The Springboks are expecting a tough battle against a confident Scotland Murrayfield on Saturday.
The last time Scotland fullback Stuart Hogg and wing Duhan van der Merwe played together against the Springboks, the pair endured a torrid time under an aerial assault.
The weather forecast is for a dry day in Edinburgh, further pointing the needle towards an all-out attacking performance from a good Scotland team still glowing after beating Australia 15-13 last weekend. He has first-hand experience of playing in South Africa and he has coached against them with Scotland and the Lions. He knows what is coming and is canny enough to know that ‘swinging the ball’ without first putting in some hard work, is rugby suicide.
“We only have a six-day turnaround so we spent less time reviewing the match,” Townsend said. “We are very focused on the South Africa challenge and we’ve only had two training sessions this week. “So, yes, we’ve got a little bit of experience playing against him, but for us the focus will be on our own systems, working together as a group and making sure that we stop whatever is thrown at us. We looked at their past matches and last weekend’s game, but also at the way we play and how we can improve, and I believe we’re well prepared for Saturday.
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