Ken Borland

Argentina bore the brunt of the Springbok game-plan at close to its clinical best at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on Saturday, as South Africa comfortably dispatched them 29-10 in their second Rugby Championship Test.

The Springboks led 15-3 at halftime thanks to flyhalf Handre Pollard’s faultless goalkicking that saw him convert five penalties. With Argentina softened up for the kill in the second half, South Africa duly hammered home their advantage with two tries.

The home side exerted consistent pressure on the Pumas, their maul being particularly effective, and the visitors’ discipline was terrible under the strain as they conceded 13 penalties in the first half alone. Five of those were within the range of Pollard, who made sure Argentina were suitably punished.

The Springboks did some good things on attack, but their efforts were often stymied by the opposition’s negative tactics that killed the momentum. It took until the 32^nd minute for referee Karl Dickson, who was overall accomplished with the whistle, to hand out a yellow card, eighthman Rodrigo Bruni being temporarily sent off after being offsdes and then blatantly slowing down the ball on the ground.

The Springboks opened the scoring in the second half with a superb try. They were fortunate to win the lineout, but wing Cheslin Kolbe had been at the front of the set-piece and it was the wing who took the inside pass and made the initial break. There were also good carries by scrumhalf Cobus Reinach and centre Damian de Allende, before fullback Willie le Roux popped up in the backline to keep the move going and then sprinted around to make the final pass to wing Makazole Mapimpi to score the try.

Six minutes later, Pollard produced an excellent penalty kick into the corner, back ball was won at the lineout, a powerful maul rumbled forward and impressive hooker Malcolm Marx dotted down for the try.

The Springboks were 29-3 up going into the final quarter and they will be disappointed that they did not score again, failing to get the bonus point. They tried their best after the final whistle to get the third try, but instead conceded penalties and it was Argentina who had the final say as flank Pablo Matera bashed and then spun over the line to score, after replacement lock Marco Kremer’s strong carry had been stopped short.

One could pardon the Springboks for some of their scrappiness as numerous changes in personnel were made, outstanding lock Lood de Jager, the man of the match, came off with cramp and Bongi Mbonambi, coming on for Marx, struggled with his lineout throwing. Jaden Hendrikse, replacing Reinach, also had to leave the field after twisting an ankle when he was tackled, forcing Kolbe to play scrumhalf and depriving the home side of attacking fluency.

Scorers

South Africa: Tries – Makazole Mapimpi, Malcolm Marx. Conversions – Handre Pollard (2). Penalties – Pollard (5).

Argentina: Try – Pablo Matera. Conversion – Nicolas Sanchez. Penalty – Domingo Miotti.

The counter-attacking pace of the Sharks team proved to be their pivotal weapon as wing Thaakir Abrahams scored a hat-trick, fullback Anthony Volmink a brace and both their scrumhalves caused huge problems as they demolished the rudderless Lions 56-14 in their Currie Cup match at Ellis Park on Saturday.

It took the Lions an hour to get on the scoreboard, by which time the Sharks had already gathered the try-scoring bonus point and a 35-0 lead. Flank Emmanuel Tshituka forcing his way over from close range came after the Lions had wasted half-a-dozen other opportunities five metres from the tryline. Their ill-discipline and lack of technique at the breakdown cost them dearly.

The Sharks themselves took 19 minutes to post their first points, mostly because they were buckled in the first three scrums by the Lions. But the home team failed to turn the attacking chances provided by those penalties into any points.

Instead, it was the Sharks who grabbed the first try, scrumhalf Grant Williams making the first of many breaks and centre Marius Louw then running a fine angle against the grain to score. It was one-way traffic thereafter.

Abrahams cruised over for his first try in the 23^rd minute after a phenomenal back-flip pass across the field by flyhalf Lionel Cronje, and eighthman Phepsi Buthelezi and Volmink dotted down too as the Sharks grabbed the bonus point before halftime.

Five minutes into the second half, after the Lions maul had won a couple of penalties, Tshituka was ruled to have been short of the tryline, which Gauteng supporters may well have a bit of a tiff with the official about, especially since the Sharks went from their own line all the way to score on the same phase. Louw grabbed the ball at the ruck and broke straight downfield, loose forwards Jeandre Labuschagne and Buthelezi supporting the breakaway before Volmink then fed Abrahams, who beat the defence with a beautiful inside-and-out to score his second try.

