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The All Blacks are bracing for a fierce physical confrontation against the Springboks in the third test at Soccer City. New Zealand coach Scott Barrett has identified South Africa's potent power game as the primary threat they must overcome to secure a series lead.
Saturday’s third Test is expected to be watched by a crowd of 85,000 at Soccer City in Johannesburg Kurt-Lee Arendse comes in on the right wing for South Africa for the third Test against New Zealand.
Photograph: Phill Magakoe/AFP via Getty Imagespower game if they are to win the third Test against their hosts on the weekend and go 2-1 up in the four-Test series, experienced All Blacks centre New Zealand were surprise 33-16 victors in the first Test in Johannesburg as they embarked on a full-scale tour of South Africa for the first time in 30 years, but the Springboks levelled matters with a 33-26 success in Cape Town at the weekend.
“The blueprint that got them a victory at the weekend was their power game,” Barrett told a press conference. Rassie Erasmus rubbishes All Blacks’ head coach’s ‘walking around’ claims at scrumsSiya Kolisi fires up ferocious Springboks to hit back against All Blacks “So we’re going to have to tidy up a lot of stuff around the air, winning the scraps on the ground and trying to minimise their entries into our half so they can’t get their power game on.
” Saturday’s third Test at Soccer City in Johannesburg, which was the venue for the 2010 World Cup final, will be watched by some 85,000 spectators and is effectively a final for both sides, with the fourth and final Test to be played in Baltimore in the United States.
“And it’s a game of chess, really. Yeah, like we beat the Boks week one and they changed a few things, and we tried to change a few things. We lost the second one so now it’s about trying to implement the best plan possible to try and get a result on Saturday, and they’ll be doing the same.
” A chance to make sure they at least tie the series, and win two of three tests on South African soil, is a massive motivator, Barrett added.
“It was something we spoke about before we left for South Africa and what an opportunity, so we’re going to try and use that to motivate us and galvanise us and excite us and get us to a stage where we’re nice and fearless, and then try and enjoy the moment on Saturday and control as much as we can,” he said. Cheslin Kolbe will move from winger to fullback with Damian Willemse sidelined through injury.
Kurt-Lee Arendse comes into the squad to take the place of Kolbe in the number 14 jersey. Erasmus has gone with the frontrow he initially picked to start in Cape Town with hooker Malcolm Marx, and props Ox Nche and Wilco Louw. They were switched just before kick-off with the frontrow that was on the bench, who are now back among the replacements – hooker Deon Fourie, and props Gerhard Steenekamp and Thomas du Toit.
Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu will again start at outhalf with Manie Libbok on the bench and no Handre Pollard due to a calf problem.
“It was always our plan to have a little more continuity in player combinations for this series and we thought that the players who did the job for us last week really showed composure and did well to stick to the plan and what we wanted to achieve last week,” said Erasmus. Cheslin Kolbe; Kurt-Lee Arendse, Jesse Kriel, Damian de Allende, Ethan Hooker; Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Cobus Reinach; Ox Nche, Malcolm Marx, Wilco Louw; Eben Etzebeth, Ruan Nortje; Siya Kolisi , Pieter-Steph du Toit, Jasper Wiese.
Deon Fourie, Gerhard Steenekamp, Thomas du Toit, Lood de Jager, Andre Esterhuizen, Cameron Hanekom, Morne van den Berg, Manie Libbok. Rassie Erasmus makes one change to South Africa side for third Test against All BlacksRassie Erasmus rubbishes All Blacks’ head coach’s ‘walking around’ claims at scrumsMOST READBon Jovi at Croke Park: Thunderous choruses prove you can’t keep a good song downA Wicklow woman in Marbella: ‘I would make friends in the summer and they would then go home.
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