Ken Borland

New Zealand had too much counter-attacking firepower for South Africa as they beat them 32-16 in their Rugby Championship Test at Soccer City in Soweto on Saturday.

There were promising signs in the first half for the Springboks as they dominated for long stages and led 16-12 at the break.

But the All Blacks stepped up a gear in the second half to score 20 unanswered points for their 16th successive win, just two short of the world record, and completed an unbeaten run through the tournament.

Lock Sam Whitelock, scrumhalf Aaron Smith and centres Ma’a Nonu and Conrad Smith scored tries for the world champions, with flyhalf Dan Carter adding three conversions, a penalty and a drop goal.

South Africa scored a 13th-minute try by wing Bryan Habana, converted by flyhalf Johan Goosen, who also kicked a penalty before limping off with a heel injury.

His replacement, Elton Jantjies, also kicked two penalties just before half-time to give the Springboks the lead at the break but this was short-lived.

The All Blacks struggled initially to handle the Springboks up front, especially in the set-pieces, and the home side successfully pinned the visitors in their own territory for long periods.

But this did not initially bring reward as Goosen missed two early penalties, before centre Jean de Villiers and wing Habana combined brilliantly and used their years of experience together to fashion a try off a lineout move, flank Willem Alberts having provided momentum as he crashed the ball up.

The experienced duo combined well again midway through the first half, winning a penalty for the Springboks, which Goosen kicked to give the hosts a 10-0 lead and leaving New Zealand with a small hill to climb at altitude in front over 80 000 hostile fans.

But South Africa then provided the All Blacks with broken-field ball, centre Jaco Taute failing to find touch from a clearing kick, and they immediately pounced. Wing Hosea Gear, chosen for this match ahead of Julian Savea who scored two tries last weekend, made the half-break, found eighthman Kieran Read in support and he sent Whitelock storming down the right touchline and reaching over for the try.

New Zealand struck again six minutes before half-time as Habana broke the defensive line for the slim chance of an intercept, allowing Carter to break free, Gear again playing a prominent role and setting up Aaron Smith for an easy run-in.

The All Blacks’ narrow 12-10 lead was overhauled by Jantjies’ two penalties just before the break, but the World Cup holders produced some marvellous rugby in the second half.

New Zealand won possession from the kickoff, fullback Israel Dagg showing dazzling skills as he broke through the line and then found Read, whose tremendous linking play saw him win the man of the match award, with an overhead pass. Nonu was on his inside for the simplest of tries.

Carter’s angled conversion put the visitors 19-16 ahead and the Springboks had a chance of levelling the scores in the 49th minute, but Jantjies hit the post with a penalty.

The All Blacks continued to capitalise on the mistakes of the Springboks and Conrad Smith took advantage of gaping holes in their backline to score in the 53rd minute.

The defence of the Springboks did improve, keeping the All Blacks outside their 22 for a long period, before Carter slotted a drop goal to stretch the lead to 29-16.

The All Blacks were cruising in no obvious difficulty even with Dagg yellow-carded for stealing the ball illegally at a ruck, and the masterful Carter had the final say with a penalty in the 72nd minute that made the final score 32-16.

The Springboks were left to rue not only the errors that led to New Zealand tries, but also the times their own attacks broke down, with Habana dropping the ball when going for the tryline five metres out and another turnover deep inside the 22 after the home side had made good progress with the rolling maul.

Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer on Wednesday gave the team that beat the Wallabies a vote of confidence by keeping them intact for Saturday’s Rugby Championship match against New Zealand at Soccer City in Soweto, but he is under no illusions regarding the kind of performance needed to beat the world champions.

“The All Blacks are a quality side, they’re on a winning streak, they’ve been together for a long time and they know how to win, even when they’re not playing well. They know how to play away from home and they’ve got the mind-set that they can win away because they’ve done it so many times before. And they’ve got that World Cup monkey off their backs now as well,” Meyer said.

