ROLLING back years, legendary Springbok forward and former Rugby World Cup winner Mark Andrews said the players would be eager to get the first game out of the way when the Bokke clash with Scotland this evening.
The Springboks opening Rugby World Cup France 2023 match will be played at the Stade Vélodrome in Marseille.
Andrews, who was a part of the 1995 Rugby World Cup winning team and also featured at the tournament in 1999, appreciated that the Boks squad included many players who were familiar with the big occasions.
“Luckily, we have a lot of experience in the squad. Most guys have played in World Cup games and they can calm the others who haven’t before.”
He predicted a Springbok victory today and they had a good chance to successfully defend the title they won at the last World Cup in Japan 2019.
But he warned: “The Scots are not a weak side.”
Andrews is convinced the Springboks have it “in their tanks” to defend the 2019 title provided the forwards dominated games and laid a platform to unleash their dangerous runners.
Andrews believed the current squad had more pressure to deal with than his generation of troopers.
“There is so much social media on hand-held devices, it's hard to avoid. It's great when the publicity is positive but how does a player handle the negative?
“The trick would be to manage the amount of social media you take in. In our days there were just newspaper articles.”
He said he would watch today's match at home, possibly with his wife.
“I prefer to concentrate when I watch the Springboks play. I don’t like distractions,” he said.
While Andrews, a connoisseur of the game, prefers a serene setting for matches, many local Boks supporters will be catching the action at green-and-gold-decked fan parks that some establishments set up specially for the tournament, and not to be troubled by load shedding.
Duncan Heafield, the owner of Bellazar Umhlanga, said he expected about 800 patrons at his restaurant for today’s game.
“We have a beach fan park with three giant outdoor screens running for all the World Cup games. There will also be live entertainment like bands, traditional African dancers and some celebrity visits.”
Heafield said they had deejays lined up for after-parties and payouts in their “predict a score” competitions.
“You won’t say it's a restaurant, you’ll think it’s a Springbok fan park,” said Heafield.
Mandy Kidson, who owns KCC on Victory at the Kloof Country Club, said her establishment would also be covered in green and gold.
Kidson said their offerings included lots of entertainment, live music, a “kid zone” and their fully catered restaurant, but the “big game" was the main attraction.
“We’ve hosted many Springbok games here before and fans not only from the Highway Area, but all over attend.
“We’re expecting about 400 patrons watching the game on our big screens and LED TVs.”
Dhilosen Pillay, the owner of Chatsworth-based Hotel Savera, said all the World Cup matches would be shown on their big screen named “Hercules”.
Pillay is convinced that their 4 metre wide and 2.8 metre high screen was the biggest of them all locally.
He’s done much marketing to invite patrons to Hotel Savera for a World Cup experience and expected a crowd of 300 to witness today’s match.
Pillay said Sunrise FM, a community radio station, would be broadcasting from his venue.
SUNDAY TRIBUNE