Springbok forwards coach Deon Davids has warned his charges not to drop the ball against New Zealand this weekend or they will be punished.
South Africa delivered a superb performance in their first Rugby Championship match against Australia last Saturday, beating the Wallabies 43-12 at Loftus Versfeld.
But they left some points on the field by not converting all the opportunities they created.
🔜 A clash against an old foe is next in store for the #Springboks.
— Springboks (@Springboks) July 10, 2023
They take on the #AllBlacks in Auckland on Saturday.
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And with archrivals the All Blacks having raced to a 31-0 lead before beating Argentina 41-12 in their first clash, assistant coach Davids knows their Auckland hosts will pounce on any opportunity given to them by their visitors this Saturday.
Davids says of their performance against Australia: “We are pleased with the performance, the guys haven’t played in a long time and it was good to see them align so quickly.
“There were some good rewards and we created a lot of opportunities. But we could have used some of them more…”
He adds: “We want to build on the areas we were good at and find solutions in the areas where we can improve – especially when facing New Zealand at home.
“We need to be very clinical in terms of our performance.
“When you give them opportunities, they will capitalise.”
Of the All Blacks, he says: “Leading 31-0 in the first half shows that any opportunities given to them, they will use it. Looking at that, it will be important that we look after our possession.”
The Springbok squad will be boosted by the addition of 13 of their star players who flew to New Zealand last week already in preparation of the Auckland clash.
With coach Jacques Nienaber naming his side for the match today, it is expected that one of those ysters, lock Eben Etzebeth, will captain the side in NZ.
dudley.carstens@inl.co.za