Powerhouse André Esterhuizen says the Springboks’ ability to stay calm and clinical under pressure – even after going down to 14 men – was the difference in Paris.
The Boks beat Les Bleus 32-17 at the Stade de France on Saturday, despite losing lock Lood de Jager to a red card just before half-time.
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For Esterhuizen, who covered both centre and flank in another stellar hybrid showing, the key was keeping emotions in check and sticking to the team’s blueprint.
“It was a highly anticipated game, but we had to treat it like any other Test match,” Esterhuizen said. “You can’t play a full game on emotion, so we were just sticking to our processes, being physically dominant and taking it through to 80 minutes.”
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Even with a man down, the Boks found ways to outmuscle France up front and control the tempo through the final 40 minutes.
“When we got the red card, the boys made good plans,” Esterhuizen explained. “We spoke at half time about what we want to do, to stay on top and dominate them physically, and we made plans at scrums and lineouts to be able to do that. I think the boys really pulled together and we just executed the plan perfectly.”
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Known for his versatility, Esterhuizen has become one of the Boks’ most valuable weapons – equally comfortable in midfield or adding muscle to the pack when the game demands it.
“Usually we speak about it before the game quite a bit,” he said. “Obviously [against France] plans changed, but normally before the game I would know whether I would give more cover to loose forward or centre.”
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The victory keeps the world champions unbeaten on their European tour, but Esterhuizen insists there’s no time to celebrate, with a dangerous Italian side waiting next.
“Italy’s a very unpredictable team, it’s always tough against them,” he said. “We played them earlier this year, so we’ve got good knowledge of them, but this past weekend they beat Australia so it’s going to be another tough Test.”
Photo: David Rogers/Getty Images
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