SA Rugby’s laws advisor Jaco Peyper has addressed concerns around Springbok discipline as the world champs prepare for a Rugby Championship decider on Saturday.
The South Africans need only one point from the match against Argentina at Mbombela Stadium, or to suffer a defeat without Los Pumas claiming a bonus point, to clinch their first title since 2019 and their fifth ever in the competition.
However, their conduct has come under the spotlight ahead of the decisive clash in Nelspruit, with seven yellow cards conceded so far — more than any other side in the four-team southern hemisphere competition.
Speaking in a Bok conference this week, Peyper acknowledged the pressure Rassie Erasmus’ troops have faced while have been actively addressing areas like breakdowns and tackler behaviour.
However, the former Test referee dismissed the notion that avoiding penalties means a team is not participating in the game.
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“Sometimes there’s momentum against you and those cards come easier because the players are under pressure and give metres and the infringements look worse,” he told reporters.
“[But] we’re certainly not a team that tries not to give away penalties because if you don’t it means you’re not taking part in the game. You can be as accurate as you want but you’re still going to concede penalties if you engage in the contest.
“But ja, we’ve looked at a few things after the last few games, especially at the breakdown with tacklers rolling away,” Peyper added. “If we can service that better this week, we’ll probably concede a couple less penalties.”
New Zealand referee Ben O’Keeffe will officiate the Mbombela showdown on Saturday. Peyper spoke highly of O’Keeffe, calling him “a very smart man” and adding, “He’s so balanced, such a good individual.
“When you look at him referee, you’d also know that he doesn’t listen to outside voices … this game decides the championship, and Ben’s done British & Irish Lions-deciding matches, World Cup quarter-finals, us against Ireland at the World Cup.”
Photo: Hannah Peters/Getty Images
