Hits & Misses: Magnificent Scotland and inconsistent Women Boks

OPINION: Comeback victories, runaway wins, smashed records, and masterful (and underwhelming) performances – the weekend’s rugby roster had it all.

From the second round of the Nations Championship to the two-Test series between the Springbok Women and the USA, we look at the highs and lows from the weekend’s action.

*Also read: De Villiers, Horn nailed Loftus audition

Hits:

Ntamack and the comeback kings

Les Bleus not only produced a second-half demolition of the Wallabies in their own backyard, but smashed records whilst doing so.

The result marked France’s fourth straight victory over Australia – the first time since 1967 they’ve achieved the feat – while claiming their first win in Brisbane in 54 years.

France scored 30 points in the second half and boasted 25 unanswered points before Australia got a consolation try with two minutes to fulltime.

The men in blue relentlessly stormed Australia’s 22, but the Wallabies did enough to keep them out… until Romain Ntamack had a say in the matter.

Ntamack’s score early in the third quarter not only handed the lead back to France (21-25), but also appeared to be the finishing boost the visitors needed as they had no trouble finding the chalk after that and ran in three more tries en route to their 26-42 triumph.

Jordan key in All Blacks’ second-half demolition job

The All Blacks’ second-half surge was a team effort, but the role that Will Jordan played was as big as they come.

The hosts were off the mark in the opening half, but a third-quarter resurgence buried Italy as New Zealand soared to a 47-17 victory in Wellington.

The Kiwis not only cracked the Azzurri’s rush defence after the break, but nullified it. And no man was more deserving of the Man of the Match award than the humble Jordan.

His hat-trick saw him break the All Blacks’ all-time try-scoring record. He has now scored 50 tries in 56 Tests.

While he was instrumental in their first try of the second half with that brilliant take, it was his try-line visits that stood out above all his other contributions. And there were many.

He not only scored two of the hosts’ four tries in the third quarter, but racked up 92 metres, beat five defenders, and won two turnovers. Sublime.

Springboks v Scotland classic

Whatever you wear, wear it well.

Those words might have originated as a fashion philosophy, but at the weekend, it was just as applicable to rugby.

And man, did Scotland rock that underdog outfit.

The visitors weren’t given a chance going into their titanic challenge against the Springboks, but they not only stayed in it for the majority of the game, but dominated.

Scotland had the upper hand in the first 10 minutes of the Test and made their intention of playing a fast game clear – at the breakdowns, at the line-out, with the ball in hand. It was high-tempo all round.

For large parts of the game it looked like it could have gone either way, and the Boks even appeared to be in trouble given the visiting side’s relentless determination and with the scores being deadlocked at halftime, and while Scotland certainly deserve credit for pushing the Boks all the way at Loftus, so do the hosts for finding a way to win (42-28) despite coming second in a number of stats charts.

Scotland may not have emerged as giant-slayers, but they would certainly have gained respect, while the Springboks sent the rest of the rugby world back to their abstract algebra-like how-to-beat-the-Boks notes.

If there is one game where a draw wouldn’t have felt like kissing your sister, for Scotland at least, this was it.

Continues below…

Misses:

Simione Kuruvoli’s Momentum-Halting Thuggery

It’s hard to imagine what the Fiji scrumhalf was thinking when he kicked England’s Ellis Genge in the chest, but what’s not hard is understanding why he deserved it.

Just before halftime, Fiji’s first try was scrapped upon TMO review, which showed Kuruvoli kicking the England loosehead after he held onto him in the tackle.

While Genge had fully let go of him, he still felt the need to deliver the mindless act.

His straight red card was the final blow in a personal performance that was littered with errors in the form of knock-ons and conceded penalties.

Had Kuruvoli not left the field, Fiji could have taken some momentum into halftime and added a bit more dignity to a Test that became a 73-8 slaughterhouse.

Bok Women’s Second-Test Dim

A draw is not how they would have wanted their Test series against the USA to end, but given the lacklustre nature of the South Africans’ performance, a win was probably never in the cards.

The hosts suffered a 19-26 loss at Loftus after trailing by two points at halftime.

Errors and ill-discipline were the Springbok Women’s biggest downfall, and they were in a completely different league to last week – when an impressive, dominant performance saw them topple the USA for the first time in 15 years.

A morale-boosting, history-making series victory was theirs for the taking, but they lacked the composure to handle the pressure when it mattered.