Boks need to vacate driving seat

THE All Blacks admit they appear vulnerable to the lineout drive after conceding two tries to Argentina, but the Springboks should be wary about over-doing it in this area of the game.

Heyneke Meyer's men beat the All Blacks at Ellis Park 27-25 last year with an attacking game plan and a first-five in Handre Pollard who was just too hot to handle for the visitors.

They will not beat the All Blacks by trying to get into an arm-wrestle. Just as the All Blacks believe they have the talent and players to win any sort of test - by kicking or running teams off the park or crushing them with their pack - so the Boks must keep an open mind rather than narrow their focus to the set piece.

In 2013, with the giant Andries Bekker on board, the Stormers had what appeared to be an unbeatable lineout heading into a Super Rugby match against the Crusaders in Cape Town.

However, with Sam Whitelock contesting the Stormers' throws and putting immense pressure on Bekker, the Crusaders, minus the injured Kieran Read, Dan Carter, Israel Dagg and Richie McCaw, stopped the threat at source and won 19-14. It was a classic case of a team's greatest strength also being its biggest weakness - without it, the Stormers had little else.

The All Blacks' two brief lapses against the Pumas in Christchurch were more mental than physical and coach Steven Hansen, who called the rolling maul "bloody boring" after the test, will make sure minds and bodies are suitably prepared in Johannesburg this week.

All Blacks lock Brodie Retallick said: "We let in a couple of tries from the Argentines' driving and it's probably somewhere they [Springboks] will look at trying to attack us this week as well. We need to work on that during the week and make sure we get it right come Saturday night.

"We probably need to stop them getting forward momentum. The Argentines sort of rolled around the front of us and we didn't adapt to that, so if we can hit it and get it moving backwards while keeping it square then, hopefully, they've got no option but to play the ball off the back of the maul.

"That's something you've got to adapt to on the run and, as you saw, it's not that easy to do."

Assistant coach Ian Foster, sitting alongside Retallick, gave an insight into the Boks' capabilities on attack.

"They've certainly freed up their game considerably and use a lot more counter-attack ball and turnover ball, and have become really good at it and we saw that not only in the Rugby Championship but also on the end of year tour," Foster said.

"They certainly make it hard for us now - they are playing with a lot more options." NZME