Springbok forwards coach Deon Davids believes the hard work put into the set-piece is beginning to pay dividends as the Boks prepare for Saturday’s fourth and final Rugby's Greatest Rivalry Test against the All Blacks in Baltimore.
Davids says the groundwork laid throughout the season — including giving opportunities to a wide range of players — has helped the Springboks build depth, combinations and cohesion in their pack.
“Going into this series, we understood that it was going to be very important for us to have a good set-piece,” Davids said.
“I think the hard work that has been put into the scrums, the lineouts and our mauling is starting to show now. We’re just happy that things have come together at this stage to provide a solid platform for our attack and defence.”
Davids, however, insists the Boks are far from the finished product and continue to look for improvements.
“We’re continuously evaluating our systems, our individual effort and our effort as a pack of forwards,” he said. “There’s still room for improvement and, from a set-piece perspective, we continue to strive to improve and find better cohesion with our attack and defence.”
The effectiveness of the Boks’ work at the line-out was evident in their third Test victory in Soweto, particularly when Malcolm Marx finished off a powerful maul for a crucial try. Davids admitted the execution was especially pleasing given the difficult conditions.
“It was quite challenging for us on Saturday because the conditions were very, very difficult,” he said.
“There were winds from different angles all over the field, so it was quite difficult for the hookers to find the right spot and get the timing right with the jumpers. I must commend them on how they executed and read the conditions. It allowed us to get a 100% success rate.”
Davids said the experience within the Springbok pack had also proved invaluable, with players from different franchises constantly sharing ideas and learning from one another.
“We’ve got a lot of experience in the pack and we’ve got players coming from different franchises,” he said. “We always try to learn from each other and share ideas.
"Obviously, we also analyse the opponents in terms of where the opportunities lie for us, but also where their strengths are. We build a plan according to that for the specific game, and we’re just glad that it worked for us.”
The Boks now have the chance to clinch the Greatest Rivalry series outright in Baltimore, having taken a 2-1 lead with their 29-24 victory in Soweto.