The Springboks were left searching for answers after suffering a heavy 33-16 defeat to the All Blacks at Ellis Park on Saturday evening. New Zealand scored five tries to South Africa’s one in the opening Test of rugby’s greatest rivalry. The result leaves the world champions needing three consecutive victories to win the series.
New Zealand winger Will Jordan scored the first and final tries of the contest, with his second coming six minutes before full-time. Josh Moorby, Ruben Love, Fabian Holland and Luke Jacobson also crossed the try line as the All Blacks punished the Springboks’ mistakes. South Africa’s only try came from replacement Andre Esterhuizen after Kurt-Lee Arendse was forced from the field following a head injury assessment.
The Springboks’ defeat was particularly frustrating because South Africa enjoyed significant territory and possession for large periods of the match. However, they struggled to turn that pressure into points inside the All Blacks’ 22. The positional disruption following Arendse’s departure also appeared to affect the Boks’ ability to adapt.
Springboks Struggled To Convert Territory Into Points
Springboks captain Pieter-Steph du Toit acknowledged that mistakes inside the opposition 22 proved costly. South Africa had opportunities to build pressure but failed to make the most of several attacking situations. Handling errors were among the problems identified by the captain.
“We made a few critical mistakes in the 22, like some of the issues were handling errors. Those are some of the things we will need to fix,” Du Toit said.
Rassie Erasmus also credited the All Blacks defence for disrupting South Africa’s attacking game. The New Zealanders repeatedly competed for possession and applied pressure during tackles and at the breakdown. That defensive approach made it difficult for the Springboks to maintain momentum.
“They were stripping in the tackle, they normally push down or chop in their tackles,” Erasmus said.
The Springboks coach said New Zealand’s work at the breakdown contributed significantly to South Africa’s mistakes. The All Blacks’ pressure during loose play prevented the hosts from capitalising on their territorial advantage. Erasmus admitted that his team did not cope well enough with the challenge.
“A lot of our errors were because of the good work that New Zealand was doing at the breakdown. The pressure they put on us in loose play, we didn’t handle it well,” he said.
All Blacks Expose Springboks Attack Inside 22
The All Blacks victory was built on their ability to disrupt South Africa when the world champions entered the scoring zone. Erasmus said New Zealand had several ways of preventing the Springboks from finishing attacking opportunities. Those included contesting possession and putting pressure on South Africa’s scrumhalf.
“It is disappointing probably the thing New Zealand are great at is that they really know how to stop you when you inside their 22 in different ways. For example, stripping the ball, contesting the ball on the ground, or racing the scumhalf within the laws.”
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Despite the final scoreline, Erasmus felt the Springboks had been in a strong position during the first half of the match. South Africa controlled much of the territory and possession before the All Blacks took greater control of the contest. The failure to convert that early dominance ultimately proved costly.
“I thought until the 50th minute, we were really dominating territory, possession and we thought we were really in the game.”
The Springboks will now have little margin for error in the remaining matches. Erasmus pointed to the team’s previous experiences of recovering from difficult starts, including losing their opening World Cup match before going on to win the tournament and facing pressure during the British and Irish Lions series. He said resilience remained an important part of the team.
Springboks Need Three Straight Wins To Take Series
South Africa now needs to win the next three matches to claim the Springboks-All Blacks series. Erasmus admitted that his team had not performed well enough on the night, particularly when it came to turning their territorial and scrum dominance into points. The coach will now have to find solutions ahead of the next encounter.
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The opening Test attracted a crowd of 60,592 supporters at Ellis Park. The packed stadium provided a fitting setting for one of international rugby’s biggest rivalries. However, the home crowd was left disappointed as New Zealand secured a convincing victory.
The Springboks’ next match will take place at DHL Stadium in Cape Town on Saturday, 29 September. South Africa will need a significant improvement if it is to respond to the Ellis Park defeat and keep its hopes of winning the series alive.
