Still too many mistakes in Springboks' win, says Krige

12.30pm

DURBAN - South African captain Corne Krige says there is no risk of his team getting over-confident ahead of Saturday's Tri-Nations rugby test against the All Blacks at Pretoria.

Krige had more faith in the Springboks than most of their supporters ahead of the 26-22 upset of Australia to kick-start the tournament in Cape Town on Saturday.

"During the week we had a quiet self-belief that you (the press) and the public didn't have," Krige told reporters.

"The players all along had a feeling that if we played close to our potential we could win and I'm very proud of the guys."

However, amid the jubilation, Krige was pragmatic enough to realise one victory proved little.

"It's important for us to win next week. This year is all about consistent performances and not about one-off wins. Realistically we can play much better and we will be critical of our performance," he said.

"We must keep our feet on the ground. We are going to have to produce another big performance and we know how important it is for us to win both home games before travelling overseas.

"We played well but it was not perfect. There were still too many mistakes and we will work on eradicating those this week."

The abrasive flanker admitted there was one moment of near-perfection. Lock Victor Matfield's try late in the first half, started by outstanding replacement fullback Brent Russell in his quarter and passing through several sets of hands, proved the Springboks were capable of counter-attacking rugby.

"I think the Newlands fans saw one of the best ever Springbok tries," Krige said.

- NZPA