Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber says you can’t fault his team’s effort in their 38-21 win over Argentina at Kings Park on Saturday.
Chasing a bonus point and a winning margin of 39 points to win the Rugby Championship, South Africa fell short in both departments, scoring five tries to Argentina’s three and ending with a win margin of 17 points.
While looking like they were on course to score three or more tries than their opponents for the bonus point and also getting the required winning margin with a lead of 17-0, alles changed for the Boks when Argentina scored on the stroke of half time.
And after failing to surpass the All Blacks in top spot, Nienaber says: “We had a plan to go full on to win the Rugby Championship.
“We were on task up to minute 35 and then they got a penalty and the score before half time changed the dynamics.
“I think we can’t fault the effort from the players. “We all sat down and bought into giving it as good a shot as we could – unfortunately we came up short, but you must never take a win in the Bok jersey for granted and we won’t. It’s special.”
🗣️ Reaction from Jacques Nienaber: "We are in a better position now in terms of learning about certain positions than we were when we started" - more here: https://t.co/2vlNuIv9Yd#StrongerTogether #StrongerForever #RSAvARG #CastleRugbyChampionship pic.twitter.com/4ZMRrlw5zl
— Springboks (@Springboks) September 24, 2022
Looking back at the Rugby Championship, Springbok captain Siya Kolisi says: “We had some great, great moments in the Rugby Championship, and we also had some weak moments. We were looking for consistency.
“We know we can win against anyone in the world on our day, but [Saturday] was a big step forward because it was a third win in a row and we want to take that momentum with us into the end-of-year tour.”
The Boks now take a break and will return to action against Ireland in their end-of-year-tour in November.
🎥 Highlights: Relive the action from a packed stadium in Durban, where the Boks beat Argentina to finish the #CastleRugbyChampionship on a high - watch here: https://t.co/nOGMeeP2uZ#StrongerTogether #StrongerForever #RSAvARG pic.twitter.com/CstfQrSEhM
dudley.carstens@inl.co.za