Stransky doesn’t fancy Boks chances

Rugby Union - South Africa v Japan - IRB Rugby World Cup 2015 Pool B - Brighton Community Stadium, Brighton, England - 19/9/15 South Africa's Schalk Burger looks dejected Reuters / Eddie Keogh Livepic

Rugby Union - South Africa v Japan - IRB Rugby World Cup 2015 Pool B - Brighton Community Stadium, Brighton, England - 19/9/15 South Africa's Schalk Burger looks dejected Reuters / Eddie Keogh Livepic

Published Oct 13, 2015

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London – South Africa’s 1995 World Cup hero Joel Stransky has his doubts that the current Boks are the full package and can go all the way in the current tournament.

“Having won the pool, the guys are in a decent position but I do think there are worrying signs about how we play the game,” Stransky told reporters.

“We play a very physical, confrontational type of game, but when teams match us physically we don’t have anywhere else to go.

“Even a US second-string team for 40 minutes tackled us backwards and stopped us from playing the game we wanted to,” Stransky said.

The Boks led just 14-0 at half time of the game.

Stransky says he has been worried about the Boks all year.

“It was evident in the Rugby Championship that we would be in the game for 60 minutes but it got to the point where the opposition realised they could absorb the pressure and then go and win the game themselves.

“We lost in the last 10 minutes to New Zealand and Australia and when Argentina matched us physically in Durban, they got the result,” he said.

Stransky said South African confidence going into the quarter-finals was on shaky ground.

“The Boks have not played anyone of substance,” he said.

“The Boks were in a weak pool. That was the worst Samoa side I have ever seen, Scotland picked an under-strength side against us and the US clearly picked a B team against us and we still struggled for 40 minutes.”

Stransky said he was not convinced about the Boks.

“I am not sure how strong we are right now because we lost to a tier-2 nation in Japan and then have played poor teams,” he said.

The Star

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