Every time someone in the Springbok management team is asked about 2016 at a press conference they come up with one-word answers or just an irritable smile and a long pause.
"That book is closed," has been coach Allister Coetzee's answer to almost every question relating to last year, while his comrades in the coaching staff have used the same party line.
Eight defeats from 12 matches in 2016 still hurts and remains a sensitive topic for the Bok coaching staff. That said, Coetzee and his team have managed to steady the ship to some degree with two successive victories over France, to clinch a much-needed series win on home soil.
But while 2016 is a "closed book", the Bok management team say they have actually taken a lot of lessons from it. Of course, it would have been silly if they didn't take stock of what they did wrong last year.
One of the Boks' biggest problems was their physicality in the collisions, especially at the breakdown and on defence. The Springboks were a bit of a soft touch -- uncharacteristically so -- and couldn't even match the intensity of teams such as Italy.
However, in the first two Tests of 2017 they upped their intensity in a big way, especially in those key areas of the game. The way they defended in Durban -- where they kept the French out with some dogged defending in the second half -- showed that there is definitely a new spirit in the side.
"A lot of good came out of last year in the sense that no lesson is a bad lesson. Last year's lessons were priceless and we have taken those lessons on board," forwards coach Matthew Proudfoot said.
"If we think about where we are now, we've created an environment where players can grow and thrive. We've come a long way from where we were last year.
"I just get to wear this [the Springbok emblem] on my tracksuit. The players get to wear the jersey and they know what it represents. You can see how much it means to them."
The scrum has been a hotly contested area in the first two Tests, with both teams striving to get the upper hand. It hasn't been pretty though, with lots of resets and many penalties for both South Africa and France.
Proudfoot, though, has been happy with his props' performances during the series so far. This is a good platform from which to work from for the Bok front row ahead of bigger challenges later this year in the Rugby Championship.
"Our philosophy is that we want to dominate up front. I know France are the same. It's been a big challenge for us against the best scrum in the Six Nations and I'm proud of the way the players have responded," Proudfoot, a former Scotland prop said.
"When you have two monster packs like that engaging, there are going to be collapses. It's not going to be squeaky clean.
"Props are intelligent okes. They need to make split-second decisions before those big collisions. When I look back at the decisions they've made at the scrums and collisions in the first two Tests, I am very proud."