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Kolisi addresses passing issues in Adelaide loss
By Ian Cameron
Captain Siya Kolisi has rued South Africa’s handling errors after their 25-17 defeat against Australia in their opening Rugby Championship tour match at the Adelaide Oval.
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Dave Rennie’s Wallabies outscored the visitors by three tries to two and kicked two penalty goals to one from the Springboks, which saw them seal the victory.
Handling errors proved an issue for the Boks, and it wasn’t lost on Kolisi.
“I thought the Wallabies played really well, and they took the opportunities they created, whereas we didn’t,” said Kolisi. “We could certainly have been more clinical, but their defence was good and they did well to get a few crucial steals.”
“Our last passes didn’t go to hand, but as coach Jacques always says, no-one intentionally knocks on the ball. Our set pieces were good, but we can always get better, so we will go back and review the game, and we are looking forward to the next clash against them.”
Nienaber also lamented the Springboks’ seeming inability to convert pressure into points.
“It was frustrating how many opportunities we created but didn’t convert into points,” said Nienaber.
“It is something that has happened in our last few games, so we will work hard to correct that. We were in Australia’s 22 about 13 times, if not more, and we didn’t come away with points a lot of the time, and when they were in our 22, they used their chances well and got the rewards for it.”
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“We will have a good review of the game, take the lessons learned, and ensure that we are up for next week’s clash in Sydney. The nice thing is that we will have another chance against Australia in seven days and hopefully we will be able to turn things around.”
“I thought Marika’s tackle showed the desperation of not just him but there was a couple of desperation tackles on their tryline,” Nienaber said. “A lot of credit has to go to Wallabies, they really put their bodies on the line.”
The Springboks will leave Adelaide for Sydney tomorrow for their second clash against the Wallablies at the Allianz Stadium next weekend.
EJ
Hi guys
I do agree with all you guys, but i think it is unfair to our guys to be put under the hammer just yet. Let give Nienaber the freedom to select and see what he is trying to achieve. It is better to lose now than next year in the 2023 world cup. Have faith guys and good luck to our boys next week.
Can i just put this out there as well... Jake White got consultants in a year out before the 2007 RWC. He manned up and acknowledged his blind spots and got in Eddie Jones amongst many others. This Bok team has massive attacking potential which is something we could not say of our previous teams, clearly the current management is unable to unlock it... Get out the cheque book, find the best attacking minds in the game, task them to design attacking schemes tailored made for our players. IS THIS NOT OBVIOUS!!!
Are the boks tired????????
Is it time that Duane steps down and allows the younger hungrier lions to step in? Mentorship has never been our strong point. The timing seems right. I Love Duane but its painfully obvious he was not up for it yesterday. Not blaming anyone, however, a coach should know what to expect from his players. A softer Duane would invite all packs to bully him. Nienaber has shown the rugby world his selections biases amongst other tactical shortcomings. He needs better ideas, this team has the potential to stand on top of one of the most competitive rugby eras. CMON NIENABER this ones on you and the staff. xxx
Hi, Rouan. Agree. I was in Adelaide yesterday and I can confirm... it was embarrassing. When the coach frantically started to send up more replacements, I knew they had no idea what they were doing. The main issue for me is consistency! Anyway, I reckon Japan will win this team again :)
Really is time for Nienaber too select form players, Evan Roos, Eldrigh Louw, Steven Kitshoff and Malcolm Marx to start. Elton Jantjies, needs to make way for somebody else. They need a proper attack coach as well, backline play is rubbish. The Wallaby back line play was superb, cut the Springbok defence to share ads