All Blacks coach expects beaten South Africa to revert to ‘DNA'
'It was a game of small moments — a bounce of the ball, a pass. South Africa played beautifully for a long period, and then it turned, didn't it?' he said.
'It shows how discipline, accuracy and limiting errors can change things quickly.
'I'll turn the page when we get past this week and we'll start talking about the teams,' he said.
The All Blacks saw off an Argentina fightback to win 41-24 in Cordoba last Saturday despite a lack of cohesion in the backline at times.
Rieko Ioane's move to the wing and Billy Proctor's promotion to starting number 13 remain under the microscope, with neither dominating their positions.
Robertson defended the two players, saying Ioane was getting better every week and calling for patience for five-Test Proctor.
'He's a long-term project, and we're sticking with him,' he said of Proctor.
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IOL News
13 minutes ago
- IOL News
Springboks' shake-up: 10 changes ahead of Rugby Championship match against Wallabies
Jean-Luc du Preez will start at No 8 for the Springboks against the Wallabies. Franco Mostert, Canan Moodie, Wilco Louw, Boan Venter, Eben Etzebeth, Lood de Jager, Kwagga Smith, and Cobus Reinach are the other players who will get another run against the visitors after Erasmus decided to go with a 6-2 bench split. The five players who will start against Australia for the second week in a row are prop Ox Nche, hooker Malcolm Marx, flank Marco van Staden, scrumhalf Grant Williams and outside centre Jesse Kriel, who takes over the captaincy from the injured Kolisi. Only five players in the starting-15 retained their places from the team's that was humbled in Johannesburg last week, while a total of 13 players were involved in the encounter at Ellis Park return for the Cape Town clash. Experienced backs Cheslin Kolbe and Damian de Allende have recovered from injury and will come straight into the starting team, while Bok centurion Willie le Roux has been picked in the No 15 jersey ahead of Damian Willemse and Aphelele Fassi, who featured in Johannesburg. Following the injuries to seasoned campaigners such as captain Siya Kolisi and flank Pieter-Steph du Toit, as well poor performances by some players in the 38-22 defeat against the Australians at Ellis Park, Erasmus has made 10 changes to the starting line-up for this weekend's clash Coach Rassie Erasmus has wielded the axe for their second Rugby Championship match against the Wallabies, welcoming back experienced campaigners for the crunch clash in Cape Town. The only change to Erasmus' front row was the inclusion of prop Thomas du Toit, who will pack down alongside Nche and Marx, while the Bok coach named a new lock pairing of RG Snyman and Ruan Nortje. Van Staden, meanwhile, will form a loose trio with Franco Mostert and Jean-Luc du Preez. Du Preez will make his first start in the Bok jersey since the match against the Barbarians. It's a massive match for the No 8 to make a statement after Kolisi ran out in that jersey last Saturday. The backline, in turn, sees the experienced duo of Kriel and De Allende reunite in the midfield for the 38th time, while Williams and Handre Pollard will partner up at halfback Erasmus named six forwards and two backs on the replacements bench, where Marnus van der Merwe, Venter, and Louw will serve as the impact front row, along with the experienced trio of Etzebeth, De Jager, and Smith. The two backline players on the bench are the versatile Reinach and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu. Erasmus attributed the changes to injuries and strategic adjustments for the forthcoming challenge. 'We lost four players to injury last weekend, which obviously had an impact on a few of our selections, but we also know where we went wrong against Australia last week, so we made a few changes that we believe will offer us what we need for this game,' said Erasmus. 'Damian and Cheslin have also recovered from their injuries, and with their experience and knowledge of the Wallabies, it was a logical choice to recall them.' Erasmus said they have been working hard to fix the wrongs from last weekend after conceding 38 unanswered points against the Wallabies, who won at Ellis Park for the first time since 1963. 'We are determined to get things right this week. Boan got a taste of what it's like to face Australia last week, and Ruan did well against them last year, while it will be good for a few other guys to experience playing against one the top teams in the world, especially as we continue to build our squad depth,' Erasmus said. 'We are pleased with this squad, and we are all aligned on what we have to do to lift our standards this week.' Springbok team to face the Wallabies in Cape Town: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Canan Moodie, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Cheslin Kolbe, 10 Handre Pollard, 9 Grant Williams, 8 Jean-Luc du Preez, 7 Franco Mostert, 6 Marco van Staden, 5 Ruan Nortje, 4 RG Snyman, 3 Thomas du Toit, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Ox Nche. Replacements: 16 Marnus van der Merwe, 17 Boan Venter, 18 Wilco Louw, 19 Eben Etzebeth, 20 Lood de Jager, 21 Kwagga Smith, 22 Cobus Reinach, 23 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu.
