Ken Borland

The Springboks have not beaten the Wallabies in Australia since 2013 – a five-game streak – and captain Siya Kolisi said on Saturday that his team are fully focused on rectifying that anomaly when they meet the two-time world champions in a Rugby Championship Test on the Gold Coast on Sunday.

South Africa have beaten Australia in all seven matches back on home turf dating back to 2011, so it is just getting the better of them overseas that is the problem. Kolisi could not put his finger on why that is the case, but he left no doubt as to the current world champions’ desire to claim victory on Sunday.

“You have to give credit to the Wallabies, they don’t lose a lot in Australia, against most teams, especially in Queensland. I don’t know what they do to have that record, but we are 100% focused on what we have to do. Hopefully we will do better than we did in our last game here [the Springboks lost 18-23 in Brisbane in 2018]. This is an important match for us because our record is not good when it comes to winning in Australia.

“The most important thing is for us to stick to our process, we haven’t played in three weeks so we have to make sure we are focused. We take it game-by-game, make sure we pitch up every day and we have to give Australia the respect they deserve. It’s going to be our plan against their plan, bringing that intensity, who tackles the most and who carries the ball the most,” Kolisi said.

As much as the Wallabies will be trying to speed the game up and use their dangerous backline to crack open the Springbok defence, South Africa will also be wanting good, quick ball to make sure their hefty carriers are serviced well.

“Quick ball is important for any team and if we don’t get it then it’s going to be a long day for us,” attack coach Mzwandile Stick said on Saturday. “We want to make sure that we give our big forwards front-foot ball. It’s not only Michael Hooper who slows the ball down, the Wallabies have a lot of players who apply pressure at the breakdown and we know it’s going to be a massive battle, we need to be clinical there so our No.9 is able to give quick service.

“Australia rely on quick ball too, but they are world-class and on a good day they can really punish you. Samu Kerevi is back, they have wings like Marika Koriobete who have lots of pace, and we have to make sure we don’t give Quade Cooper lots of time and space to make decisions. So we have to respect them, make sure we pitch up and play according to our strengths,” Stick said.

The Lions’ adventure in the 2021 Currie Cup is almost certainly going to come to an end at the weekend after they were beaten 35-13 by Western Province at Newlands on Wednesday night.

The defeat leaves the Lions last in the log, four points off fourth place and with just one match remaining, against the second-placed Sharks. The teams above them on the log all have two games left to play.

Wet and blustery conditions in Cape Town made it difficult for either side to play with too much ambition, but both teams were guilty of several lapses on concentration that led to unforced errors.

Western Province led 16-13 at halftime and then played with the wind at their backs in the second half, but as befits a side struggling to make the semi-finals, they were never able to stamp control on the game, due to soft mistakes, especially when it came to receiving the restarts.

Wide-ranging eighthman Evan Roos scored two tries in the second half to settle the outcome in favour of Western Province.

Nelspruit was the place to be for adventurous rugby on Wednesday as the Bulls saw off the Pumas 33-26 in a thrilling game.

It was transparent in the first quarter that the Pumas were going to put up stiff resistance against the defending champons as they played with attacking ambition and tore into the breakdowns, leading 10-0 after the first quarter.

The Bulls fought back to 14-16 at halftime, but it almost seemed like it was not going to be their day as they started the second half hard on attack, only for wing Stravino Jacobs to let the ball slip through his hands with a one-on-one seven metres from the Pumas line, allowing opposite number Sebastian de Klerk to sprint away for a 90-metre try. The 14-point swing saw the Pumas leading 23-14.

The Pumas were strong on passion, efficiency and positivity, but they were as thin as chiffon in the set-pieces and that is what ultimately cost them the game. Outstanding Bulls tighthead Mornay Smith earned penalties at the scrum that relieved the pressure for the Bulls and led to a penalty try in the 66^th minute to level the scores at 26-26. He also won the turnover that led to substitute hooker Jan-Hendrik Wessels’ rolling maul try six minutes earlier, and Smith then scored the matchwinning try with eight minutes remaining.

The Bulls also won some crucial lineouts against the throw, mostly through Janko Swanepoel.

*In Bloemfontein, the Free State Cheetahs ensured they are still hanging on tenaciously to some hope of making the semifinals as they came from 32-19 down heading into the final quarter to beat Griquas 33-32 with a crucial bonus point.

