Backline coach Franco Smith says a key element of the Springboks’ ‘turnaround’ plan will be to prioritise and protect possession against the Wallabies this Saturday, writes CRAIG LEWIS in Bloemfontein.

The Boks have settled into the heart of Bloemfontein this week ahead of a crucial clash against Australia, but understandably a fair amount of focus has continued to revolve around the fallout from the Springboks’ heaviest-ever 57-0 defeat to the All Blacks in Albany on 16 September.

The word from the Bok camp is that they have taken many ‘hard lessons’ to heart, but have now devised a plan to produce a far more accomplished performance in response to that humbling loss, which they believe was a one-off aberration.

Fronting up to the media at the team hotel on Tuesday, Smith suggested the Boks would not go into their shells this Saturday, but admitted that they had to be more accurate when it came to looking after the ball.

‘I’ve been involved with teams before that have had to respond to a result of that nature, and to come back from a loss of some 50 points is actually much easier than many may think as you can only improve on that. Having looked in-depth at the [All Blacks] game again, we’ve acknowledged that the main thing is to get the ball back in our hands.

‘Especially in that second half, we had hardly any ball, and perhaps that came down to our first phases not functioning as well as we’d planned,’ he added. ‘To turn it around, we have to ensure we are a factor with ball in hand.

‘I believe the next World Cup will be won by the team whose general attack [phase-play] is developed best. So we have to re-establish our general shape on attack, and to give ourselves the best chances to score by looking after possession a lot better … and then we need to convert our opportunities with that try-scoring mentality.’

Notably, the Springboks have averaged more kicks from hand (24) and fewer passes (132) or carries (104) than any other side in the Rugby Championship this season, but they have won more turnovers (34).

Smith insisted that the more time the Boks had together to gel as a group, the greater the rewards would be in terms of effectively understanding and executing the plans around general attack.

‘If you look at scoreboards across world rugby lately, scoring tries has become a big emphasis and offers that entertainment value. In saying that, I’m still defence driven, even though attack is my passion. A team with the best defence may give themselves the best chance to win a game, but that alone is not going to get you tries. It’s about how you blend attack and defence …

‘Ultimately, it’s not about taking risks, it’s about taking responsibility. If we don’t up our tempo and accuracy with ball in hand, then we’re not going to get across the line.’

Smith said the manner in which the Boks bounced back against the Wallabies this Saturday would speak volumes about the character of the side.

‘I believe it [the loss to the All Blacks] was all part of the character-building process for this team. Experience is not what you know, it’s what you do with what you know … We were on a roll before that, but suddenly under pressure and with high expectations, it maybe got to some of the younger players.

‘Now we’ve gained that experience, though, and the players are so determined and hungry to make this right, we’ve actually had to reign them in at training. So as a coach, it’s not going to be difficult to motivate this group on Saturday.’