Springboks Legend Opens Up on What to Expect From Rassie Erasmus’ Side After Beating All Blacks

• Victor Matfield said the pressure of the All Blacks series pushed the Springboks back to their physical, direct DNA
• Matfield pointed to Saturday's 43-28 win over the All Blacks in Baltimore as a sign of a shift in the Boks' approach
• The former lock identified two younger players he believes are seizing their opportunities in the Springbok squad

Former Springbok lock Victor Matfield believes the world champions will play a more expansive brand of rugby now that the pressure of the Rugby's Greatest Rivalry series against New Zealand has lifted.

The Springboks sealed a 3-1 series victory over the All Blacks before turning their attention to a one-off Test against the Wallabies in Perth on 27 September. The northern leg of the Nations Championship follows, with matches against Italy in Turin on 7 November, France in Paris on 13 November and Ireland in Dublin on 21 November, ahead of the finals weekend at Twickenham from 27 to 29 November.

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Matfield Sees a Shift With Pressure Off

Speaking on the Rugby Rivals podcast, Matfield said the intensity of the All Blacks series had drawn the Springboks back to their core strengths. "I think you could see the pressure in this Test series. We went back to what we know, what our DNA is; really being physical, being very direct," he said.

He noted that the Boks had shown greater ambition with ball in hand during Saturday's 43-28 victory in Baltimore, a result he viewed as a turning point in their approach. "We'll probably see it now with the pressure being off, you'll see South Africa go and add a little bit of attack to their game. We'll be bit more brave with ball in hand and keep possession a little bit more," Matfield said.

He added that South Africa had appeared more expansive in 2025. "I thought last year our attacking game, we were a bit more expansive, we took a few more chances that we haven't done in this series."

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Younger Players to Get Their Chance

Matfield also expects coach Rassie Erasmus to use the upcoming fixtures to rotate the squad and hand more game time to emerging talent. "I think we're happy with the squad and I think now we'll see a lot of changes for South Africa. In the next few games, I think we will see a lot of younger players getting an opportunity and they must show what they can do," he said.

He singled out scrumhalf Morné van den Berg and loose forward Cameron Hanekom as players making the most of their chances in a winning environment. "It's so nice as a youngster to step into a team like this with a winning culture where you just go with the flow. You can feel when the pressure comes on how the older players handle it, what the talk is, so I think we're in a good space," Matfield said.

Source: Briefly News