Allister Coetzee insists the Springboks are ‘moving in the right direction’ and has shrugged off calls for his resignation.
The Boks suffered a record 57-0 defeat to the All Blacks in Albany on Saturday, but Coetzee was in a defiant mood upon the team’s arrival at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg on Sunday.
‘We hit the All Blacks when they were really at their best,’ he said. ‘Everything they did turned into points. They were just too classy.
‘One loss does not define this team,’ he added. ‘Even the All Blacks lost to the British & Irish Lions earlier this year and they didn’t become a bad team.’
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Coetzee said he still believed in himself and was not taking any notice of calls on social media for him to resign.
‘There is still a lot of belief in myself and the plan that we will go forward with. There is a process that we are following and I couldn’t care [less] what Twitter is saying. I am working for SA Rugby and not for Twitter.
‘We are really moving in the right direction.’
WATCH: Springbok post-match press conference
The Bok coach again refused to blame any individuals for the worst defeat in the history of Bok rugby.
‘The pressure the All Blacks exerted through their rush defence was a new experience for some of the players. For physicality and intensity, we are also far behind.
‘But this is not the time to make knee-jerk decisions, and I’m not going to blame any individuals for what happened.
‘When you go through a transition, and have a new team like we do this year, one must not only focus on the storms, but look at the rainbow as well.
‘There are a number of players who played for the first time against New Zealand in New Zealand, and showed good form, and I’m proud of that.’
Photo: Sydney Seshibedi/Gallo Images