Johannes-Haupt: Next challenge presented and accepted

With the first hurdle cleared in WXV 2, the Springbok Women have their eyes firmly set on their next challenge in the tournament, taking on Australia in Cape Town on Saturday, an engagement they are looking forward to.

That was the message from Springbok Women scrum coach Laurian Johannes-Haupt as the South Africans started their week with a solid training session in Green Point, where the pending match plans were being put in place.

“It is a wonderful challenge for us, playing Australia and being tested in a different way than Japan did,” Johannes-Haupt said following their opening 31-24 win over Japan on Friday.

“We looked at the things we did not execute well against Japan, but also started to get our minds on the next job, that being a competitive performance against Australia.”

The Wallaroos started impressively against Wales on Saturday, winning 37-5 and showing an impressive all-round game.

“They played well and for us, that was a good indication of what we can expect this weekend,” said Johannes-Haupt.

“They are a well-rounded team and did many good things, but we have our own plans and strategies for this match. Their scrum was good, as we know ours is, so it will be a massive battle up front on Saturday.

“The fact that all three tiers of the WXV played over the weekend delivered so many good match-ups, tells you how exciting the women’s game is right now. Look at WXV 2, you simply cannot predict a result for any of the games to come.”

The bigger picture still remains the Rugby World Cup in England next year and that is more reason for the Springbok Women to deliver a good performance on Saturday.

“It is all about improving your ranking by beating teams that are better ranked than you, and that is our ambition against Australia,” said the Bok Women assistant coach.

“Those teams challenge you in different ways and Australia will be no different, but we embrace this opportunity to be tested as that is the only way we will identify shortcomings.”

The Athlone Stadium is close to her heart, Johannes-Haupt said: “It is my community, where I was raised and still live, so it will be a special day. I know there will be a good crowd in to come and support us and that will motivate us even further to be at our best.”

Springbok Women lock Danelle Lochner said they have their plans in place for Australia and added that the players have the belief that they are capable of victory.

“We had a good look at those things we did not do well against Japan, but also highlighted the good things in that win and how we can repeat that against the Wallaroos,” she said.

“They will most certainly play a running game against us, but we also have strengths we can use to subdue them.

“We are in a good space as a squad. We can feel and see the improvements we are making and the fact that more and more people are coming to watch us play is a wonderful incentive for us to keep that going.

“We are working really hard and there are good rewards because of that. We urge our supporters to come to Athlone on Saturday, we need their support to drive us forward.”

The Springbok Women match day squad for Saturday will be announced on Tuesday.

The second round of WXV 2 takes place at Athlone Stadium on Friday (Wales v Italy, 16h00) and Saturday (Scotland v Japan, 14h00 and South Africa v Australia, 17h00). Tickets available from Ticketmaster.