Port Elizabeth - It’s clear that Ireland coach Joe Schmidt wants to guard against another capitulation in the final quarter of Saturday’s third Test against the Springboks.
He fears, coming into their last match of a long season, that his players may be running low on gas.For 140 minutes of rugby they have been the dominant team in this series.
They surprised the Boks at Newlands with a top display, while they also capitalised on the Springboks’ mistakes during an hour’s play at Ellis Park.But then came that last quarter in Johannesburg where they faded badly.
Yes, the Springboks played their best rugby during that period, but Ireland just wilted under the pressure. That’s why Schmidt has made another six changes and a positional switch ahead of the match, after making five changes and positional switch for the game at Ellis Park.
“It’s been a long season and there are a lot of tired bodies. Maybe that’s going to detract from the performance and they won’t be at their optimum,” the New Zealand-born coach said on Thursday.
“However, you might not be able to detect that, as while they might not have the reserves of fresh energy, they should make up for it with their commitment.”
But this actually seems to be their best combination, especially with South African-born flank CJ Stander returning to the team after serving a one-match suspension for that nasty incident involving Pat Lambie in the first Test at Newlands.
And Schmidt feels that they need all the help they can get against the Boks on Saturday after their brilliant comeback to level the series at Ellis Park, where they finally managed to get their attack going.
The Boks sped up the game in the last 20 minutes, and they weren’t as flat-footed on attack. When they ran onto the ball at pace, and with a low body position, they were almost unstoppable.
“The Boks have got better as the series has progressed. I said it at the start, Allister Coetzee has just started with this group, and it will take time to build momentum,” the Ireland coach said.
“I really hope they don’t play with too much rhythm and synergy this weekend, though. Hopefully we can do our bit to influence how they play.
“We will have to be more combative than we were in the last 20 minutes in Johannesburg. We can’t allow them to play off the front foot.”
The Star