The Springboks must capitalise on their continuity and freshness to deny a battle-weary All Blacks team the consolation of squaring Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series in Baltimore, writes MARK KEOHANE.
Writing for TimesLIVE, Keohane believes the physical cost of New Zealand’s eight-match tour is becoming increasingly apparent, while the Boks head into the final Test with settled combinations and momentum after successive victories at Cape Town Stadium and FNB Stadium.
“The Springboks’ motivation must be to deny them the consolation,” he writes.
The All Blacks will be without three players who started the third Test at FNB Stadium. Captain Ardie Savea has a dislocated shoulder, Luke Jacobson an elbow injury and Quinn Tupaea knee-ligament damage, while Anton Segner was lost earlier in the tour after ankle surgery.
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Keohane says the mood around the tourists has consequently shifted since their opening Test victory at Ellis Park, with the challenge now increasingly about enduring the final stages of an old-fashioned tour.
“The All Blacks remain dangerous, but they are no longer fresh and they are no longer controlling the series narrative,” he writes. “The Boks are.”
In contrast, Rassie Erasmus has retained 22 of the 23 players involved in the 29-24 victory at FNB Stadium, with fit-again Damian Willemse replacing the injured Cheslin Kolbe. Keohane believes that continuity has helped sharpen the Boks’ defence and decision-making while restoring their dominance at the set-piece.
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The All Blacks conceded 12 penalties at FNB Stadium, allowing South Africa to repeatedly turn their indiscipline into territory and attacking opportunities, and Keohane expects the Boks to again make their physical advantage count in Baltimore.
“Baltimore won’t be as close and will mirror the second half of the Soweto Test when the Boks, as the No 1 team in the world, showed there is still daylight between them and the chasing pack, led by the All Blacks,” he concludes.
Photo: Lefty Shivambu/Gallo Images
The post Boks can punish weary All Blacks appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
The Springboks must capitalise on their continuity and freshness to deny a battle-weary All Blacks team the consolation of squaring Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series in Baltimore, writes MARK KEOHANE.
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