Springboks Player Ratings: South Africa secured rugby’s arch-rivals series with a 43-26 win All black people at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore on Saturday.
After a first half in which both sides could feel they had dropped points, the world champions went into the bench with a narrow 17-14 lead, a familiar score at the break throughout this series.
Just like last week, the Boks didn’t slip after the break and continued to add pressure and pile on the points as the match wore on.
Any profligacy that has characterized Rassie Erasmus’ side in this series was a thing of the past in the second half as they ran away with the match.
The Boks won the series 3-1, here’s how the players rated it:
15 Damian Willemse – 7
Once again firmly under the high ball, and contested well when chasing shots. Maybe he struggled to impose himself in attack and had to as he wanted, and as a result forced things that weren’t included, resulting in a handling error at one point. He left the field shortly before the hour, which may have been due to the injury he was carrying, as he was still safe despite being subdued.
14 Kurt-Lee Arendse – 9
He enjoyed a meandering drive when he got half behind midway through the first half, but otherwise did the basics well, beating most of his challengers to give the Boks so much territory. He seemed to step up in the second half, making a couple of line breaks after half-time before the match-defining break and a try later on, making Tupou Vaa’i look like a statue with his side-step. Eight defenders beaten and 169 yards from just seven carries. Class.
13 Jesse Kriel – 6
He kicked a couple of tries in the first half, which the All Blacks capitalized on and couldn’t trouble the All Blacks defense like they did last week.
12 Damian de Allende – 8.5
He punched through his hands to score the Springboks. He does not know the territory, but he accepted his attempt as a striker. Just what he deserved after being a titan in midfield, always on hand to take the ball into the guts of the All Blacks defence. With greasy conditions, only one handling error out of 18 carries was good.
11 Ethan Hooker – 6.5
Quieter this week than his player was in the game last week and couldn’t impose himself on the game. He had a scintillating drive in the second half after latching on to a tackle but was well contained by the All Blacks.
10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu – 6
He seemed to have more permission to play this week, taking a cross in his own half in the opening minutes. Things got tighter as the match wore on, but the scrum-half was still able to challenge the line with her carries. Radar was a little behind at times with his forehand shots and his tee shot wasn’t much better, with Morne van den Berg effectively replacing him as a substitute. He had a brief spell at full-back before being replaced shortly after the hour mark.
9 Morne van den Berg – 8.5
Into the starting XV this week, and he repaid Erasmus’ faith by storming into South Africa’s second, selling the dummy to two All Blacks from behind. There is plenty of depth at No.9 for the Boks, but van den Berg made a strong case for a start, posing a threat with his poise and incisive passing, particularly when attacking the short side. His over-the-ball penalty was the cherry on top of a well-rounded display.
1 Keeper of the Ox – 7
Third time lucky in game time, winning a penalty in the 18th minute for the Boks’ third shutout of the match in a joint first-line effort. It looked like he and his front-row mates were trying to kill the scrum on the last play of the first half, but he was eventually pinged by Karl Dickson for not going straight. He enjoyed a torrid first half in the loss, posting 13 tackles, before being substituted for several minutes in the second half.
2 Malcolm Marx – 7
Another week, another try thanks to the seemingly unstoppable Maul Boks. He did not last long after scoring and was taken off with 30 minutes remaining, having made some substitutions in the past four Tests. This was no different – the line worked perfectly, eight carries, 10 interceptions. Maybe he didn’t dominate the match the way he did this series.
3 Wilco Louw – 7
He looked like he was about to give up on the All Blacks completely at the end of the first half, only to lose his footing before Nche was penalised. He made 11 tackles in the first half alone, a return that Erasmus would not have expected from his stubborn but will be delighted. He didn’t add to it in his three minutes in the second half before being substituted, but he did make a difference in a game where he didn’t dominate the fight as he usually does.
4 Eben Etzebeth – 7.5
He took his A-game to state. He killed the All Blacks’ first promising start with smart moves a few meters from his line, stole the line (as he has done all series) and produced a barnstorming carry that allowed De Allende to sneak in seconds later. That was all in the first 15 minutes. Finished the first half with a charge down. In the second half, he continued to throw his body into tackles, nothing on the 15th.
5 Ruan Nortje – 6
His handballs were relentless, allowing the Boks to have 73 per cent of their hands under three seconds during his time on the court, but he did not produce the same numbers as his teammates in the first half and was part of a massive change made by Erasmus in the opening minutes of the second half.
6 Siya Kolisi – 6
After a first half in which the Boks captain played his part in some huge defensive efforts, scoring 10 tries in the first half, he didn’t last too long in the second half as fresh legs were needed after what would have been a poor first 40.
7 Pieter-Steph du Toit – 7
He raced off the line to shut down the All Blacks, only to be picked off by Cam Roigard with his pass and slotted past Codie Taylor for the first try of the match. He thinks well, but seems out of sync with his teammates. He took off with 15 minutes remaining after completely emptying the tank, bagging 13 tackles and even adding a try to his performance.
8 Jasper Wiese – 7.5
He gave the All Blacks the advantage of an offside penalty in a 32-phase defensive set shortly before half-time, giving the Kiwis the freedom to play with a little more risk when the Boks looked like they were holding them. In addition, his defensive output was very high, with the most tackles for his side, 17, and his carry had all the venom we are used to, at one point sending Taylor backwards. With someone as involved in the match as he is, mistakes will come and he coughed up possession when Peter Lakai snatched the ball from his clutches in the last 10 minutes.
Substitutions
16 Deon Fourie – 6
He got more time on the hook than he’s used to this series, playing the last 30 minutes. He competed hard at the breakdown, although at one point he was fouled by Dickson’s whistle, awarded a penalty that resulted in an All Blacks try. Broke one line in midfield, giving a reminder that he’s not Marx level there.
17 Gerhard Steenekamp – 6
The scrum looked solid, but it wasn’t going forward or backward.
18 Thomas du Toit – 7
A scrum penalty a few minutes after going in is exactly what Erasmus would order.
19 Lood de Jager – 6.5
He brought a lot of energy from the bench that was needed after an exhausted first half. He had a lot of ball in his hands.
20 Andre Esterhuizen – 6
He replaced Kolisi very quickly in the second half and added some carrying capacity that seemed to tip the balance in a match where the All Blacks just couldn’t compete.
21 Cameron Hanekom – 8
He went into the final 15 minutes with the All Blacks with momentum, and made a crucial tackle on Josh Moorby (those from New Zealand can say it was an early try) which saw the ball fall into Arendse’s hands and then completed his display with a botched steal and try (in one move).
22 Cobus Reinach – 6
He came in as a winger this week, which may not have been ideal, especially as it seemed to be a bit of a patchwork from the back line. I didn’t have much work on the flank except for one half.
23 Manie Libbok – 6
I had a few minutes to forget in the last quarter, taking the initial free-kick before being penalized for direct contact. Eliminate that with a nice line break.