There is a version of Test week where a forwards coach talks up his own pack and says nothing about the opposition. Jason Ryan did the opposite.
Asked about the scrum battle waiting for the All Blacks at Ellis Park on Saturday, New Zealand's forwards coach handed the compliment over without qualification.
"You know, we know, and we will acknowledge this week that they are the best in the world," Ryan told Justin Marshall on Sky Sport. "The Springboks, they are, and we'll acknowledge that. But we'll also acknowledge that we should hit this game with some confidence."
The confidence comes from a warm-up run that improved late. New Zealand's scrum wobbled badly against the Stormers in Cape Town, where Pasilio Tosi conceded four penalties, was better against the Sharks, and won multiple penalties in the first half against the Bulls at Loftus. Xavier Numia and Tyrel Lomax earned two of them before Siale Lauaki and George Bower held their sides of the scrum after coming on.
"I think we took a step forward tonight, I really do," Ryan said of the Bulls match. "We've worked really hard in the last two weeks as a pack around our reaction time and maul defence, getting set if we're going to have a crack in the air, we'll stay down, and getting a really good platform for our scrum."
He was less satisfied with the breakdown, where Anton Segner and Peter Lakai both won steals in Pretoria.
"I think defensively we made some good decisions on when we were going to hunt and when we were going to stay on our feet and go through. I think the attacking side of the breakdown, we're missing a few inside cleans, so we've got a little bit of work to do there as we head into next week. First-phase turnovers for the Springboks are exceptional, so work to do."
Dave Rennie, five matches into the All Blacks job, has framed the four-Test series as the hardest thing his side will do before the World Cup. "It will be a lot tougher than a World Cup," he told reporters on Monday. "Both sides will be about a year out from a World Cup by the time we finish the series, so we'll certainly learn a lot while we're here."
On the scrum specifically, Rennie is not conceding the contest — only the reputation.
"You play to your strengths. They'll see it as a strength. I think our scrum will bar up," he said. "I think what they've been good at is applying a lot of pressure. Back-to-back penalties, put you in a corner, and they're the best in the world at turning that pressure into points down there. They lead a lot of key metrics against all the other teams in the world."
"Our discipline will be really important, our accuracy will be really important, our set-piece will be massive. But that's exciting. We get an opportunity to measure up against the best in the world, so the boys are looking forward to it."
Rennie also flagged the jump in South Africa's defensive line speed, an area his side has not yet been stress-tested in since he took over.
"Certainly the line speed will be a hell of a lot higher than what we faced on the weekend, especially, and in any of those games, and then the intensity throughout. We've got a number of guys who have played a lot of footy here in South Africa and we know we're going to have to be really good. We're going to have to play at our best and force them to be below their best."
Victor Matfield watched the same Loftus game and drew a different conclusion. The 2007 World Cup-winning lock was impressed by the opening 40 — the All Blacks led 24-0 at the break, on the way to 50-19 — and then saw something in the second half he thinks the Springboks can use.
"I think they're looking good. I think they are really dangerous in transition play at the moment. It's like the All Blacks of old," Matfield said on his Rugby Rivals podcast. He singled out Segner, whom he admitted he did not know, and Rieko Ioane, who he thought was outstanding and who he still believes belongs at 13.
"But I do think there was a little bit in that second half where I thought the Springboks would have a look at this and think, if we really put the pressure on, if we really bring the physicality, if we keep them in their half, they look vulnerable."
The last time the two packs met in a Test that mattered, at Eden Park last year, South Africa won a rare tighthead against the feed and drove New Zealand backwards. Rassie Erasmus names his side on Thursday. Kick-off in Johannesburg is Saturday.
