South Africa’s (SA) Junior Springboks captain Riley Norton says there is no need for added motivation when they face New Zealand, even after wrapping up the Under-20 Rugby Championship title with a game to spare on Sunday.

Results elsewhere worked in SA’s favour, with New Zealand losing to Argentina earlier in the day, while the hosts powered to a commanding 56-17 win over Australia to stay unbeaten. That outcome confirmed the Junior Boks as champions with an unassailable lead at the top of the standings heading into the final round.

They now meet New Zealand in their last fixture on Saturday, May 9, in what may be a dead rubber on paper, but Norton says the rivalry ensures intensity will remain high.

“I think, obviously, I actually didn’t know that we had won it, but I think you naturally will be up for a game against New Zealand. I think it’s one of our biggest rivalries. We have a lot of respect for them. And I think if we take our foot off the pedal now, that’s when we can come and bite you. So we know very well and truly that we can’t take our foot off the gas. We can even go even harder. We can push ourselves, and we can finish off this tournament with a lot of pride. Obviously, playing in front of our fans, playing at home, people have come out today and hopefully next week, Saturday, to come and watch us. And we don’t want to disappoint them. And I think we also don’t want to disappoint ourselves. So there’s a lot of motivation coming out. I don’t think that will be a factor at all. I think we want to finish as best as we can and just carry on improving,” says Norton.

–SABCSport–