Peter de Villiers hopes his side's 63-9 rout of Argentina will act as a confidence booster for the Tri-nations clash with New Zealand.
Boks coach hoping to build on Pumas pummelling
South Africa head coach Peter de Villiers hopes his side's 63-9 rout of Argentina will act as a confidence booster for the upcoming Tri-nations clash with New Zealand.
The Springboks ran in nine tries at Coca-Cola Park as they brushed aside their South American opponents in a mesmerising second half display.
De Villiers said the win, which included 49 unanswered points in the second half, was useful, but facing New Zealand in Cape Town on Saturday would be an entirely different matter.
"The win helps to build our confidence, which is a great thing and we will enjoy the win, there are no buts about it," De Villiers said.
"But we know what a step up next week against the All Blacks will be and we have the ability to make that step.
Dominated
"We know the first half was not good, but it is always good to see a team go out again, do it right and use their opportunities."
Springboks captain Victor Matfield felt one of the key components of the victory was the way he and his team-mates dominated the set-pieces.
"Argentina were very physical at the breakdown points, but we were happy with the way we went in the lineouts and scrums," he asid.
"Argentina uses a lot of lineout drives but with the sacking rule coming in with the ELVs (experimental law variations), it made it very difficult for them.
Delight
Sacking refers to the ELV allowing teams to collapse a rolling maul, which was a key element of the Pumas' game at the World Cup where they finished third after losing their semi-final to champions South Africa.
Replacement flanker Joe van Niekerk, who celebrated his 50th Test with two tries in two minutes, admitted his delight at having brought up a personal landmark with 10 points of his own.
"It was unbelievable just to get on the field for the 50th time because it's been a long road," he said.
"I wasn't really thinking too much once I was on the field, I was just running to the ball."
