Boks don't fear the All Blacks
Sun, 22 Jun 2008 23:30
Springbok coach Peter de Villiers believes his side has nothing to be scared of when they take on the All Blacks in back-to-back Tri-Nations Test matches next month.
But De Villiers also warned that nothing should be read into the performances of the Tri- nations sides against their Northern Hemisphere opposition in the opening salvos of international rugby this year.
The Bok coach told Afrikaans Sunday newspaper Sondag that he believed his side were ready to face the All Blacks.
"We are ready for the Tri nations," he said, "I am happy with the way things have gone in the first three tests thus far. We are not where we want to be yet, but we are 60 percent of the way there."
De Villiers believes that he has the right 30 players to go into this year's Tri-Nations, especially with the extra weight of being World Champions.
"The 30 players we have are the best in the country and from them, on any day, I can choose my strongest 15 for a match."
But De Villiers also warned that fans should not think the All Blacks would be easy to beat, even though they have not performed at par at times in the past few weeks.
"We shouldn't think that they are vulnerable. Both the All Blacks and Australia are playing under the old laws and it has made it more difficult for them. You really can't take anything from those games," he said.
"Look what happened when we played Wales and when they used the old rules to their advantage. We also struggled at times to adapt to the old laws."
Still, while the daunting task of becoming the first Springbok side to win in New Zealand since 1998 is a big task, De Villiers is an optimistic coach.
"It will be difficult in New Zealand," he said, "We know that.
Still, we have leveled the playing fields a little bit in the past five years with a number of Super 14 victories over there, and the players know how to travel better nowadays. We are looking forward to a good tour."
