Loosehead prop Ox Nché was frank about Dave Rennie’s complaints over the Springboks’ walkabouts in the scrums and how the laws around the set-piece are interpreted, reports DEVIN HERMANUS.
The Boks levelled the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series 1-1 with a 33-26 triumph at Cape Town Stadium on Saturday, reclaiming the world No 1 ranking in the process.
Post-match, All Blacks boss Rennie again took a shot at the Boks’ scrum tactics, while Erasmus hit back at suggestions his pack is guilty of walking around at scrum time.
RASSIE: We not f**king walking around!
Nché, who reached his 50th cap on the night playing off the bench as a late starting XV adjustment, was asked for his two cents during a media huddle.
“It’s all about interpretation. As we all know, rugby has laws … coaches, referees and players interpret it differently,” he said.
“The whole thing is if a forward pack is going forward all together, then they’re going forward. We wasted a lot of time in scrums today just because we all had different interpretations.
“But it’s his opinion, it’s the way he interprets it, and I have nothing to say on that.”
ALSO: Rennie renews Bok scrum gripe
The 2023 World Cup winner also wasn’t pleased with the number of resets on the night.
“As a forward pack, we want scrum completions. The scrum is a contest of two packs and I wasn’t too happy … Hopefully there are fewer resets next week and more completions.”
The affable 31-year-old powerhouse chalked up his half-century alongside the 11th Bok centurion, Pieter-Steph du Toit.
“Looking back at the journey, I even sent one of my high school coaches a message this afternoon … It was a day about really looking into reflection, to see how far I’ve come,” Nché shared.
“And all the people who believed in me and backed me throughout the years, that’s all I wanted to do. I hope to make them proud and just keep going.”
MORE: Springboks regain No 1 ranking
On bouncing back from last week’s defeat in Joburg, Nché highlighted the Boks had targeted their own errors.
“Naturally we saw the mistakes we made and we tried to improve on them this week; it’s our responsibility as well to just do our best, try to fix things, and capitalise on our chances.”
Looking at next Saturday’s third test at FNB Stadium, Nché added: “I’m hoping it’s sold out, and it’s going to be massive. It’s going to be a challenge for both teams.”
Photo: Grant Pitcher/Gallo Images/Getty Images
The post Ox not happy about wasted scrum time appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
Loosehead prop Ox Nché was frank about Dave Rennie’s complaints over the Springboks’ walkabouts in the scrums and how the laws around the set-piece are interpreted.
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