South Africa Memories: Jason Robinson at the 2003 World Cup

We had hammered the South Africans 53-3 the year before at Twickenham, but we knew this game would be different.
To play South Africa is always tough and, for me, they’re the most physical side in the world. I first played against them in 2001 and met them many more times over the years and it was never less than an intense battle from start to finish.
We knew in 2003 that this would be our biggest hurdle in the pool stage. You know as a team that everybody’s got to be on their game and you never expect to beat South Africa by a high score, even though it had happened before. You need to make the most of every opportunity you’ve got because, believe me, they are few and far between.
The stadium was buzzing that night and while we’d beaten Georgia comfortably there the week before, we knew in the back of our minds that this was the big one. Having beaten New Zealand and Australia previous to that tournament we were confident as a squad, but we knew that to get another big Southern Hemisphere scalp so early in the tournament would be a huge boost and another milestone along the way to our eventual goal.
Will Greenwood had a few issues going on back home and his wife had been having a few difficulties with her pregnancy. It was a tough time for him and as players you’re obviously very aware of that and try to support him. But he was fantastic that day and it showed what he was all about. The mental strength he showed to play in that match before flying home to be with his wife was absolutely immense. Hats off to him for that.
The match itself was tight and intense. It was 6-6 at half-time but their kicker, Louis Koen, was having an off-day with the boot and we knew if we could keep the pressure on them, Jonny Wilkinson would keep the scoreboard ticking over for us.
That’s exactly how it panned out and midway through the second half we were leading 12-6.
Then came Greenwood’s big moment when Lewis Moody did what he did best by charging down a clearance and Will was on hand to collect the ball and score. There was massive relief and the try gave us a bit of much-needed breathing space, although deep down we always had that inner belief we would win.
Jonny added two more drop- goals and the rest, as they say, was history. It was a great feeling to win 25-6 in front of so many England fans. It wasn’t the only tough game we had during that World Cup. There were hard ones to come against Samoa, Wales, France and Australia. But had we lost that match against South Africa, who knows what would have happened? Psychologically, it gave us a huge boost and that showed as we went further into the tournament and went on to win it.
Playing South Africa is a massive challenge and the current players will be feeling the same as we did nine years ago. It’s very tough to take them on, but at the same time that challenge can unite a group. It tests you as a player but that’s what you want – to face the best and challenge them. You’d like to think the current guys will use it as a similar springboard.