Saturday 17 September 2016 14:15, UK
South Africa coach Allister Coetzee could only cast a wistful eye at his All Blacks counterpart Steve Hansen on Saturday after a striking demonstration of the way their respective teams have developed since last year's World Cup.
Coetzee's side were beaten 41-13 by the All Blacks in Christchurch as the world champions ran in four tries in 20 second-half minutes.
Both teams lost several veteran players after New Zealand lifted the World Cup in England, with Coetzee also having to make do without players like Handre Pollard and Pat Lambie, who are battling long-term injuries.
Yet while the Springboks have struggled - Saturday's loss was their fourth out of seven games this season - Hansen has virtually not lost a step since six veteran All Blacks ended their international careers last October.
He is now reaping the rewards of having spent the previous four years bringing in new faces in preparation for the post-World Cup period.
"If you look at how seamlessly (captain) Kieran Read has taken to his role, the senior core of the team is still functioning well, and also the experience they've got," highlighted Coetzee.
"Full credit to New Zealand, their systems are working well. The transition from World Cup-winning team to the next has been very, very good, unlike in our case."
One of Coetzee's biggest problems is in his inside backs, with Pollard (knee) and Lambie (concussion) both injured it has left Elton Jantjies to steer the Springboks around the field.
The Lions fly-half has found it challenging to translate his sensational Super Rugby form into the Test arena.
Both Jantjies and scrum half Faf de Klerk are also inexperienced, having accumulated 16 caps between in contrast with the 100 that Aaron Smith and Beauden Barrett boast.
Five players on Coetzee's bench had less than five caps each and the head coach admitted that such a level of inexperience can be costly.
"Maybe some players are not ready for this level yet," said the 53-year-old. "We scored a great try and just after the kick-off we let New Zealand in.
"Those are soft moments. They capitalised on that. That's the difference between the two teams at this point in time.
"They know when to play, where to play, without making mistakes."
