Bok Women confident they can hit back against Fiji at World Cup

The Springbok women’s team have had a good review of their match against France last Saturday, analysed and digested the statistics, and are now ready to focus on Fiji, their second opponents of the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand.

The Bok Women lost 40-5 against France and next face Fiji at Waitakare Stadium in Auckland on Sunday, the second match for both teams in pool C, with kick-off scheduled for 6.45am (SA time).

According to utility forward Catha Jacobs, the scoreline last Saturday was not a fair reflection on what happened at Eden Park and will go into the Fiji match with a very positive mindset.

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“The stats speak volumes of our effort. We had 49% possession and 17.1 attacking minutes, compared to France’s 51% and 17.6 attacking minutes,” said Jacobs.

“Yes, France did use their opportunities so much better, especially in the first 20 minutes when they scored three tries, but we came back into the game and that was a very pleasing aspect.”

‘Expecting the unexpected’

Jacobs, who recently signed an extension with Saracens in England, played 17 minutes against France and said she is keen to have a go at Fiji, who suffered an 84-19 defeat against England in their opener.

“We have never played Fiji, so we are expecting the unexpected to be honest,” she said.

“We know they can be unpredictable, and they scored some nice tries against England, but they cannot play without the ball, it is as simple as that.

“If we can dominate up front and dictate play, we will do well. We need to have the majority of the possession, as they cannot play without the ball.”

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The foundation of a win over Fiji – the sides have never met at international level – will be laid upfront, Jacobs insisted.

“As we saw in the penalty stats, we conceded fewer penalties than France. They conceded more because they were under more pressure than us, mainly because our forwards had the upper hand in those first phases,” she said.

“More of that will again give us a solid foundation to play from. We need to keep the ball away from their dangerous backs.”

A bonus point win over Fiji will be crucial for the Bok Women’s ambitions in the remainder of the competition, said Jacobs.

“Yes, we must get the full house if we want to stay on track for a potential top-eight finish, so we need to go out there and make sure we get the four tries and then secure the win,” she said.

“That will put us in a much better position on the log. We are in 10^th at the moment, so a good performance against Fiji will push us up the ladder in the right direction.”