Ireland player ratings: ‘Heroic’ bench snatch last-gasp victory over poor Springboks
Ireland snatch victory with 80th minute drop-goal. Photo-Alamy
Following their last-gasp 25-24 victory over the Springboks in the final Test of the series, here is how we rated the Ireland players in the blockbuster affair in Durban.
Ireland player ratings v Springboks
15 Jamie Osborne: Used as more of an extra centre in attack, but it seemed to bring the best out of him. He added some decent firepower to Ireland’s midfield, which blended nicely with the work of Robbie Henshaw and Garry Ringrose. Also dealt with the high balls when called upon too. Much more assured performance than his debut last week. 8
14 Calvin Nash: Was given more to work with than last week, and made more of an impact on the game. Came up with some nice touches in attack. 6
13 Garry Ringrose: Still finding his feet after a lengthy layoff with injury, but didn’t really have much of an impact on the game. Was well contained by the Springbok defence, which limited his ability to break through space. 5
12 Robbie Henshaw: Took plenty of the load in attack, and ran incredibly hard through traffic in midfield. Also came up with a nice assist to send Conor Murray in for a try in the first-half. 6
11 James Lowe: Was involved a lot early doors, but drifted away as the game went on. His long kicking game took some of the load off Jack Crowley. 5
Ciaran Frawley drop goals stun Springboks as Ireland level series in Durban epic
10 Jack Crowley: A solid showing from the Munster fly-half. The headlines might be dominated by his replacement, but he grabbed a haul of 14 points from the tee, which went a long way to ensuring the victory. Overall he steered his team well around the pitch. 7
9 Conor Murray: Made a good impact off the bench in the first Test, and just carried on from where he left off. Brought his typical level of control to the team and scored a try in almost identical fashion to last week too. 7
Forwards
8 Caelan Doris: Another industrious display from the new captain. His ability to continuously pop up wherever the ball was was quite remarkable, and he was able to make some huge interventions in defence. As always, really put himself about with ball-in-hand too. 8
7 Josh van der Flier: The battle up-front was a proper slog, but his incredible work rate helped Ireland stand firm in this area. He produced some meaty tackles, and was getting himself involved in the heat of the battle at the breakdown. Another bruising display from the Leinster back-rower. 8
6 Tadhg Beirne: A lot was made of his shift into the back-row in place of Peter O’Mahony, but it seemed to pay off. He gave a good platform at the set-piece, and used the increased freedom of being in the back-row to good effect as he threw himself into tackles. Gave everything for the shirt. 8
5 James Ryan: Thrust into the starting squad this weekend, and he warranted his spot with a brutal display. Stepped up in crucial moments in defence, and also added some stability to the lineout too. 6
4 Joe McCarthy: Got heavily involved in the ugly stuff, but wasn’t his best performance in an Ireland shirt to date. Came up with a couple of important interventions though, notably producing a vital turnover as South Africa looked to score. 6
3 Tadhg Furlong: Was bested by Ox Nche for large parts of the game in the scrum, and gave away a few penalties. Came off early into the second-half. 5
2 Ronan Kelleher: He had big shoes to fill stepping in for clubmate Dan Sheehan, but Kelleher gave a good account of himself in the starting role. The scrum might have struggled, but the lineout was just as accurate and he fronted up on both sides of the ball. 6
1 Andrew Porter: Struggled to impose himself at scrum-time against Frans Malherbe, but he fronted up well in the loose. He packed a punch in defence, and made plenty of work in attack too. 6
Replacements: The Irish bench was what ultimately won them the game. Ciaran Frawley’s cheeky drop-goal stemmed the flow of the South African momentum heading into the final few minutes, but moments later his heroic late drop-goal at the death snatched victory from the jaws of defeat. The power of O’Mahony and Ryan Baird also helped seal the win. 9
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