Boks ‘know what must be fixed for cup final’ third Test against Wales

Springbok assistant coach Deon Davids says they will select the best possible side for the must-win third Test against Wales in Cape Town on Saturday.

The Boks and Dragons go into the third and final match with the series level at 1-1 after the hosts won the opener in Pretoria and the visitors triumphed in Bloemfontein this weekend.

The Boks have come under pressure after the second-Test defeat where coach Jacques Nienaber made 19 changes to his squad and veteran lock Eben Etzebeth was the only player retained in the starting line-up.

In the two matches so far the Boks were often put under pressure by fired-up Wales. Davids said SA knows what needs to be fixed this week to win the game.

“We always try to achieve and play towards the best of our ability, but we also know that there will always be certain obstacles we will have to overcome because we are playing against a quality side in Wales.

“It is always good when you know the things you can improve and work on to become better, and that is part of the growth of getting into the game plan that we want from the players.

“We are fortunate that we have got so many quality players in the set-up and we have confidence in this group of players and we know their ability to play at this level.”

“It is always awful to lose in the Springbok jersey — it is something you don’t want,” Davids said as the Springboks began preparations for the decider.

“The team we selected last week was part of the bigger picture and I think it was well communicated to everyone in the squad in terms of what we wanted to achieve.

“We always play to win and will [again] in Cape Town, which is now a final. The World Cup is about knockout games and having seen so much about the whole squad under these circumstances of pressure in the Test matches.

“It gives us the opportunity to make a selection based on the road maps of the players that we think will suit the game plan. With that in mid, we will select what we think is the best possible side to give us a good result on Saturday.”