Adriaan Strauss‚ who skippered the Springboks during their painful 2016 season‚ believes that the lessons learned and mistakes made last year will ensure better performances in 2017. The Springboks begin their international season against France at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday‚ coming off eight losses in their 12 Tests last season‚ including losing their last four Tests of the year. One of those defeats was against Italy in Florence. By any standard losing 66% of games should have been enough to have ushered in a new coaching staff. Strauss had the grace to call time on his Test career‚ but coach Allister Coetzee soldiers on into a new season‚ albeit with some new faces in the back room. Winning the French series‚ which includes further Tests at King’s Park and Ellis Park‚ is non-negotiable for Coetzee to prolong his stay as Bok coach. The coach has made positive noises about improved co-operation with Super Rugby franchises that has led to a flow of intelligence and understanding th...
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