The Springboks’ only focus on Saturday must be to beat the All Blacks at Cape Town Stadium, according to the legendary Victor Matfield.
The Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry clash will see Pieter-Steph du Toit earn his 100th cap, but Matfield says the milestone will only become truly special if the Boks bounce back from last week’s 33-16 defeat by New Zealand.
“The pressure is always there but I think as a team, you don’t want to focus on the individual, it’s what the team needs,” the former Bok captain was quoted by IOL at a Peregrine Capital event celebrating South Africa’s Test centurions.
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“Yes, of course, they’ll celebrate his 100th game, it’s big, but it’s all about the team. We want to win, we’re playing in a Springbok jersey, the country expects us to win, and that’s the focus.”
The 127-cap ex-lock wants Rassie Erasmus’ men to grind out a victory in Cape Town, regardless of how it comes.
“We’ve done it in a World Cup final or World Cup where we won three games in a row by one point,” Matfield added.
“And I think that’s the only thing that’s important on Saturday, we just need to win. It doesn’t matter what it takes.”
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The 2007 World Cup winner also identified the Boks’ error count as an area that must improve from seven days ago at Ellis Park.
“They just made too many mistakes, and I think if they sharpen up on that, with the talent and structures they’ve got, we should be fine on Saturday.”
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The post Bok win bigger for Vic than PSDT’s ton appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
The Springboks’ only focus on Saturday must be to beat the All Blacks at Cape Town Stadium, according to the legendary Victor Matfield.
The post Bok win bigger for Vic than PSDT’s ton appeared first on SA Rugby magazine. Read More
