Paris — Their victory over France must have felt like a shot of morphine for the under-pressure Springboks and coach Allister Coetzee, easing the pain of the devastating loss to Ireland and allowing him to fight another day. Coetzee spoke of his palpable relief in the aftermath of their 18-17 win on Saturday. "A lot of relief‚ I’d say. I’m pleased and satisfied about the effort. "It is also pleasing when they translate the hard work off the field onto the pitch." Coetzee stressed the point that the team had learnt from their errant ways in Dublin the week before. "They took the lessons. They adapted to the referee and they adapted to the conditions. And they were able to close out a tough match. "There is something special in this team. They were prepared to work for each other." The fact that his young team‚ which included eight players with fewer than 15 caps‚ held out in the closing minutes, speaks of their resolve on the evening. They did that without captain Eben Etzebeth, take...
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