Wallabies will be physical - Matfield
The Boks face Australia in their Rugby Championship opener tomorrow. South Africa are coming off a 46-10 win over a World XV and are looking to take that form into tomorrow’s clash in Brisbane.
Bok coach Heyneke Meyer made just one change to his starting XV. Schalk Burger is the new face, slotting in at eighthman.
Bok captain Victor Matfield hammered home the importance of beginning the Rugby Championship on a winning note. The competition is shortened this year with the World Cup looming – meaning the Boks have just four games before they head to England for the global showpiece.
The Boks are looking to win the Southern Hemisphere tournament, but Matfield also admitted that the outcome of the competition would not dictate how the Boks would fare in the World Cup.
“I’ve seen teams win the Championship and go on and win the World Cup and then I’ve seen teams not doing well and also win the World Cup so I think it’s more for us to see where we are as a team - if we need to change anything in our structure but for now hopefully everything is in place. We really want to go out and win this game and win the Championship as well,” Matfield said.
“We will be happy if we can get a good win. It always helps and gives confidence to the squad and also gives a nice vibe for the next few weeks. But again if it doesn’t go well, we’ll have a look at it and there is still a lot of time to fix it before the World Cup.”
The Wallabies named their side today and Matfield wasn’t surprised that coach Michael Cheika named a forward pack featuring a number of big ball carriers to take the game to the visiting Boks.
“It’s pretty much what he’s done for the Waratahs. He likes a big pack that’s very physical, that can dominate the advantage line. We were wondering if he would go with two opensiders but he decided against that. So we know it’s going to be very physical and we will have to stop their big carriers on the advantage line. If they get momentum with the backs they’ve picked, they will be very dangerous,” Matfield cautioned.
The Australian backline certainly is threatening. Reds half back pairing Will Genia and Quade Cooper start for the Wallabies – while Matt Giteau makes his return for his country after a number of years out of the fold.
Matfield didn’t want to speculate on the atmosphere in the opposition’s camp, but recognised Giteau’s pedigree.
“It’s difficult to say, I don’t know what the dynamic in their team is but a guy like Giteau is a quality player, we’ve seen what he’s done for Toulon. I was lucky enough to play in a Barbarians game with him and he’s a player that understands the game and how to win– he’ll bring a lot to their team.”
Kick-off is at 11h35 on Saturday.
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