Cape Town - The Springboks’ attitude against the Wallabies was one of their best traits on Saturday. They were fired up. They were determined. And they stood back for nothing.
That is the kind of roar we need to see from Jacques Nienaber’s team every week.
Springbok behemoth Eben Etzebeth and Wallaby prop Allan Alaalatoa’s ‘coming together’ was one of the biggest talking points to emerge from the Boks’ Rugby Championship victory Down Under, which saw them break a nine-year losing streak in Australia.
That moment, and there refusal to stand back throughout the game, showed attitude in bucketloads.
Following that altercation between the two on-pitch captains, reaction came from all over the rugby world, and outside of it.
Memes of the Bok lock’s “angry eyes” were all round, so were the “don't mess with Eben” captions.
Say what you want about it, that reaction was a long time coming; and with the niggly play, and off-the-ball taunts the Boks have had to take from the Australians, they kept their cool for too long, in my opinion.
From Nic White’s theatrics that could get him the lead in a Shakespearean play, to having to deal with the referee and his apparent, unending patience with the home side in Adelaide, any other team would have snapped long ago.
Now, in no way is this a green light to condone on-field violence or a “the game has gone soft” rant. But anybody could see the Boks were intent on showing up for this match, and the hands-on approach was a big part of that.
Ahead of the Adelaide Test, assistant Bok coach Mzwandile Stick admitted that their focus was sometimes not 100% on the Wallabies and that the Kiwis were always taking up some space in their minds.
Before that first Test against Dave Rennie’s team, he assured the media that, this time around Australia would have all of their attention.
And while they ended up losing that game, the pressure of having lost to New Zealand and the magnitude of the Test at the Adelaide Oval, perhaps made the moment too big.
This past weekend, nobody could doubt where the Boks’ minds were at. They were completely focussed on the Wallabies, and their fight showed it.
The Boks got a lot of things right Down Under. The variation on attack was superb; their defence was a much more pleasing sight; their kick-chase was solid; and, while there were still some missed opportunities, they took a lot of their chances with four tries to show for it.
As they prepare to face Argentina, in what should be another testing match in Buenos Aires, the Boks should aim to hold onto that spirited attitude. It shouldn’t be something that only comes out when they have their backs against the wall.
Again, I’m not saying it should turn into a Royal Rumble every week, but the fight – literally – and attitude the Boks showed in Sydney should follow them into every Test.
@WynonaLouw