Divvy: 'It's all in the mind'
Tue, 31 Aug 2010 17:36
Searching for another victory? Bok coach Peter de Villiers. (c) Gallo
South Africa will look to replicate the expansive game that saw them score five tries against Australia last week, when the Springboks and Wallabies go head-to-head in Bloemfontein on Saturday.
Bok coach Peter de Villiers said his team would be working on their "attitude" this week, as they look to finish their disappointing Tri-Nations campaign on a high.
After losing their opening four games of the tournament - scoring five tries and getting just a solitary bonus point for losing by less than seven points to New Zealand - South Africa bounced back with a thrilling come-from-behind 44-31 win over Australia in Pretoria.
Despite going down by 14 points twice in the match - 0-14 after four minutes and 7-21 after 14 minutes - and with the Wallabies scoring four tries inside the first 26 minutes, the Boks managed to outscore the Aussies by five tries to four and kept them scoreless for the last half-hour.
"If we can go out on Saturday with that same mindset, it is going to be great for us," De Villiers told a media gathering in Bloemfontein.
He said that with the right mindset, of playing a more attacking game, the players would see the opportunities more readily.
"Our attitude will be the first thing we'll work on and then we'll take it from there," De Villiers said of the team's preparations.
"Our systems are in place and we create great opportunities. [It is that] just sometimes we don't take those chances."
The Bok head coach was also full of praise for backline coach Dick Muir, who has come under fire when the backs were not performing according to the expected standards.
"That is where Dicky [Muir] is so valuable to this team," De Villiers said.
"When Dick says: 'Let's run the ball', a lot of people think we just want to throw it wide," he added.
"We want to run the ball within our system. That is why I'm so glad we didn't fall into that defensive mode [in Pretoria last Saturday].
"Sometimes you are so scared of not making mistakes that it stops you from taking the opportunities that are there.
"So if we can get that [same] mindset we had [last] Saturday, by creating the opportunities and taking them that will be great."
De Villiers said he believed his side had achieved a lot with the victory over Australia, even though they leaked three tries in the opening 14 minutes.
"We've definitely achieved a lot. Many people look at the moment, but we look at the structures we have and the impact we made with the World Cup in mind.
"If you remember what happened the week before and you add that to this past weekend, then there is a good platform for the guys to work on.
"Every brick that we lay in this foundation now needs to be the right one for the World Cup.
"This is our biggest concern now - how do we handle the players psychogically, physically and how their own situations are managed," he added.
By Jan de Koning