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Jake: We believe we can win
24/11/2006 16:33 - (SA)
London - Jake White may have already labelled the Springboks' so far losing tour as a "win-win for everybody" but the under-pressure coach could do with a more conventional win when South Africa take on world champions England at Twickenham on Saturday.
Last weekend's meeting between the two sides ended in a 23-21 victory for England, a result that prevented a record-breaking eighth straight Test defeat but did nothing to stop speculation about coach Andy Robinson's future.
For White the pain of South Africa's seventh successive loss against England was eased by his side's much-improved performance after their record 32-15 defeat by Ireland in Dublin the previous week.
Indeed, had not influential flyhalf Butch James gone off with 20 minutes left, South Africa might easily have been celebrating victory.
As it was White, who last week found himself facing a vote of no-confidence from South Africa's Blue Bulls provincial union, must now make a flying visit home before the December 3 tour finale against a World XV in Leicester to address South African Rugby's powerful presidents' council on November 29.
White's decision to tour without several first-choice players, and give the likes of scrumhalf Fourie du Preez, fullback Percy Montgomery and prop forward Os du Randt a rest, was controversial.
Nevertheless, ahead of what will be the second of four matches between England and South Africa before they meet at next year's World Cup in France, White was in confident mood.
"The most important thing we believe is that we can win," he said this week. "After we played so poorly against Ireland, we were a bit nervous of what to expect at Twickenham.
"But we lost that Test as opposed to getting beat," added White who, having lost two-thirds of his back-row through injury, has handed a debut to dynamic openside Kabamba Floors, the Currie Cup player of the year.
Although South Africa lost last weekend they have, in many ways, far greater cause for optimism than England.
Their back play was superior, their defence better organised, their kicking game far more accurate while, up front, the forwards more than held their own.
Meanwhile, that England didn't look like winning until a flurry of second-half replacements, most of them tactical, said as much about Robinson as it did the starting side.
However, two of those England players injured at Twickenham, the Sale duo of flyhalf Charlie Hodgson and prop forward Andrew Sheridan, have now been ruled out for the season with knee and ankle injuries respectively.
Andy Goode, England's new No 10, impressed after replacing Hodgson last weekend and his kicking gave England much-needed field position.
There are concerns that the Leicester stand-off might not be the best person to fulfil Robinson's vision of an England side playing "expansive" rugby.
"Andy isn't a running flyhalf," former Welsh international Jonathan Davies told the BBC.
"He'll get you in the right positions, but the attacking threat is weaker."
- AFP
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