Monday 10th September 2007
Victory in any form or shape will do when South Africa face England in a decisive World Cup Pool A clash Stade de France, Saint Denis, on Friday.
It is generally expected that the winner of this game would have the easier route through the play-offs and face the second-place finisher of Pool B - either Australia or Wales.
For that reason, according to star Springbok flanker Schalk Burger, it will not matter how victory is achieved.
It is expected that both teams will take a win-at-all costs approach because of the importance of the encounter and Burger's comments seem to support this view.
"It is going to be a tough one against England, but all that matters is to win," Burger said of Friday's crunch encounter.
The Boks will go into the game in Saint Denis as favourites, after the two teams achieved varying levels of success.
England, the current Worlds Cup holders, struggled through their opening match and managed an unimpressive 28-10 win over the lowly United States at the weekend.
They could also be without captain Phil Vickery, who is facing a disciplinary hearing on Tuesday after kicking out at an opponent, and injured fly-half Jonny Wilkinson - the latter facing a fitness test on Tuesday.
The Springboks, despite a slow start, raced away in the second half of their encounter with Samoa and recorded an emphatic 59-7 win.
"It was very physical at the beginning of the game, but we expected that because Samoa always play that way," Burger said.
"We were not in doubt though, and in the second half it was much easier. The Samoans were tired after a fantastic beginning.
"Now, we've got to look past this game and get prepared for the next one.
"We didn't start the Samoa game well. We made a lot of errors and conceded many turnovers.
"It was quite a difficult game to approach. We didn't think about England, but it was in the back of our minds."
Springboks coach Jake White is due to name his starting line-up for the England game on Tuesday and has only one selection poser - who to name in place of the injured centre Jean de Villiers at No.12.
White is unlikely to deviate far from the side that blitzed Samoa by scoring 50 unanswered points, which included four tries for wing sensation Bryan Habana.
Blue Bulls centre Wayne Julies has flown to France as replacement for De Villiers, who tore a left bicep muscle which will require surgery.
However, White could start with young Francois Steyn at inside centre, after his accomplished performance as a second-half replacement for De Villiers against Samoa.
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