SPRINGBOK ASSISTANT COACH Jacques Nienaber is under no illusion about the threat England and their ‘stingy’ defence pose his squad in Saturday’s Rugby World Cup final.
And while a lack of familiarity certainly won’t be an issue for these sides, he is hopeful that his compatriot and opposite number John Mitchell will be left with a few headaches of his own.
“I rated the previous defence coach ‘Guzzy’ (Paul Gustard) highly when he was with Saracens. He probably started this rush-defence thing a few years ago, so I’m always a big admirer of him,” Nienaber said.
“John had that same thing imprinted on the Bulls, and he just went on (at England), and he’s got his own flavours that he adds to that system. You can see it manifesting in the team over the past year that he’s been involved.
“I think his first test (as England defence coach) was against us last November, and since then, they’ve been quite a stingy team.
They don’t give away a lot of tries, and I must say, John, when he was in South Africa and we just came back in 2018, we had a lot of visits to the franchise coaches to get to know the players. John was open at the Bulls and let us come in.
“The work ethic he had at the Bulls back then, I probably expect the same with the English team.”
The former Munster defence coach has pored over footage of Eddie Jones’ squad since trying to figure out a way to thwart Saracens’ key men.
Since departing Ireland, the Test schedule has meant he had to keep an eye trained on England and he has tracked their evolution leading up to this weekend’s defining match.
“Obviously they went through different coaches – like their defence coach has changed – and their team selection varied, so it adds a new flavour. You see the team transforming and moving.
“When I started analysing them, (Tom) Curry wasn’t even in the mix. Now he’s starting, and that changed the dynamics of how they play. It’s a nice story – it’s fascinating for me, but it would be boring for other people.”
When it boils down to it, however, the solution Nienaber returns to is a simple one: mental and physical strength.
“You’ve got to get your players up for them, I think. They are a good side, like Rassie said.
“They’ve got good ball carriers, and I was privileged enough when we were at Munster a lot of them come from Saracens, so we’ve got a few plans up our sleeves.
“But the majority of it will probably boil down to just one-on-one (tackles).”
It’s Rugby World Cup final week! On the latest episode of The42 Rugby Weekly, Murray Kinsella joins Gavan Casey and Sean Farrell to preview Saturday’s showdown between England and South Africa.
