Springbok captain Siya Kolisi says they have learned from the All Blacks’ breakdown strategy at Eden Park going into Saturday’s Rugby Championship rematch in Wellington. SIMON BORCHARDT reports.
The All Blacks – with a bit of help from referee Karl Dickson – were able to slow down the Boks’ ruck ball in Auckland last weekend, including in the final minutes when the visitors were pushing for a match-levelling converted try.
“We definitely learned from the previous game,” said Kolisi on Friday. “We saw the strategy they used and we’ve made plans for that. We’ll be ready for it this weekend.
“It’s good to have Jasper [Wiese] back, but they also have backs who counter at the breakdown. Leroy [Carter], who came from sevens, we saw clips of him getting into breakdowns too. So it’s not just the forwards, it’s also the backline players.
“We know we weren’t good enough last week, especially on our exits, and they came hard at our breakdown. We worked on it this week and we’ve learned from it.”
WIESE: I’m very hungry to express myself
While the Boks struggled in the lineouts, their scrum impressed, most memorably in the 62nd minute when they demolished the All Blacks pack, leading to a try for hooker Malcolm Marx.
“The scrum sessions this week were hard – both packs put in the work,” said Kolisi. “It’s never about who dominates who. We want to give our best to make sure both packs are ready for the game.
“It was very competitive, which was good, and I think the guys are ready for the weekend.”
ALL BLACKS HOOKER: It’s never going to happen again
Kolisi said the Boks were also determined to be more clinical when they got into the All Blacks’ 22 after failing to make the most of their opportunities in Auckland.
“It was tough to see. To create 13 opportunities in the 22 and only take two of them – you don’t get that many chances. Some teams get that maybe in a year, and you rarely get that against the All Blacks.
“We saw how we stuffed it up, and a lot of it was our own doing. That was the difficult part. It was frustrating watching it back. Sometimes it was an individual error, and then another one.
“Hopefully we learn from it and fix it this weekend – when we get opportunities, we must take them. The All Blacks didn’t get a lot, but the ones they had, they took.”
KEO: Nextgen Boks can fly at Sky Stadium
Despite the Boks fielding a new-look backline this weekend, Kolisi believes there is a good mix of youth and experience in the team.
“A lot of the guys people say are youngsters have played here before and some of them have won games here.
“We don’t have anyone with fewer than 10 caps. People are looking at it as if there are youngsters just being thrown in, but they’ve experienced this kind of level.
“It’s just that it looks new when you don’t see the regular names you see every time. Every person is getting an opportunity, and they’re not just being thrown in to learn – we’re going into this game to win.”
ALSO: Marx and Nathan shake our hearts
Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images
The post Siya: Boks ready for breakdown battle appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.