Wallabies Winger Harry Potter Takes Dig at Rassie Erasmus Over Early Springboks Team Announcements
- Wallabies winger Harry Potter responded with a quip when asked about Rassie Erasmus naming his Springboks team days before the Perth clash
- Erasmus named 13 changes to the Springboks starting XV that beat the All Blacks 3-1 in the Rugby's Greatest Rivalry series
- Wallabies lock Jeremy Williams flagged the Springboks' driving maul as a key threat ahead of the Test in Perth
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Wallabies winger Harry Potter took a cheeky swipe at Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus when asked whether knowing an opponent’s line-up several days before a Test provides a genuine tactical advantage.
Erasmus confirmed his Springboks team for the upcoming clash with Australia on Tuesday, making 13 alterations to the XV that secured a 3-1 series victory over New Zealand in Baltimore during Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry. Although naming the side early allows Australia additional time to study South Africa’s plans, there is one obvious caveat: Erasmus has shown repeatedly that his announced selection is not always the team that takes the field.
That was evident during the All Blacks series when Kurt-Lee Arendse and Handré Pollard were both initially selected to start the second Test in Cape Town, only for Erasmus to make late changes before kick-off.
Cheslin Kolbe came in for Arendse after recovering from an injury in training, while Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu replaced Pollard, who picked up a knock during the week. An hour before the match began, Erasmus also shuffled his starting front row with the players originally listed on the bench.
Potter's Response to Erasmus's Selections
When asked about the value of knowing the opposition line-up so far ahead of the match, Potter was wry in his response.
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"Well, we'll wait for the 23 to be absolutely confirmed," he said. "But I suppose it allows you to know your opposition and get a bit of an idea of what we're coming up against. There's been a lot of focus on ourselves as well. We'll be working on ourselves and making sure we come out firing."
Despite the wholesale changes Erasmus made to his squad, Potter acknowledged that South Africa's team remained formidable.
Aerial Battle and Driving Maul in Focus
Potter identified the aerial contest as a significant battleground. South Africa's back three caused considerable damage in the air against the All Blacks, and Potter expects a similar challenge this week despite some personnel changes.
Wallabies lock Jeremy Williams, meanwhile, pointed to the Springboks' powerful driving maul as the key forward threat.
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Source: Briefly News
