Meyer pleased with points

Editor

Heyneke Meyer was pleased with the Boks' 13-6 win over Argentina in conditions that captain Jean de Villiers had never played in before.

Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer was pleased with their 13-6 victory over Argentina in conditions that captain Jean de Villiers had never played in.

The victory pushed South Africa to the top of the Rugby Championship table after round one, with Australia and New Zealand drawing in Sydney.

Meyer noted that a number of young players with limited experience played in pivotal positions and did well in very testing conditions on Saturday.

“We had a 20-year-old (Handrè Pollard) running play at fly-half and a 21-year old (Lood de Jager) calling the line-outs and they did very well. We showed a lot of character by keeping them out from our line. They had two great line-out options near our line and our guys kept them out. I am very happy with that,” he said after the win.

The Springboks scored an early try to set up a possible bonus-point winning margin, but as thunder, hail and heavy rain set in, both teams struggled to get any flow in their play.

Meyer indicated that they wanted a more flowing game, but Argentina made it difficult.

“They are not a continuity team, they are a contesting team, so it not always easy to get a flow to your match. We played well for 30 minutes, but we did not get the points to justify that and affected us, as we had our mind set of attacking play,” he added.

“Their kicking game was better than ours tonight, but luckily Willie (le Roux) was excellent.”

Meyer added: “The result in Sydney had no impact on our frame of mind or style of play. We want to win all our matches, because then we will be good for winning the championships. Don't read too much into this match. The new combinations worked well for us.”

“The new guys showed the character I expected from them. A lot of the guys are 23 years and younger. I will be happy to keep on winning, even if it is by one point in every match. That is what rugby is all about.”

Meanwhile, Springbok captain De Villiers said it was possibly the worst conditions he has played in after his side recorded an opening win.

“Still, our guys came through nicely,” he said.

“We could not play the brand we wanted to. We have five matches left to do it. Now we must regroup and do it in Salta. Our execution was poor tonight. We did not expect these conditions, so adapted as best we could. We were looking for five points, but the fact that we got four is still very pleasing.”