Player ratings: South Africa

OPINION: They always talk about the famed ‘bomb squad’. On Saturday, South Africa unleashed a nuclear bomb on a rampant New Zealand team.

Malcolm Marx, from the moment he took to the field in the 45th minute, battered the All Blacks into submission and scored the match-winning try in the 73rd minute of an 18-12 win in a Rugby Championship Round Four outing in Cape Town on Saturday.

The headlines will focus on the Springboks reclaiming the Freedom Cup for the first time since 2009 and being within grasp of also winning the SANZAAR championship.

But it was the impact of their nuclear bomb, Marx, and other senior stars like Siya Kolisi and Pieter-Steph du Toit that turned the game on its head.

Jan de Koning rates the South African players!

15 Willie le Roux
He again showed he is steady under the high ball, contrary to popular belief and almost everything that was good about the Boks reflected in his game. It was a creative masterclass and he unfairly yellow-carded for a deliberate knock-on.
8/10

14 Canan Moodie
Showed how dangerous he could be with limited opportunities – four carries for 40 metres. Chased well, but overall a quieter day than usual. He also missed four tackles.
6/10

13 Jesse Kriel
His hands was really poor – with knock-ons and stray passes. Not a good day by his usually high standards, but his 10 tackles were valuable.
6/10

12 Damian de Allende
He was a monster with the ball in hand – a match-high nine carries for 58 minutes, 10 passes (some neat touches), to go with his eight tackles.
8/10

11 Cheslin Kolbe
Very energetic and always a threat – the real magic maker. Perhaps a touch too manic at times, but still a very valuable asset.
7/10

10 Handre Pollard
His execution early on was not the greatest, but he was taking the ball to the line more often and had good variety and vision in his game. He even picked up a loose ball at a ruck. Three missed tackles.
6/10

9 Grant Williams
His service was not the quickest and done by the ref for time-wasting early on. He was also penalised at tackle and conceded a turnover.
5/10

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8 Jasper Wiese
He had a high workrate, but his control was not always 100 percent. Three missed tackles, but won a turnover at a ruck after one of those. He was also yellows-carded for a tackle off the ball and got isolated and conceded another penalty.
5/10

7 Pieter-Steph du Toit
Build a statue for this giant of a man. If his hard work, powerful charges, valuable metres and 13 tackles were not enough, he won a crucial line-out at the end to seal the win and his performance.
9/10

6 Siya Kolisi
Talk about a captain’s inning. There was a big hit on Mark Tele’a early on and a big hit on Barrett later on – taking his tackles stats into double digits. He scored the first try of the match at a crucial stage and his workrate was top shelve.
9/10

5 Ruan Nortje
Had a very ordinary start, and failed to catch a line-out ball. However, worked his way back into the game and made a match-high 16 tackles.
7/10

4 Eben Etzebeth
His workrate was immense and he completed 14 tackles – offset by the four he missed. By his standards, it was a mixed bag.
6/10

3 Frans Malherbe
He was powerful in the scrums, but outside of that his workrate was ordinary – just four tackles and no carries.
5/10

2 Bongi Mbonambi
Like the entire front row, he was powerful in the scrums, but his line-out throws were not good enough and in the first-half was at only 78 percent. Was isolated and conceded a penalty after a powerful run.
5/10

1 Ox Nche
Powerful scrums, some strong carries and a number of dominant tackle. The most productive player in the starting front row.
6/10

Replacements:

16 Malcolm Marx (on for Mbonambi – 45 min)
Made an immediate impact and scored the match-winning try. He changed the momentum of the game with some strong carries and big hits on defence. The Bok line-out also improved when he came on.
9/10

17 Gerhard Steenekamp (on for Nche – 53 min)
He conceded a crucial breakdown penalty and his workrate was not good enough.
5/10

18 Vincent Koch (on for Malherbe – 52 min)
Strong in the scrums, but struggled to get into the game – making little ground with his four carries and only completed four tackles.
6/10

19 Kwagga Smith (on for Kolisi – 55 min)
Another player who was rather quiet by his usual standards. Had the occasional burst of energy.
6/10

20 Elrigh Louw (on for Wiese – 52 min)
Incredible workrate to get back on defence and help his team. Made some strong carries and got isolated in tackle one tackle – conceding a penalty.
6/10

21 Jaden Hendrikse (on for Williams – 59 min)
Brought some much-needed tempo with his service at the base of the set pieces and rucks. His kicking was also much more effective.
7/10

22 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (on for Pollard – 52 min)
A bit more fluency on attack. However, his execution was not flawless. He missed two crucial kicks. Some impressive numbers with ball in hand .
6/10

23 Lukhanyo Am (on for Moodie – 45 min)
He was in need of a gallop and it showed when he was out of position on defence and left space out wide. He will improve with more game time.
5/10

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