All 18 points: Morne Steyn
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Morné Steyn kicked all of South Africa's points as they beat New Zealand 18-5 in Saturday's Tri-Nations clash in Port Elizabeth.
The All Blacks scored the only try of the game, but were outmuscled up front by their hosts. The whole Bok team tackled their hearts out and Steyn's strong tactical kicking, especially in the second half, allowed them to keep the visitors pinned back.
As has become the norm in clashes between these sides, the All Blacks looked the more dangerous side with ball in hand, but the Springboks can count themselves deserved winners and will take encouragement from their improvement in defence and at scrum time in their final game before the World Cup.
It was South Africa's best performance of the year - by some margin - but the Springbok management will continue to be concerned by their team's inability to cross the try line. (Peter de Villiers' team have scored just three tries this year - all by hookers John Smit and Chiliboy Ralepelle.)
By contrast, Graham Henry's task of picking his backs for the World Cup was made no easier by strong performances by Israel Dagg, Isaia Toeava and Hosea Gear. However Adam Thomson's hopes of making the starting XV on September 9 took a step backwards as his overeagerness cost his side a number of penalties.
Just how much can be read into this result is debatable as it would be overly harsh to judge New Zealand on the performance of a make-shift side.
New Zealand did most of the playing in the first quarter but it was the hosts who held a 12-0 lead after half-an-hour as their charged-up pack forced the All Blacks to infringe at the rucks and at scrum time.
Steyn moved the Boks further ahead with a neat drop-goal but it was the men in black who would cross the whitewash for the game's only try, courtesy of Richard Kahui, who muscled his way past three defenders after Gear had cut through the Boks' defensive curtain with a searing run.
South Africa led 15-5 at half time with Steyn's fifth penalty the only points of the second period.
Man of the match: The home side's cover defence saved their bacon on a number of occasions with Jaque Fourie coming to the rescue two or three times. But we'll go for Morné Steyn who not only scored all the hosts' points, but generally controlled the game.
Moment of the match: With the All Blacks trailing by ten points, Jimmy Cowan's disallowed try will be subject of debate for a long time to come. Dagg's final pass was certainly forward... and television match official Johann Meuwesen made sure referee George Clancy knew about it.
Villain of the match: It wasn't tiddlywinks but no one deserves a mention.
The scorers:
For South Africa:
Pens: Steyn 5
Drop: Steyn
For New Zealand:
Try: Kahui
South Africa: 15 Pat Lambie, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Jaque Fourie, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Morné Steyn, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Willem Alberts, 6 Heinrich Brüssow, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Gurthrö Steenkamp.
Replacements: 16 John Smit, 17 Tendai Mtawarira, 18 CJ van der Linde, 19 Danie Rossouw, 20 Ashley Johnson, 21 Francois Hougaard, 22 Butch James.
New Zealand: 15 Israel Dagg, 14 Isaia Toeava, 13 Richard Kahui, 12 Sonny Bill Williams, 11 Hosea Gear, 10 Colin Slade, 9 Jimmy Cowan, 8 Liam Messam, 7 Adam Thomson, 6 Jerome Kaino, 5 Ali Williams, 4 Samuel Whitelock, 3 John Afoa, 2 Keven Mealamu (capt) 1 Tony Woodcock.
Replacements: 16 Andrew Hore, 17 Ben Franks, 18 Jarrad Hoeata, 19 Victor Vito, 20 Andy Ellis, 21 Piri Weepu, 22 Cory Jane.
Venue: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth
Referee: George Clancy (Ireland)
Comments
7ton says...
In regards to the disallowed try firstly it should have been called by the assistant ref/linesman which would have avoided all this controversy.
However it does make a valid case for the laws in regards to the TMO to be changed to allow him to rule on forwards passes and other close to the line.
The main problem would be how far back do you go? I understand that in rugby league the TMO can go back a bit and I would be interested to hear from anyone here who could help us out with how far back do they go?
In any case I would not have liked the AB's to win because of that incident and even if they had of been awarded the try I think the Boks probably still would have won and well done and congratulations to them.
