VERDICT | As world champions, the Boks can't rely on being brave in defeat

In Genoa

In an ideal world, the Springboks would have loved to arrive in the beautiful seaside town of Genoa with a tour win under their belt.

However, with 19-16 and 30-26 losses to Ireland and France in Dublin and Marseille respectively, the Boks are nought from two on this trip.

The message from SA Rugby director of rugby Rassie Erasmus and Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber is that what's transpiring in 2022 is not relevant to a World Cup year.

They also use the 2018 example when they first took over the Boks from Allister Coetzee, which has to be seen as a fair reference point.

However, the Boks of 2018 were pretenders to the All Blacks' throne, while the current group are world champions.

There's an expectation that World Champions, every so often, must display their pedigree.

This hasn't been the case with the Boks, even though the All Blacks have been beaten twice, while the British & Irish Lions were also beaten after a 1-0 deficit.

What the Boks have shown in their defeats against Ireland and France is championship resilience.

They trailed by 10 points against Ireland and were 13-0 down with 14 men in Marseille on Saturday.

Both those Tests went down to the wire, with the Boks falling victim to their own composure issues, with the officiating, as pointed out by Erasmus, also a debatable matter.

As World Champions, and especially ones who feel they're not getting the rub of the refereeing green, it then becomes incumbent on them to find a playing style that allows them to minimise the match official's influence.

There were shades of this at the Stade Velodrome, where a delicate blend of ball-in-hand rugby and judicious kicking kept the French defence guessing.

The backline selections, with Damian Willemse at 10, Kurt-Lee