OWN CORRESPONDENT, Paris | Monday 10.10am.
SPRINGBOK coach Nick Mallett, basking in Sunday’s 44-21 quarter-final win over England, declared that he was no longer confident that the Springboks would retain the World Cup – he was convinced.
The 42-year-old said his team had produced a performance worthy of world champions after fly-half Jannie De Beer booted 34 points, including a world record five drop goals to subdue England.
“A few days ago I was confident we would retain the trophy,” the English-born Mallett said.
“Now I am convinced we can go all the way,” he added.
Mallett, who has guided the Springboks to 23 wins in 28 matches during his two year tenure, said that his conviction was built on the rediscovered spirit in the squad.
“I really feel that we have returned to the spirit we had in 1998 and which disappeared last December after England ended our hopes of breaking the world record for consecutive wins,” he said.
Mallett paid a handsome tribute to De Beer, who had just scraped back into the squad after spending two years playing for London Scottish in England and then into the team after an injury to first-choice Henry Honiball.
“He was magnificent although I never thought he would get five drop goals! Particularly as he had only got two for us before the tournament started,” he said.
“However, I had no problem with Jannie replacing Henry Honiball as he is a very accomplished player and never let us down in the past,” he added.
Mallett, a double Blue at Oxford University in cricket and rugby, will probably now have to tell Springbok legend Honiball, the news that he, not De Beer, is now second choice.
Mallett said he did not take any satisfaction that Bobby Skinstad, the replacement for former captain Gary Teichmann who he sacked prior to the World Cup, had played his best game of the tournament when it most mattered.
“I don’t feel smug about that. It was probably the hardest decision I’ve ever had to take rugby-wise, telling one of South Africa’s finest captains he wouldn’t be taking the team to the World Cup,” he said.
For De Beer, who is set to join the Blue Bulls after coming close to signing for English side Sale, Mallett was clearly the architect of the victory although he did have a worry over one side of their game.
“We appear to be having trouble breaking the top side’s defences down and we will have to remedy that problem ahead of Australia,” he said. — AFP