Boks hope to give home fans a good send-off at FNB Stadium

Springbok assistant coach Daan Human said on Tuesday the team would be delighted to give something back to their passionate supporters in the form of a good performance when they face the All Blacks at the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg on Saturday.

The Boks arrived in Gauteng on Sunday and had training and gym sessions on Monday and Tuesday to get back into full throttle for this week’s third Test in the Castle Double Malt Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry at the iconic 90 000-seater stadium, and the scrum guru looked forward to the occasion in what marks the team’s final Test on home soil this year.

“It will be an amazing experience,” said Human.

“There were over 56 000 people at last week’s Test (in Cape Town) and we could have close to 80 000 to 90 000 at the stadium this week, so we can only imagine how awesome it’s going to be.

“But no matter where we play, whether it is in Verkeerdevlei (where he farms) or at the FNB Stadium, we know what we have to do. Having that many people supporting you is something to feed off because you get energy from the crowd and enjoy the moment.

“South Africa has incredible support and we don’t want to disappoint our supporters. They stand behind us, and we’d like to give back to them.”

With the Bok scrummaging being at the centre of the media attention this week, Human refused to be drawn into suggestions that they were frustrated about the manner in which the scrums were refereed last week and he dismissed suggestions that the Boks have been doing anything untoward in the vital set-piece.

“Referees need to understand what’s happening in the scrum and they all have a lot of experience,” said Human.

“I actually thought Angus Gardner was very consistent in his decisions last Saturday. What he called for us, he called for them. It was the same story.

“I have respect for him and I’m not going to question his decisions but also that’s in the past now. This weekend we need to adapt to how the new referee sees it and if he tells us to fix something we’ll fix it. But I genuinely don’t think Angus refereed differently to how he normally does.”

Asked about the suggestion that the Boks walk around in the scrum, the former Bok prop said: “I can assure you, I have never coached that. We want to go forward, not walk around. Walking around is not ideal for us because it doesn’t give us forward momentum, which is what we want.

“We’re not perfect and things can happen but if we see something that can be done better, we try to fix it at the very next scrum.

“The scrum is a very important part of our team. It’s part of our culture and this country. There may be different opinions but it’s not always easy to understand what’s really happening inside a scrum.”

With another big Test between the rugby rivals only a few days away, Human said the focus in the Bok camp was driven by what they want to achieve on the field this weekend.

“Honestly, 80% to 90% percent of our concentration and work is focused on ourselves and getting better,” said Human.

“We need to acknowledge that they (the All Blacks) have very good backs and a strong pack of forwards. But for us, it’s about improving, not just for this game but going forward.”

Springbok lock Ruan Nortje, who will pair up with Eben Etzebeth in the engine room again this weekend, said the atmosphere in the Bok camp was good this week and that they were 100% focused on the task at hand.

“The vibe has been really good – I wouldn’t say it’s very different to last week,” said Nortje.

“Every week is a Test week. In our camp, it’s all about sticking to our processes and working hard during the week, and when we work, we work as hard as possible.”

Zooming in on the line-outs, Nortje said: “The set-pieces were good last week, but we’ll never be satisfied with just good. We always want to be better.

“We were happy with how the lineouts went but this is a new week. We’ve put in a lot of effort working out what we want to do since Sunday, and during the week we execute it in training. But once one gets into the game it’s about adapting, and if we’re under pressure, to look at what to do differently and adjust.

“A lot of credit has to go to the coaches and players in that process. But this is a new week and a fresh challenge.”

The match kicks off at 5.10pm and will be broadcast live on SuperSport.

Springbok starting XV: 15 Cheslin Kolbe, 14 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Ethan Hooker; 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 9 Cobus Reinach; 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Siya Kolisi (capt); 5 Ruan Nortje, 4 Eben Etzebeth; 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Ox Nche. Replacements: 16 Deon Fourie, 17 Gerhard Steenekamp, 18 Thomas du Toit, 19 Lood de Jager, 20 Andre Esterhuizen, 21 Cameron Hanekom, 22 Morne van den Berg, 23 Manie Libbok.