It's now make or break as the Springboks and Wales clash in Cape Town with the series on the line.
So, a somewhat experimental, but also so-called URC “in-form” Springbok team lost against Wales last weekend. It required a late try and good conversion to get the job done for the visitors, but a loss remains a loss. And we’ve had a whole week to digest it, talk about it, and try and understand it.
A lot was said about the 14 team changes made to the Bok side before the match – many of them possibly due to public pressure, but some also due to the management team wanting to see certain players go at Test level. I think all the recalled and new players performed well; my biggest gripe is that many of the in-form players from the URC teams couldn’t play with freedom.
Unfortunately the team just didn’t gel very well, but they got extremely close to pulling off what would have been a very good win, considering the side picked. Anyway, coach Jacques Nienaber has given certain players a taste of Test rugby, and they’ve experienced the intensity and pressure and will be better off for it in future.Win or lose last week, and this weekend even, the Boks have great depth and the future looks bright..
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