Ox Nché added that the French have been consistent in their scrum dominance all season.
Both the Springboks and France pride themselves on their ability to scrum well. Picture: Harry Murphy/Sportsfile via Getty Images
France have been prodigious in the set-piece in recent years, and scrumming against them feels as personal as facing a rival South African franchise, said Ox Nché.
The South African prop addressed media in an online press conference on Tuesday afternoon, ahead of Friday night’s Nations Championship clash against Les Bleus in Paris.
Both teams are top of their respective hemisphere tables. But while South Africa have won all four of their matches, France narrowly lost to New Zealand away in the first round in July.
Bok scrums ‘a bit loose’
Nché packed down with fellow Sharks prop Thomas du Toit at the start of last weekend’s 66-7 victory over Italy.
The Springboks struggled for a while against the Azzurri, conceding one scrum penalty, until gaining dominance later in the game, especially after Gerhard Steenekamp and Wilco Louw came on.
Nché said they needed to do better if they wanted to repeat the dominance they achieved earlier this season, and during last year’s 32-17 win against France on the end-of-year tour.
“The Italians did very well. They put a lot of pressure on us,” Nché said.
“We reviewed the game and saw there are quite a bit of work-ons we have to do. We fell a bit out of system and were not on the same page as a pack… We were a bit loose.
“They were more determined than we were, and they all had one goal in mind.”
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Scrums against France feel personal
He said the Springboks had their solutions for this, and would have to match the standards they set for themselves when they face France.
“The French love their scrums. For a team that is passionate about their scrum and has a lot of big, heavy boys, who want to scrum, that French team is a good example of how rugby is a game for all shapes and sizes.”
The prop said the French pack had been very consistent in the Six Nations and Nations Championship this season.
And even on a club level, sides from France had performed well in the scrums in the Champions and Challenge Cups.
“They bring a similar challenge to playing a local derby, where it feels like it’s very personal for the guy you’re scrumming against.”
He said this was the difference between scrumming against France and teams such as the All Blacks, for instance.
Friday’s match in Paris kicks off at 10.10pm.
