The Springboks regained their No 1 spot in the World Rugby rankings with a comprehensive 32-15 win over Scotland at Murrayfield on Sunday as they started their three-match tour on a positive note.
When a team hasn’t played together for six weeks and then on top of that 11 changes are made to the starting team there will always be an element of rust and there was plenty of that from the Boks.
They made a plethora of mistakes, with late in the game the handling error count being as high as 13.
It meant that they had to rely on the old Bok staples of defence and strong scrumming more than anticipated beforehand, although a four try to nil synopsis when it came to that aspect of the game did sum up their superiority on the night.
Two of those tries were scored by 2019 World Cup hero Makazole Mapimpi, both running onto flat kicks, the first from Handre Pollard after just four minutes and the other later in the first half from Willie le Roux.
On a weekend where southern hemisphere teams prevailed, there was never really any question the Boks would win and go past Ireland back to No 1 following New Zealand’s win over the previous holders of pole position on the rankings in Dublin on Friday. They were never headed in the game.
It wasn't easy, thank you @Scotlandteam for another tough Test 🤝#Springboks #ForeverGreenForeverGold #SCOvRSA pic.twitter.com/nhVISOSqYL
— Springboks (@Springboks) November 10, 2024
But against England at the Allianz Stadium next week they will need to show more control than they showed at stages of this game if they are to retain that No 1 spot.
Although they turned it around later in the game, they gave away too many penalties in the first, and there was some very sloppy and poor lineout work early on.
Up against a Scotland team that attacked the breakdowns with tigerish ferocity, they struggled to hold onto the ball, with their error rate preventing them from picking up the momentum and sustaining it.
Against another team that might have been telling, but the Boks, particularly once the seven-man Bomb Squad came on in the second half, just suffocated the Scots out of the game in the scrums after halftime.
In truth, the Boks always looked like they had the physical superiority, but they tended to be a little bit too rushed and overplayed in the first half.
Which may appear odd if you note that the Boks were 19-9 up at halftime.
The Boks did show great control at the start of the game, and the Scots were shocked by one of those bits of South African innovation the team is becoming known for.
The Boks called a four man lineout as the attack was set up by a penalty, and the Scottish defence was as a result of that in a bit of disarray.
Pollard’s cross kick sent in Mapimpi for a try that put the Boks 5-0 ahead.
Makazole Mapimpi goes over in the corner 🤟
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) November 10, 2024
Inch-perfect from the boot of Handre Pollard, the Springboks take an early lead at Murrayfield.
📺 Stream #AutumnNationsSeries on DStv: https://t.co/0P0NNho4A4 pic.twitter.com/XIpbJhTL8L
Then came one of those ridiculous moments that is a blight on the modern game when Scotland lock Scott Cummings was first yellow carded and then it was upgraded to red for a croc-roll on Franco Mostert.
Maybe at a push it was a yellow, but how it got upgraded by the bunker is difficult to fathom.
It meant the Scots were down to 14 men for 20 minutes, and thanks to their error rate, the Boks never took full advantage.
Russell kicked two penalties to put the Scots into a 6-5 lead by the 20 minute mark.
At that point the hosts had scored six points to nil in 15 minutes of Scotland being down to 14 men.
But the Boks did score a try just before Scotland went back to 15, with Mostert failing to make a clean take at an attacking lineout but the ball fell backwards into the hands of prop Thomas du Toit who surged through a huge gap that opened in front of him to go over untouched.
This time Pollard was on target with the conversion and the Boks were ahead 12-6.
Russell kicked another penalty to cut the deficit to three points but then came Le Roux’s cross kick that Mapimpi did well to gather and go over in the left corner for a try that Pollard converted to make it 19-9 with just a few minutes left in the first half.
The Scots crossed the line through scrumhalf Ben White just before the break but the score was disallowed after consultation with the TMO. It was a big moment in the game.
The hosts enjoyed their period of best momentum in the third quarter, and were dominating possession at one point.
And it became more tricky for the Boks when Mapimpi was yellow carded.
💣 "Here comes the Bomb Squad!"
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) November 10, 2024
Rassie unleashes his bench at Murrayfield and the crowd reacts 👀
📺 Stream #AutumnNationsSeries on DStv: https://t.co/0P0NNhnwKw pic.twitter.com/ZHjYTyDBa3
However, that was when the defence came to the party, and although the likes of Huw Jones and fullback Tom Jordan were slippery on attack, as was Sione Tuipulotu, the Bok defence inside their 22 was watertight.
And as the game wore on, so the impact of the replacements systematically made itself felt.
Two penalties from Pollard took the Boks out of range and then Japser Wiese dotted down off the last move of the game to complete what in the end was a comprehensive victory.
Scores
South Africa 32 - Tries: Makazole Mapimpi 2, Thomas du Toit and Jasper Wiese; Conversions: Handre Pollard 3; Penalties: Handre Pollard 2.
Scotland 15 - Penalties: Finn Russell 5.