Scrumhalf Faf de Klerk has warned the Springboks to be switched on for 80 minutes if they want to beat the All Blacks in Auckland for the first time since 1937.
The All Blacks host the Boks on Saturday in a Rugby Championship clash at Mount Smart Stadium, two months before the World Cup kicks off.
Both teams recorded emphatic opening-round wins last week. New Zealand thrashed Argentina 41-12 away and South Africa bulldozed Australia 43-12 in Pretoria.
However, it’s 86 years and nine Tests since the South Africans last won in Auckland, where they suffered a 57-0 drubbing to New Zealand in 2017. That score remains the biggest margin in Tests between the rugby powerhouses.
De Klerk feels the Boks have since won back respect from New Zealand’s rugby public, especially after a thrilling 36-34 win over the All Blacks in Wellington in 2018 – the year before South Africa lifted the World Cup.
“Speaking to the fans over here and other players, I think there is a respect,” he told reporters in Auckland. “Look, a few years ago we weren’t up to the standard in the way we played at all.
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“Getting a lot of points put up against you isn’t going to warrant respect. But the way the boys played last week shows there is something about us.”
De Klerk knows the Boks must be on their game against the All Blacks and a win for either team would put one hand on the Rugby Championship trophy.
However, he said that losing concentration – even for a second – can mean “you’re probably going to end up behind the posts” having conceded points.
“If one or two guys just knock off for a moment, that’s when they are going to attack you,” the No 9 added.
“The biggest challenge for us will be the fact that [the All Blacks] have the ability to make something out of nothing, so we cannot switch off in the game. We have to be in control and alert all the time.”
With the SA franchise teams now participating in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship, which is often different to the style of rugby they were exposed to in Super Rugby against Australian and Kiwi opponents, De Klerk said the match would serve as a good test for both teams.
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“We haven’t played each other much recently, and we are out of Super Rugby, so it will be an interesting measure for the teams,” he added. “They’re a world-class team and if we do well against them, we’ll know we are on a good place.”
Of the challenge of lining up against the highly rated Aaron Smith, De Klerk added: “He’s one of the best players in the game in that jersey and he’s a role model to a lot of guys both before and during my time. He’s a good guy off the field too. It would be an honour to play against him.”
De Klerk is one of the nine players in the starting Bok XV who sat out the win over Australia to fly to Auckland a week early in preparation.
He admitted the pressure is on to consolidate last week’s win over the Wallabies by securing a rare victory in Auckland: “I think they set the standard and we need to make sure we uphold that or outperform.
“It’s a squad effort. We have been training together for four weeks now, so we all know what to expect from each other.”
© Agence France-Presse
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