“I know we’re not going to outscore them with tries, and if we’re going to beat them, we have to kick at an 80%-plus success rate, we have to convert our pressure into points, defend unbelievably and take every chance. The players have to pitch up, be mentally strong and physically tough.

“Especially with Dan Carter back for them. I think he’s a superb player, he brings more composure to the team and he’s a huge threat if they get quick ball,” Meyer said.

While Meyer firmly believes that his young team is going places, the All Blacks have probably already arrived.

New flyhalf Johan Goosen is still being touted as the Springboks’ salvation but, as Meyer pointed out, Saturday’s Test is going to be a major challenge and step up for the 20-year-old, who started in the South Africa number 10 jersey for the first time against Australia.

“The New Zealand back three are superb, especially the way they read the game, and they’re very good under the high ball. So it’s not going to be easy for Johan to kick tactically against them; it’s going to be a tough learning curve for him.

“He will improve, though, as he gains experience, as he plays more, and he’ll get better at seeing space,” Meyer said.

But New Zealand, with the arch-poacher always lurking in Richie McCaw, with Israel Dagg, Cory Jane and Julian Savea at the back and one of the world’s great centre pairings in Conrad Smith and Ma’a Nonu, will ruthlessly exploit any wrong move by the Springboks.

They will be out to produce a far more convincing display than they did in Dunedin in the previous meeting between the two old rivals. The All Blacks might have won that game 21-11, but their own media reckoned the Springboks were the better team on the day, losing only because they missed 20 points worth of kicks at goal.

“I am sure the All Blacks will come out blazing because maybe they underestimated us a bit in Dunedin after we had struggled in the first half of the year. They won’t do that again,” Meyer warned.

The injury curse that has been hammering the Springboks finally seems to have relented enough for Meyer to name the same starting XV for two matches in a row for the first time this year.

It’s on the bench where the only change in personnel has been made, with versatile prop Coenie Oosthuizen returning for Pat Cilliers.

The Free State Cheetahs powerhouse received the all-clear the previous day from a neurosurgeon in Durban, the Springbok medical team wanting a second opinion on the neck injury that seemed to still be troubling him so as not to put the 23-year-old’s future career at risk.

Meyer knows how important the forward battle will be on Saturday, saying the pack “have to pitch up, be mentally strong and physically tough”.

Having edged the All Blacks forwards in Dunedin, the Springbok pack certainly won’t be chicken when it comes to taking on the opposition front-on in Soweto.

“This is going to be one of the best packs around – it’s a good combination of youth and experience. But we need to pitch up with physicality against the All Blacks; we need to bring something extra. We’re telling the youngsters to just go out and hurt people,” lock Andries Bekker said of his fellow forwards.

Bekker also had no sympathy for himself when he described his disastrous game in the shock draw in Argentina.

“There’s no problem with my back anymore but mentally, after Mendoza, I needed a lift. There were some harsh words directed at me, but I knew I had not been up to scratch. I knew I had to step up because for me, personally, my performance was shocking,” Bekker confessed.

There will be no room for anything less than 100% from the Springboks on Saturday, with the All Blacks desperate to ensure there are no interruptions to their 15-match winning streak that sees them just three off the world record held by Lithuania since April 2010.

The team 

15-Zane Kirchner, 14-Bryan Habana, 13-Jaco Taute, 12-Jean de Villiers, 11-Francois Hougaard, 10-Johan Goosen, 9-Ruan Pienaar, 8-Duane Vermeulen, 7-Willem Alberts, 6-Francois Louw, 5-Andries Bekker, 4-Eben Etzebeth, 3-Jannie du Plessis, 2-Adriaan Strauss, 1-Tendai Mtawarira. Replacements: 16-Tiaan Liebenberg, 17-Coenie Oosthuizen, 18-Flip van der Merwe, 19-Marcell Coetzee, 20-Elton Jantjies, 21-Juan de Jongh, 22-Pat Lambie.

http://dailymaverick.co.za/article/2012-10-04-clash-of-the-titans-springboks-vs-all-blacks-at-soccer-city

The Springboks were transformed at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday, playing rugby of supermodel-level beauty as they overwhelmed Australia 31-8 to claim the first try-scoring bonus point in the Rugby Championship.

