Player ratings: BMT!!!
It was a Fourie du Preez try five minutes from time that gave the Springboks a tense 23-19 win over Wales at Twickenham on Saturday.
Wales had thrown everything at the Boks and held a one-point lead when – from a solid scrum – Duane Vermeulen went blind and Du Preez came up in support to get a back-pass and sprint over.
Jan de Koning rates the South African players!
15 Willie le Roux:
Was caught out of position a few times, his kicking also left a lot to be desired and he missed a couple of tackles. However, he made plenty of good metres with ball in hand.
6/10
14 JP Pietersen:
His workrate was phenomenal, especially on defence. Was not bad with ball in hand either or chasing kicks, also making all his tackles.
7/10
13 Jesse Kriel:
Reduced mostly to a defensive role for most of the match and made all his tackles, while he had a couple of decent runs late in the second half.
6/10
12 Damian de Allende:
Real mixed bag that came out in the positive column. Held the ball in one hand that gifted Wales a turnover and also missed a few tackles. However, won back a couple of crucial turnovers and often made ground with ball in hand.
7/10
11 Bryan Habana:
Won a crucial break-down penalty on his own 22 and was rock solid on defence. Not many chances with ball in hand.
6/10
10 Handré Pollard:
His distribution skills were fine and made plenty of metres, but his goal-kicking let him down in the second half – luckily it didn't cost his team too much.
6/10
9 Fourie du Preez (captain):
Still a player for the BIG moments. While he was not flawless, he kept his match-winning play in the bank till he really needed it.
9/10
8 Duane Vermeulen:
Worked very hared and was very good value at the breakdown, making some crucial turnovers. However, his tendency to go high in the tackle cost his team at times. That pass for Du Preez's try made up for all his blunders.
8/10
7 Schalk Burger:
Lots of carries, mostly effective, and a few neat offloads. However, he also made some poor decisions and conceded some penalties.
7/10
6 Francois Louw:
His workrate, on defence and at the breakdown, was immense. His hands did let him down at times, but his carries made up for that.
7/10
5 Lodewyk de Jager:
His ball-carrying remains a huge boon to the Boks, but he also made a few errors – missed tackles and penalties.
7/10
4 Eben Etzebeth:
Some big carries and good workrate, but missed a couple of tackles and conceded silly penalties.
6/10
3 Frans Malherbe:
Gave the Boks the solidity they needed in the scrums and did some valuable work away from the set pieces.
6/10
2 Bismarck du Plessis:
His basics were solid, made a crucial tackle on the cross-cover early in the game and worked hard away from the set pieces.
6/10
1 Tendai Mtawarira:
Had some good carries and was steady in the scrums, but his workrate is not up to standard yet.
5/10
Replacements:
16 Adriaan Strauss (on for B fu Plessis in 12th min (blood sub) and again 56th min):
Added real value and made a huge impact with ball in hand in his second stint.
7/10
17 Trevor Nyakane (on for Mtawarira, 57th min):
Rock solid in the scrums and made all his tackles.
6/10
18 Jannie du Plessis (on for Malherbe, 61st min):
Was rather quiet and no real impact.
4/10
19 Pieter-Steph du Toit (on for Etzebeth, 68th min):
Not enough time to be rated.
20 Willem Alberts (on for Louw, 68th min):
Not enough time to be rated.
21 Ruan Pienaar:
Not used.
22 Pat Lambie (on for Pollard, 76th min):
Not enough time to be rated.
23 Jan Serfontein (on for Kriel, 68th min):
Not enough time to be rated.
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