“I’m sad for Ian Foster”

Like New Zealand coach Ian Foster, Jack Nienaber had the opportunity to say a few words to reporters before the press conference began. “Thank you everyone. ‘Relief’ is probably the first word that comes to mind. We have a really special group of players. This is a victory for our fans and for South Africa. I would like to show you how many messages and videos I have received that reflect the enthusiasm in the country. We felt “With all the energy they sent to us. We achieved a series of victories by just one point, and we needed that positive energy to be able to qualify.”

Against New Zealand, Handre Pollard scored 100% of the points. Is this a nice response to those who criticized the choice to contact him during the competition?

“For all the options in the squad, I have to thank the team. During the preparation for this match, some insisted that Mane (Lebok; editor’s note) or Kubus (Reinach; editor’s note) deserved to be in the match… We already have 33 good players. When We have a strategy and we explain it to the players, a guy like Mane agrees to step aside, a guy like Kobos agrees to the same thing. What I’m saying is not to make us look like geniuses, but to congratulate the group and its depth… It’s the quality of the players that allows us to be here today. They give us destinations. A different view on organizing our tactics. Another thing; we all have our families with us. Mane’s fiancée, Cobos’ wife… When we don’t choose them, they have to console them, but I think they accepted the decision within two to three hours. In training, Mane was better than Richie Monga (editorial) New Zealand (editor’s note) Absolutely. Cobos studied Aaron (Smith, New Zealand scrum-half) and that helped us a lot as well. »

How did you judge the match with Dion Fourie, who came on for Bongi Mbonambi after two minutes of play?

“If you had asked me before the game what injuries we didn’t want, I might have said Bonji (Mbnambi; editor’s note) and Faf (De Klerk; editor’s note). (Not having any bitch on the bench), the decision has been made, that’s the way it is. I don’t know. The number of formations we won or lost…but if Dion Faury lost some of them, he was able to compensate in other areas. He played well. He is 37 years old, so to play like this is special. I have coached him since “He was 20 years old, so I knew he could do it.”

Do you have a word to say to your New Zealand counterpart, Ian Foster?

“I don’t know a lot of coaches, but he does. Before our friendly match in England, we met at a party and talked for 50 minutes about life in general. I’m happy for us, but sad for him because I know how he feels. He’s a great coach, a great man.” Great. He was told that he would never achieve anything with this team, but… All blacks Always look for ways. If we look at all the sports in the world, it is probably one of the most legendary teams in history. »

We also saw Pieter-Steph du Toit produce an incredible performance in defence, making 28 successful tackles!

“He was exceptional, and I’m proud because defense is my field. He was exceptional. We already saw him during the last matches, and he was in very good form… and he showed that again on Saturday. As I would say, if a plastic bag came onto the field… He can run after him to chase him (laughs).”