Duane downplays Boks’ 100th All Blacks Test hype: ‘That’s for people who write books’ | Sport

Duane Vermeulen. (Photo by Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images)

• Duane Vermeulen is distinctly unbothered by the Springboks playing their 100th Test against the All Blacks, stating such things are only relevant to “people who write books”.
• The business-like veteran No 8 instead wants him and his team-mates to simply overturn their form and stay in the Rugby Championship hunt.
• Forwards coach Deon Davids also believes nostalgia can prove a distraction.

Duane Vermeulen isn’t denying the broader rugby community its right to celebrate the historic occasion that will be the Springboks’ 100th Test against the All Blacks this weekend, but it’s definitely not something he and his team-mates are focused on.

The veteran No 8 would rather prefer to view the showdown in Townsville as simply a must-win encounter to stay in the Rugby Championship hunt, an opportunity to overturn the side’s poor form from the past fortnight.

Nostalgia, he believes, is for historians and authors.

READ | Springboks v All Blacks centenary: 5 thrilling epics between rugby’s giant nations

“From our side, we have to view the game as just another Test match,” said Vermeulen.

“We’re playing New Zealand and yes, the bookies and historians will tell you that we’re playing our 100th Test against the All Blacks.

“Whatever the occasion is, that’s for people who write books about this stuff. That’s not what we’re concentrating on.”

Indeed, there’s a distinct sense coming out of the Bok camp this week that they simply aren’t in a position to bank on previous goodwill and happy memories to get back on track.

“We want to compete in this championship. Obviously, everyone wants to win it,” said the business-like loose forward.

“For us, it’s about prepping for New Zealand, playing against them and giving it our best. We want to be a better team than we were the last two weeks. We want to improve and hopefully that’s what we can achieve.”

Vermeulen’s sentiments mirror that of forwards guru Deon Davids, who intimated earlier this week that allowing the players and coaches to be caught up too much in the hype over the status of the match could prove a distraction.

“We understand that there’s a big rivalry between South Africa and New Zealand and we respect that,” he said.

“But we’ve also learnt from the past that milestones can influence performances in a manner that doesn’t help our overall cause. The only focus is to invest everything into our next performance. That’s what’s most important for us this coming weekend.”

That doesn’t mean, however, that the Boks aren’t fiercely motivated.

“I can give the assurance that, even though it’s been a challenging campaign already, there’s nothing that prompts a player to give his all than to face the best teams in the world,” said Davids.

“We will definitely be giving our absolute best against the All Blacks. That’s just the DNA of this team. We’re here and we’re ready.”

Kick-off is at 09:05 (SA time) on Saturday.