South Africa suffer further injury setback

South Africa suffered a further injury setback on Friday when reserve second row Johann Muller was ruled out of the team to play Fiji and was replaced by flanker Francois Louw.

South Africa coach Peter de Villiers had forewarned of a possible replacement when announcing during the week that Muller would need a final fitness test on a troublesome hamstring before being allowed to take the field against Fiji in their Rugby World Cup 2011 Pool D match at Wellington Regional Stadium on Saturday, 17 September.

Muller joins fellow second row Victor Matfield in the hamstring rehab club, while South Africa are also taking the field without wing Bryan Habana (knee tendon), fly half Butch James (hip flexor) and Jean de Villiers (rib cartilage). Luckily for South Africa, second row Bakkies Botha was cleared to play after missing their opening match with achilles tendonosis.

At a press conference on Friday morning in the team hotel before their final captain's run, Muller had sounded positive about his own prospects of playing and joked about the injury toll.

Disruption dismissed

"I don't know whether there's something in the water or what's happening, but no, I think it's just some bad luck we're having at this stage," he said of the spate of injuries in the Springbok second row ranks.

The injuries to James and de Villiers forced a backline reshuffle, with Frans Steyn moving from full back to inside centre and 20-year-old Patrick Lambie joining the team at full back.

However, outside centre Jaque Fourie dismissed any suggestion of disruption as a result.

"I played with Frans (Steyn) at the 2007 World Cup so I don't think there's any disruption there and Patrick Lambie at the back, he's a great young talent and it will be great to see him play on the weekend.

"He (Lambie) can join the line with speed, he can even cut the line. He's a great kicker of the ball and he reads the game quite well.

Structure and defence

"Frans is an exciting player. He likes to run with the ball and he likes to take contact as well. You can expect anything when you play next to him."

South Africa forwards coach Gary Gold said the key to beating Fiji was to keep the ball away from them.

"Their (Fiji's) mindset and their mentality is to want to play. They don't come to World Cups to want to defend. So the longer you starve them of possession, the longer you are able to hold on to the ball… and the longer we are able to be disciplined to stay in our structures, then I think the more we can break them down."

Fourie agreed structure and defence were vital.

"We just need to stay in our defensive structures, make it as unpleasant for them as possible - be physical, be in their faces. We need to keep the ball and starve them of possession and stick to our game plan.

"They would like it for the game to get loose and that's not what we want. We need to keep a structure."