Justin Marshall: Where the Springboks have an advantage over ‘every team in the world’
Ex-All Blacks scrum-half Justin Marshall believes that the Springboks have an advantage over every team in the world and explains why he was encouraged by Scott Robertson’s side’s performance at Ellis Park.
Marshall rued the All Blacks’ inability to capitalise on their 10-point advantage in the final quarter of the match and likened Rassie Erasmus’ Springboks to the iconic New Zealand team that won back-to-back Rugby World Cups in 2011 and 2015.
The former number nine believes that the current Boks have the same traits of that legendary All Blacks team, a ‘unique’ attribute that no other team in international rugby can match.
All Blacks’ collapse
Late tries from Kwagga Smith and Grant Williams sealed the victory for the Springboks with Robertson’s side falling flat in the latter stages of the game which left Marshall questioning the tactical use of the New Zealand bench and hailing the Boks.
“It did unravel for the All Blacks, and obviously, South Africa are the only team in the world that can do what they do with their Bomb Squad,” he told The Platform NZ
“But that Bomb Squad came on – there was five of them that came on in the 48th minute – and we didn’t make our first substitute until around the 60th minute and it wasn’t five players it was one at that
time I think.
“Then we just filtered our substitutes through whereas they replaced five in one big hit. So you know that the Bomb Squad is coming and the difference with the reserves that the Springboks are putting on to the rest of the world at the moment, is they are putting players on with the most unbelievable amount of Test experience that then enter into the game after work that even equally as experienced players have already done.
“To me, that’s the point of difference that they have over every team in the world at the moment but the All Blacks would have known that was coming.”
Springboks late blitz
The performance of the Springboks in the latter stages of the match felt familiar to Marshall who likened it to the All Blacks of old, the 2011 and 2015 vintage who were also well-stocked with world-class, experienced players.
“When I digested the match probably a day later and two days later is what the Springboks are doing to us is what the world-renowned All Blacks teams of the past used to do to,” he explained.
“We could have a pretty average day but we would run them down in the last 10 minutes or 5 minutes and somehow we would find a way to win, at the moment like the Argentinian game in Wellington, like at the weekend, we are 10 points up with 12 minutes to go; those games we would never let go and this is a concerning thing at the moment.
“Our DNA used to be that we had that experience, we had that X-factor off the bench or we had that resolve of an XV that just knew how to get the job done, that had been to World Cups before, had been in big environments and were unfazed by them and unflappable when the pressure really came on.
“These are the Test matches at the moment that we’re dropping and like All Blacks teams around that 2011 and 2015 World Cup period in that situation at the weekend probably wouldn’t have dropped that Test match whereas South Africa at the moment are very good at winning those Test matches.”
Positives
Marshall was still able to take plenty of positives away from the All Blacks ‘encouraging’ performance. He believes that New Zealand dominated for much of the game, something that gives him a lot of hope and belief that Roberston and his charges are on the right track to becoming the best team in the world again.
“The Springboks have reached that level where they can get the job done and that’s the only area the All Blacks need to grow in because I cannot fault the way that we executed our game plan,” he said.
“The width that we showed in our game, the way that the blitz defence didn’t phase us, the way that Damian McKenzie finally took some depth, timed his entrances into the game, gave other players space, forward pack fronted, we were physical we outscored them the on the tries.
“Golly, I sat there after the game and I was trying to put into perspective exactly how I was feeling and I was feeling flat because we lost but I was also feeling encouraged that we can actually take these guys on and we can actually get to where I have been asking the All Blacks to get to which is back the best in the world.
“Because the Springboks are the best in the world and to a degree for 68 minutes of that game we were better than them.”