Of course, as is always the case with admiring supermodels on a Saturday night, there is a chance that beer goggles were involved in the form of a weak Australian team, further ravaged by injuries on the night, and we should all just calm down a bit and not start trumpeting the Springboks as the finished article just yet.

What is undeniable, however, is that they squeezed the Wallabies for 80 minutes with great success, winning over a Loftus Versfeld crowd of 44,463 fans that were strangely subdued and not their usual passionate, fiery selves at the start.

Perhaps the previous disappointments had made them wary and that seemed justified as Johan Goosen, the 20-year-old who was meant to be the Springboks’ saviour replacing Morne Steyn at flyhalf, missed two early penalties.

As coach Heyneke Meyer explained afterwards, Goosen had been dogged by a heel injury all week, “was not at 100% in the warm-up”, and then reported he was in pain again after 10 minutes. He felt he could soldier on, but would not be able to kick, so scrumhalf Ruan Pienaar took over the duties.

Pienaar also struggled though, missing four of his seven kicks at goal, so South Africa left another 16 points on the table – which could have made it a serious hiding for the Wallabies.

Goosen’s influence went way beyond mere goal-kicking, though. With the Free Stater standing flat and eager to engage the defences with ball in hand, the Springboks were now able to convert the pressure they created (through a pack that becomes more and more impressive with every outing) into space and try-scoring opportunities.

Meyer and captain Jean de Villiers were obviously delighted to score five tries, but were frustrated by suggestions from some media that the change of fortune had been due to a change in game plan.

“We haven’t changed one thing, that’s what people don’t understand. We’ve created those opportunities in previous weeks, but when we can execute and finish off those opportunities then it’s fantastic.

“We always say there’s space somewhere because, from a defensive point of view, you can’t cover everywhere. You need the ability to play into that space, if the space is at the back then you have to kick it there and contest to get it back. If they have guys back, then there’s the opportunity to run.

“We were really good at the breakdown. We put pressure on them there and territorially we were fantastic; we spent most of the time in their half. When that happens, then you can run the ball more. It all worked nicely for us today,” De Villiers exclaimed.

The predatory Bryan Habana was the chief beneficiary of all that space the Springboks found, scoring the second hat-trick of his 82-Test career and surpassing his former fellow wing, Breyton Paulse, as the leading try-scorer for South Africa against Australia with eight in 16 Tests.

Zane Kirchner also attacked well from fullback, scoring one try and being denied another by a mere centimetre as Adam Ashley-Cooper knocked himself out cold tackling him into touch. The rolling maul was used to good effect, too, with flank Francois Louw scoring from one in the second half. Taking that into account, this time South Africa’s kicking yips did not matter.

The Springboks certainly didn’t set out to be more flashy – that was just the by-product allowed by the hard grind of the men up front.

Thanks to a tremendous effort from the tight five, and an outstanding display from the loose trio of Duane Vermeulen, Louw and Willem Alberts, the Wallabies were knocked back on the gain line, putting the Springboks on the front foot and allowing them to impose their game plan on the visitors.

“South Africa played well tonight; they should be given credit. They were very good around the collisions and didn’t allow us much front-foot ball. Their defence was very effective and we used up players trying to run at them or to stop their ball-carriers,” Australia coach Robbie Deans admitted afterwards.

At almost every ruck, Vermuelen or Louw had their hands on the ball and the Springboks dominated the breakdown to an extent they have rarely enjoyed against the Wallabies.

Pienaar also enjoyed his best game of the year. Aware of the pressure on young Goosen, he took on most of the field-kicking duties and kept the Aussies back-pedalling and chasing the ball very well. His service was also slick and his decision-making good as he looked every part the general on the field.

Goosen was left to express himself with ball in hand and he showed his tremendous vision and deceptive pace on a number of occasions.

