The Junior Boks must sharpen in certain areas of their game when they face Wales in their final pool match at the Junior World Cup in Georgia on Tuesday, coach Kevin Foote says.
After beating Uruguay and hosts Georgia in their opening games, the defending champions are well set to reach the knockout stage of the tournament.
A 33-5 victory over Georgia put SA in a commanding position in Pool A and set up a group decider against Wales.
“We need to sharpen up in certain areas, and we’ll definitely look at that,” Foote said ahead of Tuesday’s clash at the Avchala Stadium (kickoff 4pm).
“However, we stayed in the fight and matched the physicality of a very determined Georgian side. From here it’s knockout rugby.
“Wales are a good team, and they’ve done really well in the tournament so far, so we’re expecting a big challenge. Everyone in the squad has played and we will now turn our attention to Wales.”
While the five-tries-to-one scoreline against Georgia suggested a comfortable win for the Junior Boks, Foote said the match was far from straightforward.
“It wasn’t a pretty game by any stretch of the imagination,” he said.
Three Georgian players were yellow carded during the match, with one upgraded to a 20-minute red card at the start of the second half.
“We knew it was going to be physical and quite emotional, but I think that we stayed on the right side of the referee,” Foote said.
“That’s important because it shows maturity when you don’t retaliate, and obviously when the opportunities came, we managed to capitalise on them.
“It was good to get a second game under our belts, but it was maybe a little wake-up call for us.”
While the scoreline reflected the Junior Boks’ eventual dominance over Georgia, it was forged through the relentless work of a pack that steadily wore down a spirited Georgian challenge.
SA U20 captain Siphosethu Mnebelele (hooker) and fellow tight forward Heinrich Theron (lock) were prominent figures in a collective forward effort that turned the tide after a testing opening period.
Foote has made six changes to the starting side and two more on the bench for Tuesday’s clash. Four of the changes to the run-on side that defeated Georgia at the same venue last Thursday are in the backline:
- Alzeadon Felix moves from the bench to start at fullback in place of Akahluwa Boqwana.
- Ethan Adams returns from injury to take over at inside centre from Markus Muller, who is set to enter the action off the bench as one of the three back replacements.
- At left wing, Jack Benade makes way for Khuthadzo Rasivhaga.
- Yaqeen Ahmed is also back in the fold after serving his suspension and will start at flyhalf in place of Luan Giliomee, who suffered a concussion against Georgia and is currently completing the graduated return-to-play protocols, making him unavailable for selection.
Junior Bok team: 15 Alzeadon Felix, 14 Cheswill Jooste, 13 Samuel Badenhorst, 12 Ethan Adams, 11 Khuthadzo Rasivhaga, 10 Yaqeen Ahmed, 9 Hendré Schoeman, 8 Vuyo Gwiji, 7 Luke Cannon, 6 Risima Khosa, 5 JD Hattingh, 4 Heinrich Theron, 3 Danie Kruger, 2 Siphosethu Mnebelele (captain), 1 Oliver Reid. Replacements: 16 Liam van Wyk, 17 Rambo Kubheka, 18 Luan van der Berg, 19 Jaythen Orange, 20 Gert Kemp, 21 Jayden Brits, 22 Markus Müller, 23 Jordan Steenkamp.
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