Springboks blank Wales...again

MATCH REPORT: The Springboks were not at their clinical best, but they still managed to record a 43-0 victory over Wales in their Nations Championship Round Three clash in Durban on Saturday.

In a scrappy performance, the South Africans scored seven tries on their way to the bonus-point win, while also denying Wales any points for a second game in a row between the two sides.

The previous match between them ended in a 73-0 victory for the Boks in Cardiff in November.

This latest victory was the Springboks’ third in a row in July, and it sent them back on top of the Southern Hemisphere standings before the tournament heads to the north later this year.

The Springboks entered the match with four debutants in the form of Carlu Sadie, Ruben van Heerden, Vusi Moyo and Jaco Williams.

Williams was one of the try-scorers, while Moyo landed three conversions.

After taking a couple of minutes to find their feet, the Springboks opened the scoring in the fifth minute when Jasper Wiese crashed through two defenders to sprint in for a try.

The sheer power of the Boks’ scrum played a role in the build-up for the next try. They won a put-in after destroying Wales in the previous set-piece, and it paved the way for Cobus Reinach to pick up the ball and sprint in for a five-pointer.

Despite all their dominance with possession and territory, the Boks were also guilty of wasting opportunities with poor handling.

They eventually added one more try to the scoresheet before the break when Jesse Kriel pounced on a loose ball before going over the tryline after a cross-kick by Vusi Moyo.

It was the perfect start to the second half for the Boks with Williams scoring a try after Wales failed to deal with a high ball in their own half.

After another scrappy period of play, the home side were in again in the 63rd minute with Herschel Jantjies marking his return to Test rugby with a well-worked try, which involved Williams down the touchline.

Wales also suffered a blow with Ben Warren in the sin bin for a high tackle on Marco van Staden.

To rub salt in the visitors’ wounds, Rassie Erasmus’ side scored another two tries via Kurt-Lee Arendse and Paul de Villiers before the end of the match.

Man of the match: It was a great debut for Jaco Williams, who scored a try and created another one. However, we have decided to give the award to Paul de Villiers, who produced an industrious performance around the park, and that included the breakdowns. He also capped off his display by scoring the final try.

The scorers:

For South Africa:
Tries: J Wiese, Reinach, Kriel, Williams, Jantjes, Arendse, De Villiers
Cons: Moyo 3, Libbok

For Wales: None

Yellow card: Ben Warrem (Wales, 65′ – foul play, high tackle)

Teams:

South Africa: 15 Aphelele Fassi, 14 Jaco Williams, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 10 Vusi Moyo, 9 Cobus Reinach, 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Paul de Villiers, 5 Ruben van Heerden, 4 Cobus Wiese, 3 Carlu Sadie, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Gerhard Steenekamp
Replacements: 16 Andre-Hugo Venter, 17 Jan-Hendrik Wessels, 18 Wilco Louw, 19 Ben-Jason Dixon, 20 Marco van Staden, 21 Herschel Jantjies, 22 Manie Libbok, 23 Damian Willemse

Wales: 15 Blair Murray, 14 Louis Rees-Zammit, 13 Max Llewellyn, 12 Ben Thomas, 11 Ellis Mee, 10 Dan Edwards, 9 Tomos Williams, 8 Aaron Wainwright, 7 Jac Morgan, 6 Alex Mann, 5 Adam Beard, 4 Teddy Williams, 3 Dillon Lewis, 2 Dewi Lake (captain), 1 Rhys Carre.
Replacements: 16 Ryan Elias, 17 Nicky Smith, 18 Ben Warren, 19 Freddie Thomas, 20 Tommy Reffell, 21 James Botham, 22 Reuben Morgan-Williams, 23 Joe Hawkins.

Referee: Andrew Brace (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Pierre Brousset (France), James Doleman (New Zealand)
TMO: Olly Hodges (Ireland)