Springbok game needs attention

We examine where improvements should be made in the Springbok side.

The Springboks were once again put to the sword in Sydney for the first match of the 2011 Tri-Nations tournament. The World Champions have not won at the ANZ Stadium and were dealt another blow as Australia claimed a 39-20 victory in a one-sided clash. The Wallabies were brilliant in attack and forced the Springboks into several errors.

The men in green and gold were woeful in defense and missed countless tackles. It was not a day the Boks will want to remember - many things need to be fixed before the All Blacks in Wellington on Saturday. An area of concern will be the scrums where Werner Kruger and Dean Greyling were exposed, maybe because of inexperience, but it is a part of the game that needs urgent attention. The Boks will be sternly tested by the All Blacks, but will go into the match knowing where they need to improve and what they need to urgently correct. As the saying goes, “there is no such thing as a weak All Blacks team”.

People should not forget the performance of the Boks during the 2007 Tri-Nations where Jake White was criticised for sending a “B Team” to the tournament, the Boks only won one game, but it enabled the stars to get some invaluable rest - and the rest is history as the men in green and gold won the famous World Cup in France.

P Divvy is doing the right thing by allowing the injured stars to heal because the Super Rugby competition has taken its toll and if the Wallabies and All Blacks are not careful, they’ll burn out before the World Cup takes place. New Zealand coach Graham Henry has said he will need to rest players because they were “overdone” after the Super Rugby tournament. It will be interesting to see how the sides from the Southern hemisphere avoid burnout. The Boks at home won’t be complaining about a few extra weeks of rest as they gear up for the biggest tournament of their careers in New Zealand.