Cobus Reinach's 'not an individual sport' message to Bok debutant

Experienced scrum half Cobus Reinach is backing Springbok new boy Vusi Moyo to thrive in the No.10 jersey but is steering clear of predicting another hammering of Wales.

The last time the Springboks played Wales they delivered a 73-0 thrashing in Cardiff, which may explain why head coach Rassie Erasmus believes the time is right to give Moyo a debut, particularly on his home ground.

Reinach, who came on in the 51st minute of that Cardiff cake walk, has been practising with Moyo and is confident the partnership will be seamless even in the daunting Test arena.

“If you train with Vusi for the last two weeks, you know you do not have to look after him,” he told IOL Sport.

“He can look after himself. He might be a young man, but he has soft hands, and he knows the game very well.

“We are all excited for him to play. I am on his inside, Damian de Allende on his outside. There is nothing to worry about. It is not an individual sport, it is 23 players who all have each other’s backs. So, yes, it is exciting times.”

Fixture

Nations Championship

South Africa

43 - 0

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Wales

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Despite that big win over Wales in November, Reinach insists the World Cup holders will not be hampered by complacency on Saturday.

“We do not talk about what we have done before:” added the 51-cap, scum-half. “We focus on what we need to do now to get better as a squad. There are always work-ons.

“What has happened can change in a blink of an eye. If we don’t pitch up on Saturday, it is not going to just happen, and they will turn us over if we are not switched on.

“We know we have to be 100 perc ent on our game, every game — it does not matter who you play and where you play them.

“It is all about us, our standards, and what we want to put on the field in front of our supporters.”