Soul-searching Springboks look for improvement

Devin Toner (C-L) from Ireland shakes hands with Adriaan Strauss, Captain of the Springboks (South Africa) after the test rugby match Ireland against the South Africa at Newlands Stadium, in Cape Town last week

Reuters (Johannesburg): A week of soul-searching will produce a much-improved performance in Saturday’s second test and a turnaround for South Africa in their series against Ireland, hopes Springboks captain Adriaan Strauss.

“We need to right the wrong but it’s not about taking revenge,” Strauss said on Friday after much reflection for the Boks in the wake of their shock 26-20 home defeat by the Irish in the first test last Saturday.

“It’s about our own standards. We have the ability to be better and have a much higher expectation of ourselves,” he told a press conference in Johannesburg on the eve of the match at Ellis Park.

Strauss said it had been a difficult week for the team after the upset loss, made even more heroic for the Irish by the fact they played most of the match down to 14 men after an early dismissal.

For new captain Strauss and new coach Allister Coetzee it was a nightmare start followed by a few days of introspection. “I told the coach afterwards that we had let him down,” Strauss said. “Each player has his own way of dealing with defeat and I also told them after the game they need to get over it in the way they usually would.

“But a loss like that needs to hurt. But then we need to forget it and look forward to the next game. We have had a good week’s preparation, dealt with the issues we needed to deal with and fix a couple of things.”

Ireland, having won their first ever test in South Africa, now have a chance for an unlikely series win “I expect them to be physical, good at the breakdown area which is something we’ve worked hard on and in which we must improve,” added Strauss.”We need to ensure quick ball for the backline to be dangerous.”

Saturday’s second test will be followed by the final clash of the series in Port Elizabeth on 25 June.