Tshituka was eventually the next player to score, but the Sharks continued to fill their boots as replacement scrumhalf Sanele Nohamba showed great pace too to score from 45 metres out and Abrahams and Volmink both scored again to complete the rout.

The Lions could use the fatigue caused by playing five matches in 15 days as an excuse for their failure to cope with the tempo of the game, but in terms of skills and technique, they look ill-equipped to handle their next venture, which will be the daunting United Rugby Championship in Europe.

Scorers
Sharks: Tries – Marius Louw, Thaakir Abrahams (3), Phepsi Buthelezi, Anthony Volmink (2), Sanele Nohamba. Conversions – Lionel Cronje (5), Boeta Chamberlain (3).
Lions: Tries – Emmanuel Tshituka, Jaco Visagie. Conversions – Jordan Hendrikse (2).

Kagiso Rabada is hardly a veteran of the cricket scene at just 26 years old, but he has been around for a while and, with an extremely wise and mature head on his shoulders, he is already finding ways to give back to the young pups rising not only in his chosen sport but in all spheres of athletic and artistic endeavour.
Rabada will lanch his own talent management agency on Saturday – KGR Sports and Entertainment, a combined effort with Ashley Kotzin, the CEO of ForwardZone, a 22-year-old company also in the field of talent management in the sports and arts.
“KGR is all about collaborations and networks, both locally and globally. With Ashley, who has more than 20 years experience in this field, we have access to lots of networks and it’s about building and leveraging those. Managing sports people is about much more than just signing a contract, it’s about leveraging the off-the-field opportunities as much as possible.
“We want to combine the on-field and off-field product and make it great for any athlete or artist. A lot of pieces need to come together for that and it has always been an interest of mine to be involved in the corporate space, this is something I’ve always wanted to explore. I think I can do it from a different perspective,” Rabada told Saturday Citizen on Friday.
Rabada not only has the pace and skill to stun opposition batsmen but also the business nous to impress someone with the expertise of Kotzin.
“What is true of KG as a person – and as a brand – is that he is multi-dimensional, multi-talented and so much more than just an on-field hero. He is also a leader and creator off of it. We are excited about being a part of all of the ways in which KG expresses himself – as an athlete, as a leader, as a creative, as a savvy businessman and community builder.
“His competitive edge, drive to succeed and his profile in the international sports arena are key elements to the growth and success of KGR. We are proud to have KG as a partner in this business, and look forward to walking a special journey with him. The confident and competitive athlete you see on the field is the same in business,” Kotzin said.

The Currie Cup has now reached the stage when the strength of the gizzards of the six remaining teams in contention will be tested and there are crunch games being staged in Nelspruit on Saturday and Kimberley on Sunday.
The Free State Cheetahs visit the Pumas on Saturday for a midday game that they know they have to win if they are to keep their faltering challenge for a semifinal spot alive. On Sunday afternoon Griquas host Western Province and the winners of that clash will have a good chance of finishing third on the log.
Meanwhile, at Ellis Park on Saturday afternoon, it is the Lions, who have bowed out of the running, who will want to show their intestinal fortitude by winning their last game and giving themselves a chance of not finishing last on the log when they take on the Sharks.
The visitors have much to play for themselves as they still need to nail down home-ground advantage for the semifinals, never mind the final, and coach Sean Everitt is expecting the Lions to make it very tough for them.
“It’s a very important game as far as the log is concerned, we have the opportuity to catch the Bulls at the top if they slip up against the Cheetahs next weekend, and the next thing for us is a home semifinal. But even then, with Western Prvince getting five points in their last game, it’s vital we get a full house of points against the Lions.
“But the Lions are going to be really desperate because they want to rise from the bottom of the log. No-one can fault their effort this season, just a few things have gone wrong for them and they’ve been punished for it. They will give it their all and they are a dangerous team who score a lot of points,” Everitt said.
The one improvement Everitt knows the Sharks have to show is in their discipline and he was cross about how many penalties they conceded in struggling to beat a 14-man Cheetahs side last weekend.
“We have to get right what we got wrong against the Cheetahs, which was giving away far too many penalties. It meant we weren’t able to get into our game. It’s an old Rainbow Cup problem that has resurfaced. Against a team like the Lions who use their opportunities, we need to keep them out and we can’t be giving them penalties otherwise they will score,” Everitt said.