”Every Springbok Test is a life and death matter.” That’s the message from the South African camp today.
England’s nothing special, says controversial captain Corne Krige: ”Our traditional rivalry is against New Zealand. It’s nice if we beat England, it’s a big game. But England is not our biggest rivalry.”
This of course is patent misinformation, something the South Africans have become rather good at.
The truth is, after last November’s blood-and-thunder 53-3 defeat at Twickenham, nothing means more than beating England. Years of war, political chicanery and imperialism have helped to stir things up a little too.
Anyone who grew up in Pretoria, as I did, knows that there’s nothing an Afrikaner likes better than beating up a Rooinek (an English red neck).
Perhaps with that truth in mind Krige, who didn’t play in the 72-6 romp over Uruguay on Saturday due to a minor hamstring cramp, admits: ”Discipline is very high on our list or priorities.”
But apart from the awful goings on at Twickenham, the Boks also disgraced themselves in their Tri-Nations game against the Wallabies earlier his year, a point the local Australian journalists are keen to point out.
Krige tried to make light of such problems, saying: ”Habitual criminals have been spoken to. We have been working on our discipline since that overseas tour last year.”
Springbok manager Gideon Sam confirmed that disciplinary procedures are in place for transgressors. But he insisted: ”We haven’t collected much money so far!”
But then he also claimed: ”They’ll be dancing in the streets of Soweto if we beat England on Saturday.”
Sadly I doubt whether the grass roots of the Rainbow Nation will ever take the oval ball to their soccer-mad hearts.
Coach Rudi Straueli admits that Georgia, beaten 84-6 by England, might be a level above Uruguay, a point made by Clive Woodward.
But he refused to be drawn when it was suggested that England might be hard-hit if they suffered an injury to a key play — like Jonny Wilkinson, the man targeted by Jannes Labuschagne last year at Twickenham.
He was dismissed for a ludicrously late tackle on Wilko after just 23 minutes, the first of a series of nasty incidents.
England’s great fear is that Wilkinson, perfect with all seven kicks before he was substituted on Sunday night, will be targeted again on Saturday.
Straueli, dubbed ”The lugubrious Moose” by the South African press gang, merely smiles at the prospect.
He’s a big man, and it’s not easy to get a straight answer out of big men.