All Blacks star Will Jordan says the result of the World Cup final still hurts, but admits that the Springboks deserve full credit.
In the dramatic title match of the previous year, the Springboks defeated the All Blacks to secure an incredible World Cup victory. In that playoff match, South Africa won by a single point for the third time in a row.
In the end, the Springboks had a dream final against their enduring arch-rivals after an amazing run of results.
There is no doubt that the result of the final could have gone either way, with the match hinging on a number of fine margins, but ultimately the Springboks held their nerve to clinch a fourth World Cup title in their history.
A few months later, All Blacks player Will Jordan freely acknowledged that the Springboks should get credit for their extraordinary tenacity during an appearance on the What A Lad podcast.
“You have to appreciate the Springboks’ capacity to endure hardship and emerge victorious from challenging circumstances. Some could say it’s a bit of a fluke because they won by one point in the quarterfinals, semifinal, and championship. However, it’s not. Tight games can be won by good teams.
“It was one of those things that hurt, but there are some parts of that game I look back on and don’t like, or it keeps me up at night a little bit.”
YOU CAN CHECK OUT THE FULL CLIP AS THE ALL BLACKS’ WILL JORDAN REFLECTED ON THE FINAL AGAINST THE SPRINGBOKS:
BOKS WANT TO KEEP EVOLVING
Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus has repeatedly said at the start of this year that continued evolution of their game is necessary in order to remain top.
“As we said before last year’s World Cup in France, there was no way that we would be successful if we kept following the same procedure. We must once again improve our game since teams will have undoubtedly seen how we play and how they believe to counter it.
Erasmus continued on the SA Rugby website, “We’ve reviewed what it takes to be at the cutting edge of the game and we’ve repurposed the management structure to put as much resource as we can into the technical side of the game.”
“We wanted to make sure that the right roles were filled to ensure that the main thing (playing rugby in a winning way) stays the main thing. The players will continue to get the necessary off-field support.”
