South Africa will be taking no chances against Italy this coming weekend, despite beating France with 14 men on Saturday, as the Azzuri come into the clash off a win against Australia.
The World Champion Springboks stormed back in the second half against Les Bleus, after going down a player when Lood de Jager was sent off and ending the half a point behind. They won 32-17, coming back from 13-14.
That resilience will be required again against Italy, and Boks are well aware of the challenge posed, said flank Marco van Staden: “They are a team with a lot of passion, and they play with intensity.
“It will be even more so this weekend with their home crowd behind them. That has a big influence on the way they pitch up on the field.
“They did very well against us in South Africa and placed us under pressure in some areas, so we know they are going to go out there with a lot of passion and intensity.”
Boks assistant coach Tony Brown was equally wary, despite the Boks winning both clashes against Italy in June, adding: “They are a physical side, and they play differently to France.
“They pose other challenges with ball in hand, and they are also coached very much like an Argentinean team, who like to throw the ball around.
“Their game has improved in the last couple of years, and they are a dangerous side, so we have to make sure we understand their threats and prepare as well as we can for them.
“They were outstanding against Australia. They pose a massive threat at the breakdown because they won numerous turnovers on Australian ball there, but they are also very dangerous when they get space and opportunities, so we are not taking them lightly, and we’ll prepare accordingly.
“If our preparation is off, there’s no doubt they are going to be very dangerous on Saturday.”
As for whether De Jager would be available after his red card, Brown said a hearing still needed to be conducted and that the team should be announced by Wednesday.
He said of the upcoming clash’s line-up: “We have a lot of sore bodies, so recovery has been massive for us, but we have no injury concerns. Obviously, Lood has to go through a hearing, so we won’t find out if he’s available for selection until after that.
“We’ll hopefully know by Wednesday what the status is with him. Both Lood and the sore bodies were part of the delay in announcing our team.”
