the back of my head, but you have to silence them because now is not the time for selfindulgence and weakness,” the coach said.
“If you start allowing those things into your mind then you are really going to get eaten up,” Meyer said. “I knew after the loss to Japan that the players would be looking to me. They feed off the coach, and that gives you no choice but to be resolute and totally positive in everything you do.
“The pack feeds off the leader, and if you are not confident in your team and what you are doing, especially in front of the players, everyone is doomed.”
Meyer said he understood the ramifications of an early exit from the World Cup.
“Every single day I am with the Springboks I am living my passion. I am just so fortunate, humbled and grateful I am in this position. It is tough sometimes, but I am just here to serve and take it week by week. I just hope that we have three weeks left in this competition, not three days,” he added.
Meyer yesterday picked a team for the match against Wales which is mostly unchanged from the team that beat the USA 64-0 last week.
“I am excited about this team in that we have a number of guys coming into their best form after a long time out injured, guys like Duane Vermeulen, Fourie du Preez and Schalk Burger, while other players, such as Bryan Habana, Bismarck du Plessis and Handre Pollard are discovering their best form for a while.
“We have brilliant emerging talent in Lood de Jager, Damian de Allende and Jesse Kriel. We are well placed for this match. It is going to be tough,” he said. “But we definitely have the team and the bench to go all the way in this match and beyond.”