Ken Borland

An All Blacks side whose skills let them down in a Test match is certainly not the norm, and flyhalf Richie Mounga admitted on Monday that it was Springbok pressure that led to New Zealand’s error-strewn display in a 26-10 defeat at the Mbombela Stadium at the weekend.

South Africa produced an epic defensive display: their rush off the line, their scrambling and physical dominance of the gain-line; and their aerial mastery and an outstanding performance by the pack in the set-pieces were all too much for the All Blacks as the Springboks recorded their biggest winning margin over their greatest rivals since their 17-0 win in Durban in 1928.

“It was obviously very disappointing for us but it confirmed how good this South African team is,” Mounga said at their Sandton hotel on Monday. “They just build so much pressure.

“With their set-piece, coming round the corner and getting penalties, it just becomes an ongoing cycle that is really difficult to get out of. We’ll have to talk about how to counter that.

“It was just a matter of skill errors. You don’t have to be in the right frame of mind to catch the ball, to do your job or do the basics right. But not doing those put is in that cycle.

“It’s called a Test match for a reason because it will test your skill. It was tough to get around them, their high line put us under big pressure. The things we spoke about in order to combat that, we didn’t do well at all,” Mounga, who is likely to start at flyhalf on Saturday at Ellis Park because Beauden Barrett was injured in his collision with Kurt-Lee Arendse, said.

The classy Crusaders star said the All Blacks are trying to shut out all the outside noise, but he understands why their fans are up in arms.

“We know our fans can get frustrated with results and that is very fair, and it’s fair for them to care,” Mounga said. “We know that our performance was not good enough for All Blacks standard.

“But we don’t care what the fans think, I don’t really care what people think if they’re not in our squad. We are so close, but close is not good enough at this level.

“The Springboks’ game-plan is simple – they build numerous consecutive positive plays and that puts you under pressure. It takes just simple execution to change that.

“The most basic skills we couldn’t execute, but if we can fix that then we can start to put them under pressure. At the moment we’re frustrated because we’re making the same errors,” Mounga said.

For a second week in a row, the Springboks produced a messy, error-strewn performance as Australia showed top-class finishing to beat them 30-17 in their Rugby Championship Test in Brisbane on Saturday.

A clinical Wallabies side did not need to create a whole lot as they were gifted a bonus point through a slew of basics mistakes by the Springboks, who showed a dismal lack of nous and accuracy at the breakdown. A ruthless Australian backline capitalised on ample turnover ball with centre Len Ikitau and wing Marika Koroibete both scoring twice.

They were helped by a dreadfully scrappy defensive effort by the visitors, with a third of their tackles missed.

South Africa made a terrible start to the game as scrumhalf Faf de Klerk was yellow-carded for a stupid act of ill-discipline, playing his opposite number at a ruck on his 22-metre line. Ikitau burst through two soft tackles to score the opening try after the penalty was kicked to touch, but more importantly, Australia had been gifted momentum and a firm grip on the match from early in the piece.

Ikitau scored again just before De Klerk returned, hooker Folau Fainga’a’s strong charge giving them front-foot ball and a killer inside pass from fullback Tom Banks to Koroibete providing the centre with the space needed for the try.

The Springboks were already chasing the game after a torrid first quarter, trailing 3-12. They managed to keep a finger-hold on the game though as flyhalf Handre Pollard nailed all his shots at goal for a 12-15 deficit at halftime.

Forty minutes can be a long time in rugby and De Klerk began the second half by making up for his blunder in the first half, injecting immediate energy with a blindside break and then putting a lovely grubber through for centre Lukhanyo Am to score.

South Africa had snatched a 17-15 lead and there was renewed hope.

But Springbok fans have spent a lifetime waiting for their team to really dominate the Wallabies on their home turf, and it was the home side who thoroughly dominated the rest of the match.

The lead lasted just eight minutes as the Wallabies won territory thanks to a good kick by scrumhalf Nic White and then Quade Cooper slotted a penalty for offsides (18-17).

The basic skills of passing and handling seemingly deserted the Springboks after the hour mark, a series of errors culminating in replacement scrumhalf Tate McDermott sniping from a scrum, Australia then went blind and a sublime offload by tighthead prop Taniela Tupou put Koroibete away for the try.

