Jean: Wallabies played for 80
South African captain Jean de Villiers admitted his team was guilty of 'going to sleep' and allowing Australia a late winner in their Rugby Championship encounter.
Wing Rob Horne scored a thrilling try in the dying minutes as the Wallabies overhauled the Springboks 24-23 in Perth on Saturday – for their first win of this year's competition.
Horne stepped off the wing and inside the last defender as he finished off a backline move with two minutes left, before Bernard Foley landed the crucial conversion to seal victory by a point.
"I thought we played pretty well in stages, but they played well right to the end and scored the try," De Villiers said.
"It was a bit tough to defend with 14 players and a few mistakes cost us," he said of a controversial yellow card – dished out to wing Bryan Habana for a 'high tackle'.
"I thought we did well in the first-half to play the conditions well, but we made a few bad errors in the second half."
Australia profited from the controversial late sin-binning Bryan Habana in his 100th Test as they climbed off the bottom of the Southern Hemisphere tournament's table.
The decisive try came just seconds before Habana was due back on the field.
"You've got to be happy to see your wing finish the game by scoring in the corner – lovely," said Australia captain Michael Hooper, who also praised Foley's ice-cool conversion.
"It's his show, it's his moment, he loves it. He had an outstanding game at No.10, controlled the boys well and gets the icing on the cake at the end."
The Springboks defence led 23-14 when Habana was penalised and they defied Australia for most of the period that they played a man short, holding off three powerful attacks on the line.
It looked like the Wallabies would have to settle for just three points, from a Foley penalty, for their efforts during their period of advantage.
But the inclusion of Kurtley Beale in the 73rd minute lifted the Wallabies.
"The coaches have been big on reserves coming on and making an impact, and they did," Hooper said.
"We thought it was in our control – too many penalties in the first half and they punished us. [Flyhalf] Morné [Steyn] can convert them from everywhere."
Source: AFP
