Never tell an Australian that the Wallabies wear yellow. “That’s Australian gold and don’t you forget it my friend!” is the usual indignant response. But it may as well be kryptonite green when the Boks come up against that jersey in Australia.

It’s been nine long years since the Springboks beat the Wallabies in Australia. That 38-12 win in Brisbane in 2013 was one of only four victories in 29 attempts in the professional era since 1996.

Rugby: Springboks hammer the Wallabies, hard

If the world champions do not win one of the next two matches in the next eight days, that record could stretch to 11 years at least.

The Springboks won’t be back in Australia to play the Wallabies again until 2025. So, it’s now or never for most of Siya Kolisi’s men. It’s unlikely that the skipper and the bulk of the team will return in three year’s time.

On paper the Boks should win. The Wallabies are missing several key players such as captain Michael Hooper, flyhalf Quade Cooper and centre Samu Kerevi. With a small playing pool, every world-class absentee hurts more than for most countries.

But somehow the Aussies find a way when they meet the Boks on home soil. No one, not even the Boks, can give a definitive answer as to why they struggle so much in Australia. They just do.

Handré Pollard of South Africa during the Rugby Championship match between South Africa and Australia at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on September 29, 2018 in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. (Photo: Anton Geyser/Gallo Images)

“Personally, I thought we struggled a bit more over here than we did in New Zealand back in the Super Rugby days as well, but I am not sure what the reason was for that,” veteran utility back Frans Steyn said.

He is one of only five players — Kolisi, Eben Etzebeth, Duane Vermeulen, and Willie le Roux the other, who have tasted victory against the Wallabies in Australia.

“Luckily, we have an opportunity to do something special here this weekend, and hopefully we can achieve that. It certainly would be a big achievement for the team, especially since it hasn’t happened often,” Steyn added.

Lift their game

Australia’s record under current coach Dave Rennie is not spectacular, but they lift their game when the Boks are in town. Last year they stunned the world champions with back-to-back triumphs on home soil.

If that happens again, the Boks are in strife. They only have one more home match to come this season — against Argentina in Durban next month. They have seven more away games including the two in Adelaide and Sydney in the next eight days.

After losing to Wales and the All Blacks at home, the Boks’ season could implode at the Adelaide Oval if they don’t find a way to win.

Constant team selection tinkering in the name of “growth” toward Rugby World Cup 2023, has led to inconsistent performances. Dire first halves against Wales at Loftus (the Boks trailed 18-3 at the break) and the All Blacks at Ellis Park (the Boks were 15-0 down after 35 minutes) underline this trend.

They fought back to beat Wales 32-29 but fell short against the All Blacks, losing 35-23, a week after they put New Zealand away by 26-10 at Mbombela.

The Wallabies are far from a great side, but they’re scrappers and will make it a priority to start well and put the visitors under scoreboard pressure.

“Preparation is everything in a Test match and I think out of all five Tests we’ve played so far this year we’ve lost the first 25 minutes in each game,” Wallaby captain James Slipper said.

“So (the start of the game) has definitely been spoken about. Hopefully, we can put the Springboks under a bit of heat early. It comes down to creating opportunities and taking them.

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“We’ve created a lot but probably haven’t had the polish to take them or haven’t taken the points on offer, so for us at training there’s been a big emphasis on taking those opportunities.”

Focused on Australia

Bok skipper Kolisi played down the theory that the Boks put much more focus on New Zealand and therefore are not mentally prepared for the Wallabies, as a reason for their poor Australian record.

“All our attention has been on Australia in the last two weeks and we also looked at their matches against Argentina, so we know what to expect from them,” said Kolisi.

“We have prepared well, we know what they are going to bring, and we know what we must improve on going into the game, so it’s going to be a big challenge.”

Backline coach Mzwandile Stick was wary of the threat the hosts posed and said: “If we don’t pitch up mentally, we will be punished. We watched the match between Argentina and Australia two weeks ago and we know it will be the same for both teams this week. 

“We need to be ready mentally and physically, and if we do that, hopefully the scoreboard will take care of itself.”

The Boks have created enough chances in all their games this season, but maximising their returns from those opportunities has let them down repeatedly. That is certainly one area to improve.

Ball carrier Siya Kolisi (c) of South Africa during the Rugby Championship match between South Africa and Australia at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on September 29, 2018 in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. (Photo: Richard Huggard/Gallo Images/Getty Images)

The set piece has functioned well, although the All Blacks and to an extent Wales, were effective in stopping the Boks’ rolling mauls. South Africa’s normally miserly defence has also been unusually porous this season.

They have conceded 10 tries in five Tests. It’s not catastrophic, but not a trend the Boks will be happy with.

But if South Africa can impose their forwards on the Wallabies, and gain front-foot ball, and if they are more accurate on attack, they should win.

There are many ‘ifs’ to overcome, but the Boks know they have a strong foundation thanks to their granite pack — even with hooker Malcolm Marx on the bench again.

It’s behind the scrum where they need to be sharper. There were signs at Ellis Park, with Damian Willemse pulling strings all over the field, that they are sharpening their attack.

They need to prove it on the perfect Adelaide Oval pitch, to not only put the Aussie hoodoo behind them, but to stay alive in the Rugby Championship. DM

Australia

15 Reece Hodge, 14 Tom Wright, 13 Len Ikitau, 12 Hunter Paisami, 11 Marika Koroibete, 10 Noah Lolesio, 9 Nic White, 8 Rob Valenti, 7 Fraser McReight, 6 Jed Holloway, 5 Matt Philip, 4 Rory Arnold, 3 Allan Ala’atoa, 2 Folau Fa’ainga, 1 James Slipper (captain)

Reserves: 16 David Porecki, 17 Scott Sio, 18 Taniela Tupou, 19 Darcy Swain, 20 Rob Leota, 21 Pete Samu, 22 Tate McDermott, 23 Andrew Kellaway.

South Africa

15 Damian Willemse, 14 Warrick Gelant, 13 Lukhanyo Am, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 10 Handre Pollard, 9 Faf de Klerk, 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Siya Kolisi (captain), 5 Lood de Jager, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Joseph Dweba, 1 Ox Nche

Reserves: 16 Malcolm Marx, 17 Steven Kitshoff, 18 Vincent Koch, 19 Franco Mostert, 20 Kwagga Smith, 21 Jaden Hendrikse, 22 Elton Jantjies, 23 Frans Steyn.

Referee: Paul Williams (New Zealand)

The match kicks off at 07h30 (SA time) and will be broadcast live on SuperSport.