The win should give SA some encouragement and belief for the WC.
From a Kiwi point of view maybe this loss was due because no matter how good your team is you can't keeping on winning forever and especially against SA so better to get the loss out of the way before the WC and if NZ and SA do meet in the WC then maybe, just maybe, the AB's can turn it round.
Justice for all
As you have a good knowledge of the rules and are very fair-minded I would be interested in your take on the Habana turnover in the 73/74 minute,
Did Habana rip the ball completely from Ellis in the tackle before they hit the ground or did they both have hold of it on the ground and what are the exact laws in regards to this?
Thanks
Posted 16:20 21st August 2011
davodiablo says...
@ChrisInCrete. The right result. It wasn't a try but the decision was made against the laws.This was for the good of the game.
As fans we see many infringements go unpunished . Wouldn't it be great if we could see those decisions corrected?But I figure the replay time to check if a try was or wasn't would just take for ever if every pass leading up to it was checked from all camera angles.
Posted 15:26 21st August 2011
KiwiKev says...
@ JayStarr
No man of integrity are you. Did you promise to leave this forum!
jk and I agree that the try should not have counted as the pass was clearly forward but the laws must be changed accordingly to account for role of the TMO and what information he can provide as well as how the referee can use that information...
Posted 15:18 21st August 2011
TheOracle says...
Tahi, you better hope and pray the AB's don't lose at home because they certainly tend to in World Cups., Nothing new with AB's starting favorites or the Bok's being written off. Bottom line even with political interference ensuring a massive handicap I bet the last team the AB's want to face in the semi's is SA.
Posted 15:18 21st August 2011
joyce1bro says...
@ JayStarr
Laws not rules... two very different words and meanings.. the laws ARE written in stone....
Posted 15:00 21st August 2011
Ramage says...
My apologies to Shaun Veldsman who I mistakingly called as the TMO in the South African NZ test as I see it was down as John Meuwesen. This now makes it clearer as to why that call was given. Dont know why I thought it was Veldsman.
Posted 14:27 21st August 2011
Ramage says...
The TMO decision to offer advice to the referee on the forward pass was wrong in what the TMO is allowed under law to do. Clancy was also wrong to accept it. The problem could have been solved if Clancy had consulted his assistant but this wasnt done so both clearly missed it. The fact they did is part and partial of any game and tries have been scored from such passes and allowed in other games. It is a bad mistake and as such Veldsman who I believe is an assistant referee in the RWC clearly over stepped his brief and both he and Clancy must be acquainted with this law before they officiate at the RWC. No matter how embarassing the law must be upheld. Having said that the right decision morally was made but unfortunately not in law. The law has been shown to be in need of changing and something must be done to change this law so that no referee is placed in this position again. How far back in play you go is debatable. To me there are two other areas of law that need adressing or referees must get some consistency on. The shambles of crouch touch pause engage must be sorted out.. The other is the wide descrepancy in referees interpretation of when advantage is over. On Saturday I watched 3 of the 4 ITM Cup games and the test. I noticed that Clancy came back to a scrum if he felt there was no advantage for a knock on. Yet many Sanzar referees are calling advantage over well before the team not offending has even reached the gain line. This type of interpretation needs to be clearly sorted out by the referees as the variation in interpretation becomes a lottery. I would be interested to see what the Saffa fans have noticed in Currie Cup games as to how referees are playing the advantage law in their domestic competition. Any Oz comments on what they they think, if they watch Currie Cup or ITM as there is no national competition in OZ. would also be interesting.
Posted 14:12 21st August 2011
JayStarr says...
Well done to the TMO for offering extra information - I wish more TMO's would do it. Don't get technical about the rules - they are not written in stone; the rules are there for one reason only: to ensure a fair contest. That is exactly what the TMO did. If the rules prevent him from doing that, then they should be changed.
