[LOOK] Bring it on: Deon Davids expects Pumas to test Boks in Buenos Aires encounter
|Published
READY: Bok wing Kurt-Lee Arendse
The Springboks’ forwards coach Deon Davids has called on Argentina to bring it on again ahead of their rematch in Buenos Aires this Saturday.
Los Pumas made South Africa kou harde klippe in their 22-21 Rugby Championship win at Ellis Park at the weekend and Davids is expecting more of the same in their first World Cup warm-up match.
Davids and the Boks arrived on Monday minus some of their big names, as they look to give “fringe” players a final chance to make their stemme dik ahead of next week’s World Cup squad announcement.
It was a tough tussle in Johannesburg - thanks @lospumas for a proper Test 👏#StrongerTogether #RSAvARG #Springboks #TRC2023 pic.twitter.com/9RQeBwcHSu
— Springboks (@Springboks) July 29, 2023
On last week’s game and what they expect from coach Michael Cheika and his charges at Estadio Jose Amalfitani, Davids says: “The big thing for us is it was a challenging game and we couldn’t ask for better preparation [ahead of the World Cup].
“We needed to grind things out – the week before against New Zealand we had to fight back in the second half and you can’t ask for better preparation.
“We needed that in terms of testing the plans and the players.
“Test rugby is about pressure and converting that pressure into positive rewards.
“It was a good Test and we don’t expect less coming to Buenos Aires.
“We’ve been here a couple of times before and it’s never an easy game.
“They’ve got a passionate crowd and players and we expect the same – we expect the players to embrace that and ensure we apply what we want to improve on this weekend.”
Of injury concerns in the camp, Davids says: “The only player that is a concern is [scrumhalf] Grant Williams who is not with us with concussion. He might be out for 12 days.
“Kurt-Lee Arendse has recovered well [from a niggle] and is with us.”
The Boks will name their squad for the clash on Tuesday.