Vital to start Rugby Champs well and build momentum — Bok boss Rassie Erasmus

The Springboks are targeting a good start to the Rugby Championship when they take on the Wallabies in their tournament opener at the Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane, Australia on Saturday morning (kick-off 6:45am SA time).

With their first two games taking place Down Under, before they return home to face the All Blacks in two potentially tournament deciding matches, the Boks will know how important it will be to start with a win.

Having won three of their four games so far this season, against Wales, Ireland and Portugal, while they only lost the second Irish Test to a last second drop goal, the Boks will head into the game against the Wallabies with plenty of confidence.

“We only face the Southern Hemisphere teams in the Rugby Championship now, so we know they’ll pose a completely different challenge to the sides we’ve faced to date,” said Erasmus.

“They are also playing on their home turf where they have a good track record against us in the last few years, so we know it’s going to be a massive challenge. We have a challenging campaign with two away games against Australia and then two Tests against New Zealand at home.

“We then make a short trip to Santiago where we will face Argentina, and then we wrap up the tournament against Los Pumas in Nelspruit, so it will be vital for us to start well and build good momentum.”

Australian record

The Boks record in Australia over the years has not been good, particularly in Brisbane where they have won just once, in 2013, while losing eight times over the past 20 years, but Erasmus insists that is all in the past and that they believe they can walk away with the win.

“This is a new year and new campaign, and a lot has changed for both teams in the last few years, so while we are mindful of that statistic, it won’t affect how we approach this match or next week’s encounter in Perth,” said Erasmus.

“Just as winning the World Cup is history now, so is that statistic, so as a team we want to go out there and give our best, and if we stick to our structures and capitalise on our chances, hopefully we’ll work ourselves into a good position to get the desired result.”

Up and comers

Erasmus is also excited to see how some of his up-and-coming players will fare in a big match against the Aussies, with Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Elrigh Louw starting, while Ben-Jason Dixon and Gerhard Steenekamp will play off the bench.

“We’re pleased with the way we’ve been able to integrate some of the young players into the squad this season and give them game time against top opposition,” explained Erasmus.

“We rested several players against Portugal to ensure that we had a fresh squad for the Rugby Championship, while a few young players really grabbed the opportunity to show what they can do in the first four Tests of the season.

“We’re excited to see what they have to offer against a team such as Australia which plays a vastly different style of rugby to that which we faced against Wales, Ireland and Portugal.”