South Africa captain Sia Kolisi believes the only thing that has changed in his team’s game after their two consecutive Rugby Championship victories over Australia and Argentina is their performance against 22 opponents.
The Springboks made five attempts to secure a decisive 36-20 victory over Argentina on Saturday in Buenos Aires and drew level with New Zealand with 14 points at the top of the table to keep their hopes of regaining the title they won last once. in 2019.
The 2022 season was characterized by a lack of composure and accuracy in attack, which coach Jacques Ninaber repeatedly drew attention to. But their 24-8 victory over the Wallabies in Sydney and their victory this weekend show that improvements have been made in both areas.
“Nothing has changed in the way we play, it’s all about the execution,” Kolisi told reporters. “If we stick to the plan, we know our system will give us those opportunities to score. In the last two games we used these chances.
“We thought that we would come here and score the maximum number of points. We want to win the rugby championship and knew we had to apply for the game. It was a very good win against a very good Argentine team.”
Leading up to the match, the Boks were shaken by online reports that a South African Sunday paper would expose recreational drug allegations by some unnamed players on the team.
South African rugby took it so seriously that they released a statement calling the allegations “baseless” and denying that any player had tested positive for a banned substance.
“It was quite unsettling, the time, five hours before such a match,” Ninaber said. “I am stunned that such charges can be brought against this team.
“Sometimes in South Africa we are tested three times a week. I assure you, we are one of the most trusted teams. There hasn’t been a single positive test since we’ve been together this year.”
South Africa will host Argentina in Durban next Saturday and New Zealand will host Australia in Auckland.
