Boks must brush up in these four areas in second Test against Ireland

After a nervy 27-20 win against Ireland in the first Test at Loftus Versfeld last weekend, the Springboks will look to go back-to-back in Durban on Saturday to seal a 2-0 series win. In what promises to be another closely fought game, the Boks will be out to improve in four key areas to get the job done.

With kick-off at 5pm, The Citizen highlights the departments that coach Rassie Erasmus will want to see improvement in.

Rucks

With new assistant Tony Brown on board and the Boks now playing a more attack-minded game, loose-forwards Siya Kolisi, Pieter-Steph du Toit and Kwagga Smith regularly found themselves among the backs, playing linking roles, in the first Test.

While it worked well for the most part and the Boks looked more threatening with ball in hand, the move left the team short on numbers (and cleaners) at times at the rucks and breakdowns.

Ireland dominated in these areas, winning good clean ball, and some turn-overs, and Bok No 9 Faf de Klerk was also put under plenty of pressure. The Boks will need to be better here on Saturday.

Set-pieces

While the Boks were decent enough in the scrums and lineouts in the first Test, winning 100% of their scrum feeds and 92% of their lineouts, according to certain statistics keepers, the world champions’ display in these departments was far from clinical.

In fact, the Boks’ scrum was dominated by Ireland in the early stages of the match at Loftus (whether legally and fairly is another matter) and only later on did it get the upper-hand, winning a few penalties and being rewarded for a big effort with a Penalty Try.

The lineout, too, was a little erratic, and the Boks will hope for a better, cleaner showing in Durban.

Goal-kicking

One of the key reasons why the Boks won the World Cup in France last year was because of Handre Pollard’s 100% kicking record in the one-point wins in the quarter-final, semi-final and final. The flyhalf’s goal-kicking accuracy is one of the main reasons for being the team’s first-choice flyhalf.

Last Saturday though Pollard missed three penalty kicks at goal – nine points going begging.

The Boks were lucky that Irish No 10 Jack Crowly also missed a few shots at goal. In the second Test, which is likely to be as tight and close as the first match, Pollard has to be spot-on with his kicks at goal.

Finishing

One can argue the world champions got lucky at Loftus with a Penalty Try awarded to them, while Cheslin Kolbe’s second half try, after James Lowe’s good work to keep the ball in play, was also extremely fortuitous.

Also, the reality is that Kurt-Lee Arendse’s first half try came from a deep play, with the Boks unable to make the most of several (some say eight, others say nine) 22m area entries during the game.

There is so little to choose between these two teams, ranked one and two in the world, that they simply have to make the most of the chances they create.

Erasmus and Co will hope the Boks are more clinical in the “red zone” in Durban.