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Autumn Internationals | Autumn Internationals
Nov 17, 2013 at 3pm UK
 
Scotland
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South Africa

Bakkies Botha wary of "phenomenal" Scotland

South Africa lock Bakkies Botha calls Scotland a "phenomenal side" ahead of the Springboks' match against them on Sunday.

South Africa lock Bakkies Botha has described Scotland as a "phenomenal" team ahead of Sunday's Murrayfield meeting between the two sides.

Botha's form for club side Toulon has earned him a recall into the Springboks' set-up having spent more than two years in the international wilderness.

The 34-year-old pointed to a number of factors, including his last match against Scotland, their victory over Japan last week and the influx of Scottish players into French rugby, as evidence that Sunday's match would be a major test for his side.

"The Scottish team ended third in the Six Nations last year and they are a phenomenal side. Now recently a lot of Scottish players are playing in the French league as well, especially in the lock position like Richie Gray, so that makes them a good side as well," Botha is quoted as saying by PA.

"They showed against the Japanese side that they are a team that plays for 85 minutes. I remember the Test match when I was last involved with the Springboks, the Scottish are very physical at the breakdowns and definitely, when their tails are up, it's a difficult side to keep with on the day.

"We are focusing on what we can improve as a team, taking all the positives out of Wales and working hard on the negatives. It doesn't matter which Test match it is, it's always a tough one and it's not going to be any easier this weekend playing against the Scottish team."

South Africa began their November series with a hard-fought win over Wales at the Millennium Stadium last weekend.

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