Springboks highlights threat of RWC ‘group of death’
Coach Jacques Nienaber has highlighted what a massive challenge awaits the Springboks from the get-go at the World Cup.
The Springboks arrived in Corsica on Saturday following their 35-7 victory against the All Blacks at Twickenham, and have now begun final preparations for the World Cup opener against Scotland in Marseille on Sunday, 10 September.
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With the draw for the World Cup having been conducted soon after the 2019 global showpiece, the Springboks have ultimately ended up in a pool with teams that have made massive progress since then, such as Ireland and Scotland.
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In addition, a quarter-final clash against France or the All Blacks is the likely fixture, meaning it will be a massive challenge just to get through to the semi-final stage.
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Zooming in on the pool stage of their campaign, Nienaber said: “In our pool, Scotland is No 5 in the world, South Africa No 2 and Ireland No 1, and one of us is not going to make it out of the pool. But it is what it is, so we have to be on form from the outset.
“And if we do get out of the pool, we’ll either face France or New Zealand in the quarter-final, so it’s going to be really tough.”
The Bok coach shot down suggestions that his team were the favourites to win the title: “I think France are the favourites, but obviously we are the World Champions, and we can’t deny that. That said, I believe this is going to be one of the most closely contested World Cups in history with a couple of teams that can win it on the day.”
The Springboks will wrap up their training camp in Corsica on Friday and make their way via a ten-and-a-half hour ferry journey to their Rugby World Cup training base in Toulon on Saturday.
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CHECK OUT THE SPRINGBOKS’ FIXTURES BELOW:
RWC fixtures:
Sunday, 10 September – Springboks v Scotland (Stade Velodrome, Marseille). Kick-off time: 17:45
Sunday, 17 September – Springboks v Romania (Stade de Bordeaux, Bordeaux). Kick-off time: 15:00
Saturday, 23 September – Springboks v Ireland (Stade de France, Paris). Kick-off time: 21:00
Sunday, 1 October – Boks v Tonga (Stade Velodrome, Marseille). Kick-off time: 21:00
PICTURE: Pollard back in full training with English club
Weekend of 14/15 October – Quarter-finals
Weekend of 21/22 October – Semi-finals
Saturday, 28 October – Final
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You can also check out all the World Cup fixtures and kick-off times here, with South Africa and France notably in the same time zone.
