Coetzee not pressing any panic buttons
Springbok coach Allister Coetzee is not pressing any panic buttons after the weekend's 26-20 defeat to a 14-man Ireland at Newlands. He says the mark of any good team is the manner in which they get up and respond to defeat.
Coetzee went to great pains to highlight the vast difference in the tactical demands between Super Rugby and Test rugby and to get the right balance between kicking and running.
By way of lessons learned, Coetzee highlighted the three non-negotiables at top level -- territorial dominance, physical dominance and scoreboard pressure, all areas where admittedly the Boks fell well short. Not to mention the poor execution and a team seemingly void of a concise game plan.
The coach, who was the first since John Williams in the early 90's to start his tenure on a losing note, admitted that the players would be 'embarrassed' with themselves when they view the video playback at their team session.
He made it abundantly clear that making sweeping changes right now would be seen as a panic reaction and that is not called for.
Aside from calling up veteran flyhalf Morne Steyn as cover for Patrick Lambie, who suffered concussion when he connected with the elbow of CJ Stander, don't expect sweeping changes when Coetzee announces his line-up for the second Test at Emirate Airlines Park (Kick-off 17h00).