The South African
3 hours ago
- The South African
All Blacks lose key player for Springbok Tests
The All Blacks will be forced to make changes ahead of their second Rugby Championship clash against Argentina in Buenos Aires following confirmation that Patrick Tuipulotu and Anton Lienert-Brown have both been ruled out due to injury. Tuipulotu, who sustained a facial fracture during New Zealand's 41-24 win over the Pumas in Cordoba, will undergo surgery and is expected to be out for at least six weeks, missing upcoming fixtures against the Springboks in Auckland (6 September) and Wellington (13 September). Lienert-Brown, meanwhile, failed a head injury assessment after a head-on-head collision that also earned him a yellow card. He will return to New Zealand and could be available for selection if he clears concussion protocols in time for the Springboks tests. Coach Scott Robertson confirmed on Tuesday that both players are out of contention for Sunday's rematch against Argentina. 'They won't be available for this week, but we have cover. We'll make sure we get combinations right and give opportunities to players who need minutes,' Robertson said. Timoci Tavatavanawai and Quinn Tupaea are being considered for midfield duties, while Josh Lord, already with the squad as cover, could step into Tuipulotu's role in the second row. Samipeni Finau is another versatile option capable of playing lock or blindside flanker. Wallace Sititi and Tamaiti Williams, recovering from earlier injuries, are also expected to feature in the match-day 23. With squad depth in focus ahead of the looming Tests against South Africa, there is speculation that uncapped players like Kyle Preston (halfback) and Leroy Carter (wing) may be handed their debuts this weekend. Robertson emphasised the importance of balancing cohesion with development. 'Some guys need football, and some combinations need time together. But you also have to look ahead in the cycle and build depth.' Robertson also touched on South Africa's recent shock loss to the Wallabies in Johannesburg, noting the narrow margins that define Test rugby. 'It's a game of moments – discipline, accuracy, errors. It can swing quickly. We know how the Springboks play, and they'll go back to their DNA. It's about how we stop them, and how we impose our own style.' Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
The Citizen
4 hours ago
- The Citizen
Springboks plot Cape Town turnaround after heavy loss to Australia
The Springboks will be looking to strike the right balance in their game plan after getting it horribly wrong in their surprise 38-22 The Rugby Championship defeat to the Wallabies at Ellis Park in Johannesburg, according to coach Rassie Erasmus. The Citizen reports the Boks backed a very ambitious and attacking game plan for the opening Test of the competition this past Saturday, and it looked to be paying off at first as they raced into a 22-0 lead after 18 minutes. But the team then seemed to run out of energy and looked gassed, taking a 22-5 lead into the halftime break before collapsing in the second half, conceding six unanswered tries and 38 points in all to suffer a heavy defeat. Over the past year and a half, since New Zealander Tony Brown took over as attack coach, the Boks have been looking to open up their play style and become a more expansive team, and Erasmus admitted that they had gone too far from their traditional strengths against the Aussies. 'If you play beautiful rugby and you lose, you lose. If you play boring rugby and you win, then people are happy. We were totally on the wrong side of that balance on Saturday, and that is not because Tony coaches that way,' said Erasmus. 'It is a trap that we fell into against Italy in the first match when we were 25 points up. You tend to think things are easy and there is so much space. Then a proud country like Australia takes their opportunities. 'We had a proper meeting (on Monday) and the feeling is frustration. But at least we know what we did wrong. That is the most important thing. They totally outplayed us.' Thorough review Erasmus said that the team had done a thorough review and analysis of the past weekend's game and had already formulated plans to turn things around in what is now a must-win match in Cape Town on Saturday. There will be a number of changes to the team after captain Siya Kolisi, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Kurt-Lee Arendse and Edwill van der Merwe were all ruled out through injury, while Cheslin Kolbe and Damian de Allende will return. 'We went through our things, and we know exactly what we did wrong. In a game like that, we could not even say we were unlucky. Four of their tries there were not even a phase,' explained Erasmus. 'An intercept pass here, an offload there, and they worked to be in those positions. We went through our facets, and internally we have announced the team. We didn't want to do it (announce) today (Monday) again, then people would say it's mind games. 'We said last week (we know) what we are up against, I don't think the world believed us when we said it's a really good Wallaby team. We believed it and they showed it.'
