All Blacks legend claims ‘hunted’ Springboks have to be ‘mindful’ after taking on New Zealand mantle
Springboks anthem against Argentina in 2024 and former All Black Mils Muliaina.
Mils Muliaina believes that the Springboks are being viewed like the great All Blacks teams of the past by their opponents.
His comments came after South Africa were stunned by Argentina at the weekend, which kept the champagne on ice for now.
A win would have confirmed the Rugby Championship title for Rassie Erasmus’ men, but Los Pumas remained in the hunt after their shock triumph on Saturday.
Demanding a win
The Springboks only need a point to make sure of silverware, but that would not be acceptable to their supporters.
After their reversal in Santiago del Estero, which saw them lose top spot in the World Rugby rankings, the fans will demand that they do it in style.
“One thing South Africa will be mindful of now is that they have a target on their back, just like the All Blacks did,” Muliaina said on The Breakdown.
“We’ve spoken about like it used to be for us back in the day, everyone will gun [for them]. Even if they made 10 changes, it was still a quality side that they put out [against Argentina].
“The expectation for them now is that everyone’s hunting for them because they are number one. How much are they willing to take on that expectation? The expectation now of the public is that they need to go out and win every single game.
“They had 10 changes but those guys still had plenty of experience.”
‘Underestimating’ Argentina
It would be a big ask for Argentina to overturn the Springboks on their home turf, let alone do it with the big victory they need to win the Rugby Championship.
However, their 29-28 success at the weekend showed the rather rapid progress they have made under new head coach Felipe Contepomi.
Los Pumas have now defeated the Wallabies, Springboks and All Blacks in the same year for the first time ever and became just the third team to achieve that feat, after England (2002 and 2003) and Ireland (2016 and 2022).
“They are there. If they win this weekend then they could take it out. You would have thought the Springboks would have tied this up already and won the championship,” Muliaina said.
“They often go under the radar but you’ve got to remember, they’ve been to how many quarter-finals, semi-finals of the Rugby World Cup? But people still underestimate them.”