Many might have been surprised following yet another heart-stopping Test between the All Blacks and Springboks as the two sides produced a second humdinger in as many years at the ‘Cake Tin’ in Wellington.
If it were any other side, a reaction of surprise would be warranted because drawing with the All Blacks in New Zealand, let alone win, is a helluva task.
Just ask the British and Irish Lions. But these are the Springboks – arguably the only side in world rugby rightfully mentioned in the same breath as the number one ranked All Blacks.
Looking at current form, the Springboks could’ve kept their old foes winless in the last two years had it not for that last-gasp try in Pretoria last year when New Zealand edged the reverse Test between the two nations.
The run of play was there for all to see in the 16-all draw where the Springboks enjoyed dominance for much of the first-half before Steve Hansen’s men upped the tempo and got their act together in the second.
But even then, compared to recent years where the Green and Gold had turned into whipping boys for their old foes, the home side still found it hard to break down the Bok defence.
What recent matches have shown between these two giants of the game is that Bok coach Rassie Erasmus has found a formula to compete against the might of the All Blacks.
You have to take their intensity (a lot of fitness is required), don’t over commit in the rucks because you leave yourself vulnerable to the deadly All Black counterattack and attacks in general; tackle like your life depends on it (you cannot afford to miss your tackles against this calibre of an opponent) and take your chances when they’re presented to you.
A critical aspect to achieve the above is picking the right soldiers to complete the mission – and the head coach has been, for the most part, spot on with his selections and substitutions.
Perhaps above all, Erasmus, in his still relatively young stint as the boss, has managed to rebuild the squad into a team whose members play for each other.
The 57-0 drubbing at the hands of the All Blacks remains fresh in the memory, so does the chaos involving quota players which evidently spilled onto on-field business and so does the controversy of Siya Kolisi being named the first black Bok captain.
Also take into consideration the Boks seemingly reaching rock bottom and being ranked a lowly seven in world rugby – an unthinkable event in recent yesteryears.
But Erasmus and the rest of the management team have managed to awaken the Green and Gold beast whose nap was ended up being too long for comfort.
Following the draw in Wellington, the Boks climbed to fourth in the latest world rankings – and continues to climb.
The right coach is there, the players are there, the team is there and the mood in the squad has transformed drastically.
The Boks are peaking right on schedule with the Rugby World Cup in Japan beginning in a little over 40 days.
Most importantly for rugby fans and for the game of rugby, the Boks are back. – @SabeloBoksburg
