Former All Blacks supremo Steve Hansen insists South Africa, reigning back-to-back world champions and the top-ranked rugby nation on the planet, are not invincible.
The Springboks and New Zealand will lock horns over four Tests in the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series later this year, when the dominance of Rassie Erasmus’ men is expected to be put to the test.
Speaking on the DSPN podcast with Martin Devlin, Hansen argued that as good at the Boks are under Erasmus at the moment, complacency could be their downfall.
“Everyone’s painting this picture that they can’t be beaten,” said Hansen, who guided the Kiwis to the 2015 World Cup title. “Of course they can be beaten. Everyone can be beaten.
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“I remember back when we were really successful, everyone said ‘Oh, can they can’t be beat.’ And we always knew we could be beat.
“If you get comfortable, you’ll get beaten,” he added. “If you make mistakes in your preparation, you’ll get beaten.”
“Have they [the Boks] got a very good team at the moment? Yeah, they have. But I think we do, too. And I think there’s other countries out there that do, too.
“You just got to make sure that you get all your ingredients right when you’re baking the cake.”
Hansen also refused to read too much into recent results, although admits New Zealand has been poor.
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“People get carried away by the score all the time,” he said of the Kiwis’ record 43-10 drubbing to the Boks in Wellington last year.
“But I remember we beat the South Africans 57-0 in North Harbour… but they won the next World Cup, didn’t they?”
“So just forget the scorelines because there sometimes there’s there’s circumstances that create those scorelines and the All Blacks had a a really average last 30 40 minutes in that Test in Wellington.
“Does that mean that that’s how what the margin is going to be all the time? No, it doesn’t. I don’t think you can read too much into that.
“Are the Boks set up as a really good side? Yeah, of course they are. That’s why they’re No 1 in the world at the moment. and they’re setting the standards.”
Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images
The post Hansen: Springboks will get beaten appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
Former All Blacks supremo Steve Hansen insists South Africa, reigning back-to-back world champions and the top-ranked rugby nation on the planet, are not invincible.
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