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Morné van den Berg is not interested in what came before, and he is certainly not thinking about what comes next. The Lions scrumhalf landed in Turin with the Springboks on Monday and his mind was already locked onto Saturday's World Nations Championship clash against Italy at the Allianz Stadium — nothing more, nothing less.
Van den Berg Focused on Italy Test
"There's a new picture, a new team, a new week," Van den Berg said in a media call from Turin on Tuesday. "There's big work this weekend; we must make sure we play well." That is Krappie in a sentence. No celebration of recent form, no projection into what a good result might mean for the broader campaign. Just the next job.
That mindset is exactly what the Boks need from their number nines right now, because the competition at scrumhalf is as fierce as anywhere in the squad. Van den Berg — capped ten times for South Africa — is under constant pressure from fellow tourists Cobus Reinach and Grant Williams, two players who have done nothing wrong. Van den Berg does not flinch from that reality. "The nines in South Africa are playing unbelievable rugby," he said. "It can only make us better and I'm grateful for it." That is a mature read from a man who has earned his place and knows he has to keep earning it.
Scrumhalf Competition Fierce in Squad
The question of transitioning from club to Test rugby mid-tour did not trouble him either. The Springboks only touched down in Italy on Monday, leaving minimal time to shift gears, but Van den Berg was measured about it. "I won't say it's easy, but everyone is in a similar position. The systems at the club and the systems here are close enough that we're able to dig into how we want to play and get alignment. So it's not easy, but it's very doable."