Springbok captain Johann Muller did well to keep his calm on Friday in the face of some fairly stinging questions from the New Zealand press, who are anticipating a big win against the Boks in the Tri-Nations on Saturday.
Muller was asked first if he thought he would concede a point for every preceding Bok captain — 52 — and then whether he would be resorting to the cheap-shot tactics alleged by the All Blacks three weeks ago, reports rugby365.
”So we are the dirty ones,” he said coolly to reporters.
”Yes, I have heard that the All Blacks are expecting us to play dirty and negatively to frustrate their efforts to get into their stride. Well I take that from whence it comes. They are not exactly angels.
”We pride ourselves on being a physical side and we are not going to shy away from that, definitely not,” he promised.”
Muller would be one to know about angels, having been on the receiving end of a choice right hook from Ali Williams in Rustenburg last year
”Ja, I remember that one, among others, very well. It is part of this fantastic game, but the difference is that we don’t complain,” he retorted.
He was a little more honest about how his team was feeling in the face of what looks likely to be a certain defeat.
The Boks are short of nearly an entire World Cup squad’s worth of players, and face an All Black team keen to prove itself on the back of a run of indifferent form.
”It is funny, last week in Australia we were the B team, this week we are the C team, so we are going backwards, but that is just encouraging and motivating us all the more,” said Muller.
”We are going to prove people wrong. We are not here to make up the numbers, we are no B team and we are here to win and prove you wrong.”
”When we arrived in Sydney last Thursday, we read we would get 50 points, later it went down to 40 and then 20, and we lost by eight when in fact we should not have lost at all.
”So we just smile when we hear we are going to get a hiding.
”Each player who pulls on his jersey in the change room on Saturday night will believe we are going to win. Why can’t we? We have the pack of forwards to dominate the tight phases; the conditions are going to be wet and we have one of the best tactical kickers in world; and as a team we have learned a lot from playing our first match together last week.” — Sapa