With 12 minutes remaining, another Brisbane battering was sealed as more woeful breakdown work by the Springboks gifted a turnover, replacement flank Pete Samu burst clear and set up an easy run-in for Koroibete’s second try.

The Springboks spent the last 10 minutes battering away in Wallabies territory but had nothing to show for it as they regularly turned possession over. It is hard to remember when last South Africa were so poor at usual strengths like the breakdowns and defence.

Scorers

Australia: Tries – Len Ikitau (2), Marika Koroibete (2). Conversions – Quade Cooper (2). Penalties – Cooper (2);.

South Africa: Try – Lukhanyo Am. Penalties – Handre Pollard (4).

Judging by their error-strewn performance in beating the Free State Cheetahs 19-13 at Kings Park on Friday night, the Sharks will be fortunate to lick the rim of the Super Rugby Unlocked trophy let alone drink from the cup.

There victory had much to do with how dire the Cheetahs also were, and the boot of flyhalf Curwin Bosch, who slotted all five of his kicks at goal and also provided the pinpoint crosskick for the matchwinning try by replacement wing Madosh Tambwe.

While the Cheetahs at least had the excuse of not having played for a couple of weeks, the Men in Black will be very disappointed with their performance and relieved to have won. Never mind the fancy stuff, the Sharks battled with the basics of scrumming and passing, which meant their game was seriously lacking in continuity.

The Sharks were not direct enough and also failed to build an innings. There was also some odd decision-making as they turned down four shots at goal to kick for the corner, messed up those chances, but then finally went for poles in the 33^rd minute, Bosch putting them 3-0 up.

Then, with the Cheetahs missing a lock thanks to Carl Wegner’s yellow card, they went for goal again after the halftime hooter, Bosch succeeding from 45 metres. But with the opposition missing a tight forward, it might have been the right time to try and set the maul.

The Sharks’ kicking game has long been their strength, and Bosch’s towering up-and-unders did cause serious problems for the Cheetahs. Centre Jeremy Ward did cross the line in the 52^nd minute, but the TMO ruled that fullback Manie Libbok had interfered illegally with centre Chris Smit’s attempt to catch the ball, so the try was disallowed. It was typical of the ill-discipline that plagued the Sharks on Friday night.

The Sharks scrum, especially without Thomas du Toit at tighthead, has been cause for concern and the Cheetahs definitely had the edge in that set-piece. Another solid scrum in the 71^st minute put them on the front foot, from where flyhalf Tian Schoeman sent wing William Small-Smith slicing through to score the opening try. Replays showed the pass was forward, however, but it’s not the first time the use of the TMO has been ignored.

Fortunately it did not cost the Sharks the match though, as Free State wing Rosko Specman was yellow-carded for a deliberate knock-on three minutes later. After kicking into the corner, Bosch then produced the field kick that overturned the 13-9 deficit, before adding a phenomenal 59-mtre penalty to seal the win.

Scorers

Sharks: Try – Madosh Tambwe. Conversion – Curwin Bosch. Penalties –Bosch (4).

Free State Cheetahs: Try – William Small-Smith. Conversion – Tian Schoeman. Penalty – Schoeman (2).

So was the Sharks/Stormers match an intense, gripping local derby between two powerful sides or an error-strewn bore-fest that should alarm all those concerned with the health of South African rugby?

You will find supporters for either option, and an array of shades in between, with the 12-6 victory to the Sharks proving highly entertaining for those purists who have an appreciation for Test rugby.

You probably won’t find a more brutal, physical game of rugby in this year’s competition, with the Stormers’ defence at its famous best and the Sharks not giving an inch either.

But while both defences were rock-solid and the two packs thundered into each other from close range, the two coaches, John Plumtree and Allister Coetzee, may want to consider whether they ever tried to move their points of attack away from the edges of the ruck.

Sure, the ball may have been slippery due to the humidity and the high stakes may have forced them both to play the percentages, but the overall impression was that the skills of the players (and we know they have them) were being stifled.

Never mind kicking for position, the boot was also over-used in attacking situations and, with the two sides’ similar game plans cancelling each other out, all innovation and finer skill was choked out of the contest.

