Springbok captain Jesse Kriel liked what he saw during his team's win against the Wallabies, setting his sights on New Zealand.
Springbok captain Jesse Kriel said they hope to make their fans proud on their New Zealand tour, now that they are “back to the way we like to play”.
The Springboks put in a much stronger performance against the Wallabies after their 38–22 defeat at Ellis Park, winning the second Rugby Championship fixture 30–22 in Cape Town on Saturday.
It came thanks to superiority in the air, stronger set-pieces and more forward dominance than in Johannesburg, as the South Africans again led at the break (20–10) but were able to hold off the Wallabies’ resurgence this time.
Boks much better
Tries from Canan Moodie, Kwagga Smith and Eben Etzebeth drove the win, while flyhalf Handré Pollard deserved his man-of-the-match award thanks to 3/3 conversions, 3/3 penalties and a pinpoint cross-kick that created Moodie’s try.
“I think Handré was really good,” Kriel said. “I think Fassi was awesome under the high balls. And our forwards put in a really good shift. Every single player put up their hands tonight.
“It was a very tough week last week. But the character shown… today was a proper Test match.”
The Springbok captain said he was proud of the team, and the result speaks for itself. “We kind of got back to the way we like to play.”
Fraser McReight, playing his first start as Wallabies captain, gave credit to the Boks. “They were great in the physical battle out there,” McReight said. “I am super proud of my boys. We lost a few good men out there, and under a bit of adversity, we [fought hard].”
Springboks have it all to do in New Zealand
The Springboks denied the Wallabies a losing bonus point. But they must beat the All Blacks in New Zealand if they wish to defend their title. They start at Eden Park in Auckland on 6 September, where the All Blacks have not lost in 31 years. Then they go to Wellington the week afterwards, before a week’s break ahead of two games against Argentina – the first in Durban and the second in England.
“When we go overseas, we know what rugby and what our results do for this country,” Kriel added. “It’s not something we take lightly. It’s something we speak a lot about within the team, something we remind each other about consistently.
“So all the support, the messages, the videos on social media really make a difference, and the team gets a lot of energy from it.”