It is ludicrous that Paddy O'Brien is now making an issue out of this incident, instead of the fact that Clancy and his "assistant referees" only noticed one out of every three errors. Their performance reminded me of that joke where the tortoise went to the police to report that he was mugged by a bunch of snails - and when the police asked what happened the tortoise said "I don't know, it all happened so fast". The game was obviously too fast for them, they were out of their depth and one of their errors almost allowed a try. Thanks to the TMO that didn't happen and his intervention ensured a fair result. Instead of questioning him for "breaking the rules", the rules should be questioned for preventing him from ensuring a fair contest.
I would actually like to see the TMO consulted more often - and given more power and better technology. With the increasing pace of the game it would be great if rugby could start using hawkeye-like technology which signals the TMO whenever a ball is passed forward, knocked on or not thrown in straight in a line-out. Obviously with some allowance - as in cricket - where the pass is deemed "flat". Being opposed to this technological direction would be like saying the 100 m sprint should still be decided by a ribbon...
@ countryboy: please enlighten us by naming this World 15 you're talking about. I am curious to see which players you believe to be so much better than Victor Matfield, Bakkies Botha, Fourie du Preez, Jean de Villiers and Jaque Fourie in their positions...
Posted 13:40 21st August 2011
tahi says...
WOW 18-5 and suddenly South Africa are back. Oh well sit back and enjoy your last place in the tri-nations. Sorry I will reword that...3rd place sounds better. Seems to be all the talk on this website, look SA beat a NZ B team. Lets forget about the 29 missed tackles and 0 linebacks to 9. Add 9 first choice All Blacks to this team and suddenly your 18-5 scoreline has merit...until then keep telling yourselves that 'the great springbok defence that won the game' will win the world cup...I am still confused about this one as I believe it was SA that was clueless I mean tryless. Remember rugby fans the World Cup is in NZ. All Blacks don't lose at home. Just asked the Springboks and the Wallabies when was the last time they won a game in Auckland.
Posted 13:14 21st August 2011
volbrechtt says...
What a difference calling in Nienaber and Erasmus has made to the defence. Let's hope they can sort out the problem with the still shockingly bad first-time tackling. Now bring in Pieter Rossouw (the only creative SA backline coach I can think of) to teach the Boks how to score tries from turnover ball, since they seem unable to learn from watching the ABs do it. I agree with Ruggaluva that the Springboks should be playing a more complete game. In recent years I have seen both the Bulls and the Stormers showing how it can be done against New Zealand opposition.
Posted 13:08 21st August 2011
Sasquatch says...
I agree with Runnrugby, it's all good and fine having a unit that can "scramble" on defence, but having to do it over and over again because you're missing first time tackles or not even getting to a tackle is a worry. The AB's could have scored 4 or 5, they didn't, but this game might have taken on a very different complexity had they. I don't think AB fans have anything to worry about (I'm a Bok fan by the way)
p.s. if you Bok fans are looking for a laugh, go read the Irish response to yesterdays loss to the French, it sounds just like us when we lose, they blame it all on the coach!!! No one saying anything about PdV I notice, how quickly things thange.
Posted 12:40 21st August 2011
ChrisInCrete says...
The TMO intercession was a very interesting point and I would like to hear what the law says. Some of the comments here are wrong. The TMO did not rule on it. Very clearly he ruled on the grounding of the ball then asked the ref if he wanted any other information. The ref said yes and the TMO then said that there was a forward pass. The Ref then ruled No Try. It was probable, hearing the crowd reaction, that the referee saw what had happened in replay and the TMO then helped him out of a tight spot. He was most likely unsighted and a bit strangely the Touch judge who was right on the line next to the players missed it.
Maybe the TMO is not allowed to rule on anything that happens in field of play outside the try line with the exception of foul play, but it comes down to this a) is he allowed to suggest that he has other relevant information and b) is the referee allowed to use that information if it is provided.
Personally I think that they got it right under the circumstances
I am not sure about the validity about the the TMO being able to review the whole break - because there has to be a limit to how far back you go - 5 m line, 22 m line, 5 seconds? and there will always be some example of an illegal move a split second before that point.
Yes, there have been a lot of forward passes that led to trys, but this one was rather obvious and just short of the line.