Prop Conraad van Vuuren, toeing ahead a loose ball and diving on it, and flank Junior Pokomela scored the crucial last two tries for the Cheetahs, with Ruan Pienaar, who shifted to flyhalf, kicking two clutch conversions for the win.

The Springboks are fielding a much-changed line-up to open their Rugby Championship campaign against Argentina at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on Saturday. The Pumas will be formidable opponents with all their foreign-based players in tow and looking to build on their brilliant tournament last year when their only loss came to the All Blacks, who they had beaten in their first meeting.

So the Springboks are going to have to be on top of their games to beat Argentina. Here are four players coming into the starting team who they will be relying on to do the business on Saturday.

Francois Steyn – The veteran inside centre steps into the No.12 jersey in which Damian de Allende was one of the integral parts of South Africa’s victory over the British and Irish Lions. Steyn will undoubtedly bring a similarly no-nonsense approach to this channel. His booming boot will also be an asset, especially with the new 50/22 trial law in place.

Damian Willemse – The 23-year-old is well-known for his breadth of skills and now he will be starting at fullback, where he has played most of his recent rugby. A dazzling attacking player, whether the Springboks will be able to play with much width remains to be seen. Willemse’s reading of the game and positional play will be more important, and he will be looking to take a leaf out of Willie le Roux’s book in terms of work-rate and his covering play.

Elton Jantjies – The series against the British and Irish Lions was often a laborious affair with the tourists trying to take on the Springboks at their own game, with defences and kicking games predominating. But the Rugby Championship is a Southern Hemisphere competition and has a tradition of more positive rugby being played. Jantjies is just the sort of flyhalf who could prosper. He has grown up playing a fast-paced, expansive game with the local Lions and has the ability to spark the backline. His sharp kicking game can also be a factor.

Kwagga Smith – Given Argentina’s fondness for groping around in the rucks, Smith, as the quickest of the loose forwards, is going to have a key role to play in protecting South Africa’s ball at the breakdowns. The Pumas are past-masters at slowing down and disrupting possession, so if Smith can help the Springboks get quick ball then he might also be able to play more of a hand in attack, where his Sevens skills can obviously come to the fore.

Louis Oosthuizen joined the club when it came to South African golfers beaten into second place by Phil Mickelson at a Major championship when the American became the oldest ever golfer to win one of the sport’s four main tournaments with his two-stroke victory in the PGA Championship overnight at Kiawah Island’s Ocean Course.

If it wasn’t bad enough having Tiger Woods hogging most of the Majors in the 2000s, winning 12 of them including beating Ernie Els into second place in both the U.S. Open and the Open Championship in 2000, and winning the 2002 Masters by three strokes over Retief Goosen, Mickelson then beat Els by one stroke in the 2004 Masters and Tim Clark by two strokes at Augusta in 2006.

Oosthuizen was just marginally off his game in the final round of the PGA Championship, while his putter remained his most unresponsive club as he posted a one-over-par 73 in the final round to finish tied-second with American multiple Major winner Brooks Koepka. They each earned $1.05 million dollars.

While Mickelson is celebrating his own place in the annals of history as the oldest ever Major winner, Oosthuizen will be mulling over his fifth runners-up finish in the big four tournaments, having claimed the title in the 2010 Open Championship. But the 38-year-old can take some heart from the fact that Mickelson, who turns 51 on June 16, has finished second 11 times in Majors. But the left-hander has also won six Majors – the PGA twice, the Masters three times and the Open Championship once.

“I feel like I’m playing my heart out to get a second major, and I do know I have the game to do it. This was close. My game wasn’t great on the weekend, but it was better today than yesterday. So I just need to work harder on it to get myself in contention again,” Oosthuizen said after his round.

What shaped up as being a famous day in South African golf history, with three golfers in the top six going into the final round, ended as a disappointment, with only Oosthuizen challenging before once again finishing second-best.

Christiaan Bezuidenhout shot a 77 to slip into a tie for 30^th, while Branden Grace was in a tie for 38^th a shot back after a 78.

Danie van Tonder, in his debut Major appearance, shot 73 in the final round to finish tied-44^th, one shot ahead of Rory McIlroy.

Dean Burmester finished tied-59^th and Garrick Higgo, also on Major debut, shot an excellent 69 in the final round to climb to a tie for 64^th.