Five takeaways from South Africa v England

Editor

Following a clinical 23-12 win for South Africa over England in their June clash, here are five takeaways from the match in Bloemfontein.

Same mistake from Mako: He was sin-binned last weekend for a sloppy late hit on Faf de Klerk and today he was lucky not to receive another 10 minute spell on the sidelines after a pointless slap to the head of Pieter-Steph du Toit. Eddie Jones won’t be pleased as regular talk of England sorting their discipline is clearly not being heeded, with the Red Rose yet again topping the penalties conceded chart with 13.

Decisions, decisions: It felt like England’s call to snub a shot at goal in favour of the attacking line-out late in first-half might come back to haunt them. So it proved as a 38th minute penalty from near 60 metres out from Handre Pollard sailed over to hand the Springboks a 13-12 lead. Maybe England wanted more of a cushion for the latter stages on the Highveld? Unfortunately for them their decision backfired.

Duane shines: We mentioned after the first Test about the impact both Faf de Klerk and Duane Vermeulen made on their returns for the Springboks. This week we single out Vermeulen for special praise as he was a colossus in the first period, scoring an impressive try that got South Africa back into the match. Bok supporters must wonder where their side would have been in June without their number eight, who is now back in the country after leaving Toulon. Instead of looking tired at the end of the campaign, he’s relished this challenge.

Prop impact strikes again: Steven Kitshoff and Thomas du Toit showed their worth for a second match running as first Kitshoff demonstrated his carrying ability before the duo packed down for an attacking scrum five metres out. That set-piece was hugely dominant for the Boks and resulted in Romain Poite awarding the hosts a penalty try, which crucially put them two scores up at 20-12. Another good day for the sub props.

England should have used their bench sooner: 66 minutes played and England are 23-12 adrift but have Ben Spencer, Danny Cipriani and Denny Solomona still waiting on the bench for the nod. Is that not strange? All three are game winners who can create something from nothing but the changes were resisted until that moment. Wouldn’t you know it, Cipriani’s first three touches oozed class and got the English firing.