And at the end of the day you don't want your team to win of that kind of technicality, do you?
Posted 12:26 21st August 2011
melkdave says...
As ive said i hold my hands up got it wrong lol-( see earlier post here)but ill agree given 2-3 games togather that AB side would most proberly have won !!!!!
If Slade was better that is He didnt look comfortable at all not a international class back up to Carter if he gets injured god help the ABs..Whats that i hear Donalds phone ringing saying dont go 2 Bath yet lol Also Thompson has shown he isnt a R. McCaw Also come on kiwi supporters stop moaning about the TMO ect yes he overstepped his bounds but wouldnt you have loved that in 07 in the french match we all know refs ect cant see everything and you are usually better than this .We english dont harp on about the try not given in the 07 final Rmember this was a meaningless match this year the ABs will still most proberly win the 3N and that the tourny is being used as warm up for the RWC .Henry used it to look at players and new combinations ect thats his job after all ,but as a scratch team in 1st game WOW nearly took an experianced boks side imprecsion let them down and lot of posatives from it aswell
Posted 12:25 21st August 2011
spliffed says...
The one thing that did worry me was the ineptitude of the linesmen. If you look at the disallowed try (forward pass) the linesman was directly in line with play yet didnt call it. I noticed it in another AB forward pass that the ref called but the linesman again was directly in line but didnt flag it. Surely the idea is that the officials work as a unit. The tmo was wrong to add input not asked for but then surely the ref should not have asked for the answer to the question put forward by the tmo and disregarded it? Not a bad game.. marred by some poor officiating but as a Bok supporter I am not getting carried away by this result.. Best showing for some time and if they can improve another 20% then maybe, just maybe, be able to give the full AB 's a run for their money.. I have my doubts. oh yes and Habanas best game all season.. Shame it was defense and not scoring
Posted 12:05 21st August 2011
sandal says...
bruce says...
" let's be honest folks - this game counts for very little - just like most of the rest of the tri-nations this year. "
Bruce, if you believe that then you know next to nothing about the Tri Nations.
Or about South Africa.
Or about New Zealand.
Or about test match rugby.
If you think those players weren't trying their hardest to win that match, then you've probably never played rugby.
That result goes down in the record books. And it stays there for ever.
Posted 11:59 21st August 2011
ruggaluva says...
Gutsy display of defense and some power forward play and this is the kind of play that wins pressure matches like the in the WC.... but its a means to an end and i would rather the Boks be playing a more complete game that our Super rugby sides have shown we are very capable of playing ( if the Cheetahs had any idea of defense who knows what they would be capable of ). The focus on winning the WC in Bok teams is stifling our rugby.
Posted 09:32 21st August 2011
rugbylover11 says...
the game was good!!! two people made mistakes for NZ. Henry by not replacing Thompson with Vito. Th gave away 2 penalties. Second, Mealamu should have used a few brain cells to realise that the game should have been slowed down at least a few times. Smit did that in the game against Fiji in the last world cup once he realised that Fiji was on great momentum catching up. He told his guys to be patience and not panic. Mealamu was a bit nervous in his interview just before the kick off, I thought I saw a sign of defeat. Great to see Mattfield n Botha at locks, I was laughing my heart out as I watched Botha with his usual rough edges at times using them to work up his opposition hehehehe!!! Great game
Posted 09:26 21st August 2011
davodiablo says...
@ Bruce . I think I can speak for all Kiwis by saying no we didn't want that try.
Posted 08:48 21st August 2011
Storm says...
The Boks totally deserved the win. Brussow is one tough hombre and a joy to watch. Habana was everywhere making a positive menace of himself at every opportunity.
The ABs will be humbled by this loss and that is not a bad thing.
Posted 08:35 21st August 2011
OConnorFan says...
Well,this win meant something for us as Bok fans. Well done to our boys and well done to Heinrich Brussow!!!!! Wha a man of the match!!!! And hopefully Pat Lambie will make it to the squad <3 He is a great player!
Posted 08:25 21st August 2011