Springboks skipper Jean de Villiers has told his South Africa troops they have a duty to their countrymen to rectify the nightmare World Cup loss to Japan.
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Fans the world over were left open-mouthed as the Brave Blossoms threw caution to the wind at the end of a thrilling contest, getting their reward with Karne Hesketh’s incredible stoppage-time touchdown.
But while Eddie Jones’ side rightly lapped up the adulation which flooded down on top of them, the South Africans have spent the past week undergoing a national soul-searching exercise.
Now De Villiers has ordered his team to make amends for the defeat by beating their next Pool B opponents Samoa at Villa Park. He said: “We all know how important this game is for our country, the game of rugby. We are a very proud nation. What saddens me is to see how a loss like this can break the country apart. We have a responsibility to rectify that.
“Rugby is a game but in South Africa it has become so much more than just a game and we carry that responsibility with us every single time we enter the field. We disappointed a lot of people last week. We need to stand up. We put ourselves in this position and we need to get ourselves out of this position.”
De Villiers has the full backing of Boks coach Heyneke Meyer and is one of just seven players to keep their places for the Samoa clash.
“Yes I did (expect to be dropped),” he admitted. “After the backing that the coach has given me, I have to perform and show that I deserve that opportunity.”
Samoa coach Stephen Bethem has brought in Mike Stanley at fly-half in place of veteran Tusi Pisi, who drops to the bench after an erratic kicking display in their opening 25-16 win over the USA.
“We’ve got to bring all we’ve got and face up,” Bethem said. “We’ve always expected South Africa to be our toughest opponent and that hasn’t changed one bit. We are not expecting anything less from South Africa. We are expecting a fired up side: a side that is out to prove a point, a side hungry for a win.”
