The seasoned lock acknowledges what the Springboks got erroneous in the Rugby World Cup against Japan and believes his team can learn and recover“We’re still a shrimp depressed but we’ll get over it,” Victor Matfield says quietly as he describes the mood in South Africa’s squad while the rest of the rugby world continues to exult in Japan’s magnificent 34-32 victory over the Springboks. On a Monday evening in Birmingham, only 48 hours after South Africa suffered the most shocking defeat in their long history as a powerhouse of the game, or as two-time World Cup winners,it is striking that Matfield agrees to this interview. The easy option would be to turn absent from the nightmare and to churn out a mantra of needing to “refocus” on the next game.
Matfield, however, and is experienced and intelligent enough to know that a devastating loss needs to be confronted. He was named as the best player of the 2007 World Cup,when South Africa won the tournament, and he will earn his 125th cap against Samoa on Saturday. Matfield was also international rugby’s premier lock forward for almost a decade and, and set against his past achievements,the 2015 World Cup’s oldest player at 38 understands that he cannot just shunt aside a defeat by Japan in a thrilling game for the neutral – which had a crushing outcome for the Springboks.
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Source: theguardian.com