After the porous midfield defending in the second half of the Perth defeat, it was encouraging to see Jaco Taute make a fine debut at outside centre, tackling strongly and following the lead of skipper De Villiers inside him.

“You’re only as good as your defence. That’s how you put pressure on and then you score from turnovers. Our defence was awesome tonight. Australia wants a high-tempo game, but these players always put their bodies on the line,” Meyer said.

But, ever the perfectionist, he added: “I’m very proud of this young team tonight, but three tries were just a centimetre away and you have to convert those. So I’m not happy with that: if you create those opportunities, you must put them away.”

http://dailymaverick.co.za/article/2012-09-30-rugby-meyers-major-metamorphosis

South Africa coach Heyneke Meyer praised a top-class defensive effort for his team’s five-try, 31-8 victory over Australia in their Rugby Championship Test at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.

The Springboks became the first team in this year’s competition to register a try-scoring bonus point as wing Bryan Habana collected a hat-trick, but Meyer said the new-found attacking spark had its roots in their defence.

“You’re only as good as your defence, that’s how you put pressure on and then you score from turnovers. Our defence was awesome tonight. Australia want a high-tempo game, but these players always put their bodies on the line,” Meyer told a news conference after the Test.

Captain Jean de Villiers also credited other factors for the try-scoring spree that took their tally from six to 11 in five matches.

“The space is not always there but when your territorial game is as fantastic as it was tonight and we were really good at the breakdown, then you can afford to run the ball more. It worked nicely for us tonight,” De Villiers said.

While the Springboks enjoyed a steady diet of front-foot ball, Wallaby coach Robbie Deans was bemoaning a total lack of momentum for his side.

“South Africa played well tonight, they should be given credit. They were very good around the collisions and didn’t allow us much front-foot ball. Their defence was very effective and we used up players trying to run at them or to stop their ball-carriers,” Deans said.

Australia also had tremendous misfortune with injuries, with fullback Berrick Barnes and outside centre Adam Ashley-Cooper having to leave the field in the first half. With eighthman Radike Samo and lock Kane Douglas also limping off, the Wallabies then had to finish the match with 14 men because referee Alain Rolland would not allow injured hooker Tatafu Poloto-Nau to be replaced, ruling the visitors had already used seven substitutions, with prop Benn Robinson returning to the field in the second half after going off before the break.

“It was bizarre and the carnage of all those injuries was unprecedented in my experience. We were still in the game at half-time, but had to finish with a halfback on the wing and, with all those injuries, it was just asking too much for us to get home,” Deans said.

The Wallabies coach believed the decision to not allow replacement hooker Saia Fainga’a on the field was unfair.

“The fourth referee said at the time we could replace Tatafu, then that decision was changed. Benn Robinson was a strategic substitution in the first half and his situation was irrelevant.”

Despite the impressive, convincing win, Meyer said the Springboks’ finishing still needed to improve, with flyhalf Johan Goosen, fullback Zane Kirchner and replacement centre Juan de Jongh all having close looks at the tryline but failing to score.

“I’m very proud of this young team tonight, but three tries were just a centimetre away and you have to convert those. So I’m not happy with that, if you create those opportunities, you must put them away,” Meyer said.

The Springbok coach also liked his team’s efforts in the lineouts and scrums, and their discipline at the breakdowns, while he said Goosen made a top-class first start at flyhalf, despite missing two early penalties.

“Johan struggled during the week with a heel injury and he wasn’t 100% in the warm-up. He said that after 10 minutes it was hurting, but he showed his character and said he would keep playing, he just couldn’t kick. He’s a thrilling prospect, he showed a lot of pace, he was superb, but it will take time before he is a finished package,” Meyer explained.

Australia already have a full XV of players out injured, but their previous fitness woes are starting to look like a mini-crisis with Deans admitting SOSs would need to be sent for players to join the squad in Argentina.

“We will need to bring players across, which is going to be very challenging because we’ve already delved deep into our resources. Getting visas is also not straightforward for Argentina and there’s a possibility some players won’t arrive in time for training,” Deans said.