Eddie Jones says Japan must be “good enough to stop” the Springboks’ trademark power game if they’re to have any hope of repeating their 2015 World Cup miracle.
The Brave Blossoms coach, who famously masterminded Japan’s historic upset of the Boks in Brighton a decade ago, has pinpointed South Africa’s physical dominance and aerial threat as the two key areas to neutralise at Wembley on Saturday.
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“I don’t think it’s any secret when you’re playing against South Africa, and they don’t make it a secret,” Jones said on the Rugby Unity podcast.
“They get 30m from your line, two forwards come around the same way and you know it’s coming – you’ve just got to be good enough to stop it.
“You’ve got to be able to neutralise the high ball and if you can stop those two parts, you will give yourselves a chance of winning the game.”
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Jones, who has coached England and the Wallabies since his first Japan stint, knows that trying to avoid the Boks’ set-piece battle will only work if his players are clinical with ball in hand.
“When you get possession, you’ve got to be accurate and you’ve got to be sharp,” he said.
“They give you opportunities to attack. They play a half-blitz defence where the winger can come in from the 15m to close at the near post, so you’ve either got to try to play through that, or play over it.
“We’ll try to find a way to break that down and give it a red-hot go.”
Photo: Masterpress/Getty Images
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