Why Scotland’s inside knowledge of South Africa holds no fear for the Springboks

Springboks forwards coach Deon Davids is not concerned that there is a strong South African contingent in Scotland’s camp ahead of the teams’ upcoming Rugby World Cup encounter.

South Africa and Scotland are set to face off at the Orange Velodrome in Marseille on Sunday and Gregor Townsend’s side have several players with strong links to South Africa in their 33-man squad.

In the forwards, they can call upon the experienced front-row duo of WP Nel and Pierre Schoeman while in the backline, wings like Duhan van der Merwe and Kyle Steyn have also established themselves in Townsend’s first choice matchday squad.

Meanwhile, centre Huw Jones spent the early part of his professional career on the books of the Cape Town-based Stormers, while Scotland also have a South African scrum coach in Pieter de Villiers.

No different

“We’ve been facing each other for the last few years, so it will be nothing different for either of the teams,” Davids told the Springboks’ official website. “I coached with Pieter de Villiers at Junior Springbok level, and I worked with Pierre Schoeman and WP Nel many years ago.

“So, we are looking forward to playing against the team.”

Davids warned that the Boks have to be sharp in all aspects of their game to achieve the desired result against a much improved Scottish side this weekend.

An epic battle is set to take place between the defending champions – ranked second in the world – and the fifth-ranked Scotland, with both sides desperate to win the clash as challenging pool matches lie in wait against the world’s top ranked team Ireland, Tonga and Romania.

“Every team has their own strengths, and from our perspective, nothing has changed in terms of that,” said Davids. “Scotland are a good team, so we have to be the best in the way we do things and ensure we stand our ground in each department in this match.

Physicality

“They play with intensity and there is a good understanding between their players. They also pose threats with or without ball in hand, so as a team we need to be on top of how we control the pressure.

“This game will be about dominance, physicality and alignment in the way we do things.”

With a successful training camp in Corsica behind them and after having their first training session in Toulon on Tuesday afternoon, Davids is happy with the team’s preparation for the World Cup.

“At this stage we are going well,” said Davids. “We had a fantastic camp in Corsica, and even though it was hot there, we adapted well. Looking at the weather in Toulon it’s good that the players were exposed to that because it was similar to what we are experiencing now.”

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