White praises leadership
South Africa are flying the flag for the southern hemisphere
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Hosts France have set up a World Cup semi-final showdown against England after beating favourites New Zealand 20-18 in an epic match at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. |  |
Sunday, 07, Oct 2007 08:57
South Africa coach Jack White hailed the leadership of his senior players after the 37-20 win over Fiji in the quarter-finals of the World Cup.
The Springboks had been cruising 20-6 at one stage with tries from Jaque Fourie, John Smit, and JP Pietersen.
But the Pacific islanders hit back by scoring 14 unanswered points midway through the second half when Vilimoni Delasau and Sireli Bobo touched down.
The 1995 champions clinched victory thanks to tries from Smith and Butch James.
White said his side did not play to their potential but have still got a chance to win the World Cup, unlike yesterday's quarter-final victims New Zealand and Australia.
"I would much rather be where I am today than where New Zealand and Australia are," White said.
"Fiji are a really good rugby team. They offload in the tackles, they break tackles and defensively they are very strong. To score five tries against them is a huge positive.
"I thought the leadership of the senior players was outstanding. With 20 minutes to go, we could have fallen apart."
Meanwhile, Fiji captain Mosese Rauluni praised his team for their effort in the tournament.
"We had great belief when we 13-3 down because we knew we were finding holes in their defence," Rauluni said.
"France beating New Zealand yesterday was inspirational to us, although we didn't sleep much because of all the car horns going off in the old port!
"A lot of people wrote France off, but it could be tough for everyone else now in this tournament.
"A few mistakes started to creep into South Africa's game and the boys were really bouncing, but they eventually punished us and really put pressure on our scrum."