Springbok coach Peter de Villiers isn't writing off New Zealand and Australia in the second half of the Tri-Nations. Photo / Getty Images
CAPE TOWN - While most were talking his team up, Peter de Villiers refused to believe the Springboks have this year's Tri Nations trophy in the bag after overwhelming the Wallabies 29-17 in Cape Town this morning (NZT).
The world champions are now three from three - having also conquered
the All Blacks in Bloemfontein and Durban - and full of confidence entering their three-match tour of Australia and New Zealand.
But with the first four matches of the tournament going the way of the home team and after watching the Springboks lose the second half against the Wallabies at Newlands, de Villiers was wary of writing off South Africa's two southern hemisphere rivals.
"Now they will have the crowds behind them," he said.
"It's halftime now for us and you saw how we struggled in the second half today."
With the Springboks' powerful forwards hungry at the lineout and relentless at the breakdown, the Wallabies' only answer was to continually infringe - and Morne Steyn was only too happy to punish the visitors for their wicked ways.
In a crowd-pleasing encore to his record 31-point haul against the All Blacks the previous week in Durban, Steyn nailed seven penalties and a drop goal for a 24-point tally against the Wallabies.
Incredibly, the sharp-shooting five-eighth scored 49 consecutive points for the Boks before his phenomenal - and most likely world record - run which spanned three Tests ended with a first-half try to lock Victor Matfield.
De Villiers, though, rightfully insisted his was no one-man team.
"The 'i' really disappeared out of this team a long time ago," de Villiers said.
"We operate as a team and definitely it's working well at the moment. Brilliant."
Springboks captain John Smit hailed the controversial de Villiers - often criticised and even ridiculed for his eccentric and outspoken ways - as the side's unsung hero.
"I think you can see by our results that he has a way with people," Smit said.
"It's not just how he coaches us a group, but how he deals with individuals."
- AAP
