The Springboks and All Blacks are set for a blockbuster rematch at Ellis Park on Saturday, which follows on from the resounding 26-10 victory in favour of the hosts final weekend.
The second match will kick off at 17:05.
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In his column for Sport24, Nick Mallett unpacked simply why the Springboks are so troublesome to play in opposition to at the second, which has additionally seemingly left the All Blacks with out solutions.
“That performance (last Saturday) was as dominant as you are likely to see from the Boks, and while it may not have produced the free-flowing, running rugby so many are calling for, it was another example of precisely what makes the South Africans one of the most feared teams in the game.
“The Springbok way is to strangle teams, put them under pressure and kick them into their half. The Boks don’t want to make any handling errors, which is why they don’t play a game with a lot of intricate passes and lines of running.
“You can go through five or six phases, and then one little knock-on releases the pressure, and I think that’s what people don’t understand about how the Boks play. With the physical quality of the players, they can dominate scrums, have a really good driving maul and a kicking game that they coach intensely, and everyone knows what their role is. There is so much detail in the South African kicking game that no other team can match them if they get it right.
“When you play a side like New Zealand that thrives on errors and open field turnovers, and you allow them to counter against an unstructured defence, that is when you get into trouble. That is where the Springboks were so good last weekend. They stuck to what they knew and executed brilliantly. I don’t know what the statistics say, but it looked like the Boks got back about 70% of the aerial contests, they won three penalties and free kicks from scrums and they drove back the All Black driving maul 30 meters in one play.
“I listened to Foster talking after the match about the progress that his team had made, and that it was about one or two passes sticking or standing a bit deeper that could be the difference. My view is that such a philosophy plays directly into the Springbok defence. While Foster might be correct that the Blacks are one or two passes away, the question is: can you get those one or two passes away against the Springbok defence?
“If the Springboks produce the same incredible intensity on defence this weekend at Ellis Park, then I’m not sure the All Blacks can, and I think it will be a very difficult evening for New Zealand again.”
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MILESTONES
– Handre Pollard is the second highest level scorer in opposition to New Zealand with 136 factors in 13 Test matches, simply three factors fewer than Morné Steyn with 139 factors in 13 Tests
– The very first Test at Ellis Park was performed in opposition to New Zealand on 21 July 1928. New Zealand received that match 7-6
– To date a additional 13 Test matches between the Springboks and All Blacks have been performed at Ellis Park, with the Springboks’ profitable 9 of the 14 whole Tests, whereas the common rating in these matches has been 23-21
– The first Test match in opposition to New Zealand in South Africa came about on 30 June 1928 at Kingsmead in Durban. The Springboks received that match 17-0, the largest profitable margin in opposition to New Zealand till at the moment
– The following could possibly be a distinctive file if achieved: the three Barrett brothers want to attain 35 factors to succeed in a 1 000 factors in Test matches. Their contributions are at present: Beauden Barrett (708 factors), Jordie Barrett (232 factors) and Scott Barrett (25 factors)
– Frans Malherbe will play his fiftieth Test for the Springboks after being named as the beginning tighthead
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SPRINGBOKS RECORD AGAINST ALL BLACKS
– Played 102; Won 38; Lost 60; Drawn 4; Points for: 1 651; Points in opposition to: 2 108, Tries scored 158; Tries conceded 230; Highest rating 46-40 in Johannesburg (2000); Biggest win 17-0 in Durban, 1928. Win % 37%
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MISCELLANEOUS
– The whole Test caps in the Springbok beginning line-up is 715
– There are 257 caps in the backline with 458 caps amongst the forwards. On the bench there are a additional 334 caps
– The common variety of caps per participant in the backline is 36, the forwards 57, whereas the gamers on the bench common 41
TEAMS:
South Africa
15 Damian Willemse (Stormers), 14 Jesse Kriel (Canon Eagles), 13 Lukhanyo Am (Sharks), 12 Damian de Allende (Wild Knights), 11 Makazole Mapimpi (Sharks), 10 Handre Pollard (Leicester Tigers), 9 Jaden Hendrikse (Sharks), 8 Duane Vermeulen (Ulster), 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit (Toyota Verblitz), 6 Siya Kolisi (captain, Sharks), 5 Lood de Jager (Wild Knights), 4 Eben Etzebeth (Sharks), 3 Frans Malherbe (Stormers), 2 Joseph Dweba (Stormers), 1 Ox Nche (Sharks)
Substitutes: 16 Malcolm Marx (Kubota Spears), 17 Steven Kitshoff (Stormers), 18 Vincent Koch (Wasps), 19 Franco Mostert (Honda Heat), 20 Jasper Wiese (Leicester Tigers), 21 Kwagga Smith (Shizuoka Blue Revs), 22 Hershel Jantjies (Stormers), 23 Willie le Roux (Toyota Verblitz)
All Blacks