Jerry adds 'another brick to the Bok house'

SPOTLIGHT: Centre Jesse Kriel knows a thing or two about defensive systems and he had plenty of praise for Jerry Flannery after the Boks concluded 2024 with an unbeaten November tour.

There were question marks on how the Springboks' game would change this year when it was revealed that Flannery and Tony Brown (attack) would be joining the coaching staff.

Flannery had big shoes to fill after Jacques Nienaber left the coaching setup after last year's World Cup.

However, it doesn’t seem like there were too many hiccups with the transition.

The Springboks conceded the least amount of tries (10) in this year's Rugby Championship and they only conceded four five-pointers during their three-match end-of-year tour.

"Defence is obviously a very important part of our game. It is something that we take a lot of pride in," said Kriel after his team's 45-12 win over Wales in Cardiff.

"Jacques laid an unbelievable foundation and he is one of the best in the world.

"I think Jerry has really come in with a whole lot of energy and kind of built on that.

"He is a world-class coach and the guys absolutely love him and he has bought into the culture and he has added another brick to the house that we are building.

"I’ve got a lot of respect for him. He is a guy who works extremely hard and I think when you've got someone who cares that much and works that hard, they [the players] see that and they want to emulate that.

"He is a great guy to have in the room and he is the right person.

"He is a guy we want to put our shoulders on the line for and put our heads into dark places.

"When you get someone like that who you can play for, it makes a big difference."

At outside centre, Kriel is a defensive general in the Bok team and he sees the constant growth in that area of the game.

"As an outside centre, defence is obviously your baby. It is something I take a lot of pride in and I love the defensive part of the game," he said.

"But with all the guys coming in, you want to share as much knowledge as you can.

"A guy like Canan Moodie is an unbelievable outside centre and in the game against Scotland he made some amazing reads and he made a big impact in the game.

"He is a guy who's come in and always wants to learn.

"With guys like Cheslin [Kolbe], Kurt-Lee [Arendse], Makazole [Mapimpi] and Lukhanyo [Am], everyone is coaching each other to try and get better and understand the system better."

@rugby365com