The Sharks’ triumph was built on the supremacy of their scrum. Stormers fans will perhaps complain that referee Jonathan Kaplan was hard on them with a string of penalties for hinging (shoulders below the hips), but Tendai Mtawarira and Jannie du Plessis, on the auspicious occasion of his 100^th SuperRugby game, were clearly on top of their younger opponents in the Stormers’ front row.

With the result of the match hinging on just two penalties, those scrum infringements were crucial, allowing the Sharks to kick the Stormers back into their own territory.

“The Stormers hit you so hard that you can go away from your plan and then you end up on the back foot. So we just had to be patient, everything was about pressure out there and it came down to who could cope with it,” Plumtree said after the game.

If you like your rugby simple and bloody then the Loftus Versfeld clash between the Bulls and the Western Force also had much to offer.

The Bulls are famous for not playing with any airs or graces and the Force, written off by most after their stunning upset at the hands of the Southern Kings, took the hosts on at their own game and were actually better at it for long periods.

In the rarefied atmosphere of Loftus Versfeld, visitors need a kicker who can match the Bulls’ aerial bombardment and the Force had the big boot of Sias Ebersohn, a refugee from the Cheetahs.

The Force led 26-19 after the hour mark but sadly could not even hold on to gain a losing bonus point as the Bulls scored twice in the last 10 minutes.

The Bulls are a schizophrenic side at times, showing some superb attacking skills in setting up tries for Morné Steyn, in the second minute, and the impressive debutant wing, Sampie Mastriet, as well as a disallowed try by Bjorn Basson. But then for long periods they would revert back to 10-man rugby, with the boot dominating.

But in the 52^nd minute, the Bulls were sorry they didn’t take a kick at goal from a penalty right in front, opting to set up the lineout instead. But the Force defended superbly, stopping the rolling maul and then getting off their line quickly to force a turnover.

Moments later, lock Toby Lynn was burrowing over the tryline and leaving the Loftus crowd sadly contemplating defeat, conned into believing the Force were also-rans, despite the fact that they had won three of their six previous encounters with the Bulls.

Bulls coach Frans Ludeke confided to the media afterwards that he felt the first-half display had been their worst performance in five years, but he would also have been thrilled by the way his team pulled themselves together in the last 15 minutes and returned to their strengths.

Their tightly-knit rolling maul earned another impressive debutant, replacement flank Jean Cook, a try, and prop Werner Kruger then scored in the shadow of the poles in the final movement of the game.

“The way we came back in the second half, the way players adjusted on the field, that was a special effort from the team,” Ludeke said.

“Last year against the Blues we were in exactly the same situation, we couldn’t get out of that grip and tonight we got back. All credit to the captain [Pierre Spies] for the way he got us back to things that are working for us, the maul started working, we managed the high ball, we forced some turnovers and we converted pressure into points,” he added.

Converting pressure into points is exactly what the Cheetahs failed to do in the first half of their match against the Chiefs in Hamilton as flyhalf Johan Goosen continued to struggle.

He missed three penalties in the first half as the Cheetahs dominated territory and possession, and then had a clearance kick charged down early in the second half as the Chiefs extended their 10-3 half-time lead to 17-3.

All Blacks flyhalf-in-waiting Aaron Cruden then took over as he set up brilliant tries by Asaeli Tikoirotuma and Gareth Anscombe to ensure the defending champions notched a convincing bonus-point victory.

A lot has been said about how the Cheetahs are such a wonderful attacking side, but merely throwing the ball from side to side does not constitute great running rugby. Just throwing the ball wide is as one-dimensional as the worst fare dished up by the Stormers, Sharks and Bulls over the weekend and it was comfortably handled by the Chiefs.

The home side used their forwards on attack to suck in the defence, before going wide and the Cheetahs have to learn to earn the right to throw the ball around.

It’s all very well just hurling the ball out wide, but defences are cracked by the sort of skills Cruden and Anscombe showed in that superb try: changes of direction, great hands, scissors-movements and different running lines.

There was no sign of that sort of skill from the South African teams in action this weekend, which meant the wins of the Sharks and Bulls were greeted with no great fanfare.

Nobody is writing them – or even the Stormers – off at this early stage, but there is no doubt there is plenty of work to do for Messrs Plumtree, Ludeke and Coetzee.

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