Boks' losing streak continues
New Zealand recorded a well-deserved 45-26 victory over South Africa in a bruising encounter in Pretoria on Saturday, running in five tries and ensuring the Boks' worst run of defeats since they were re-admitted to rugby union post-Apartheid.
There are few feathers left to add to Graham Henry's cap, but one was added at Loftus Versfeld this weekend: a win over the Boks in South Africa. Just one diminutive gold pot remains out of his grasp -- for the moment, that is.
The All Blacks, who have already won the tournament, scored five tries and were good value for the win, with Henry making it third time lucky after two consecutive away losses against the Springboks in as many years in the Tri-Nations.
Jake White's cap is not quite as cluttered as his counterpart's. This is now the worst losing streak since South Africa's readmission and the spotlight over the Bok boss will grow a little more intense.
It was a beautiful day on the Highveld. Opulent cumulus clouds hung motionless in the big African skies. There was a palpable sense that something grand was about to happen.
Indeed it did: the Boks restored a little pride in their rugby and the All Blacks proved that they are fallible.
A fallible 45-26 victory? A pride-restoring 45-26 defeat? Perhaps we should back up a wee bit -- it was an extremely confusing afternoon.
Like Pretoria, recently renamed Tshwane, this was a game that struggled to define itself. Was it a brilliant advert for rugby or a disjointed mess? A joy to behold or embarrassment?
It would be unfair to say that either side played poorly -- but neither side would look back at this match with much fondness.
Yes, there were moments of brilliance -- but also episodes of pure idiocy. Some beautiful rugby, but also some moments of barbarism -- the sort of thuggery that Helen Clark might be inclined to call "acts of assault". Indeed, the citing commissioner is unlikely to have an early night.
The schizophrenia extended even to the stadium clock. South Africa owned the first 20 minutes of the game and the last 20 minutes; New Zealand feasted on the sandwich's filling.
Despite the flaky performances, two absolute truths remain etched in stone -- the All Blacks are still the current Picassos of world rugby, able to forge masterpieces with the merest flick of the wrist; the Springboks continue to paint by numbers.
And so it was that South Africa began the game -- blasting the visitors with big hits and crash balls, playing with fire in their bellies and textbooks in their pockets.
It worked wonderfully as an opening gambit but the All Blacks hit back once their hosts had burnt themselves out.
Percy Montgomery kicked two penalties to put the Springboks 6-0 up after only four minutes. Dan Carter managed to halve the deficit with a three-pointer only for the hosts to extend their lead through a Fourie du Preez try.
All Blacks captain Richie McCaw, having turned the ball over from Akona Ndungane, then lost possession himself, allowing scrum-half Du Preez to pick up and motor over for the opening score.
Carter brought the All Blacks to within five points with another penalty before Mils Muliaina sped down the near touchline, offloaded to Rico Gear, who cut inside only to be stopped a metre short.
The recycled ball was spread wide and Carter stabbed on for Neemia Tialata to touch down.
Carter stretched the lead to eight points with penalties prior to and after half-time before the Boks conceded three tries in 10 minutes.
First, Luke McAlister stripped the first line of defence from the halfway line to go over before Jerry Collins took a quick tap and sent Sitiveni Sivivatu past a clutch of forwards to score the third try.
The fourth came when New Zealand forced a turnover, launched a counter attack, and saw Muliaina finish off a flowing move to put his side 38-14 up.
The game needed two late tries from Jaque Fourie to make the scoreline easier on the eye for the hosts.
The centre scored the first of his brace when he received a flip-pass from Jacques Cronjé on a blindside move to power his way over from close range and then got his second when he was on the shoulder of Jean de Villiers to score under the posts.
That brought the Boks to within 10 points, but as they were edging closer to the All Blacks line, another turnover saw Gear run 70 metres to complete the victory.
Man of the match: The Springbok half-backs didn't disgrace themselves, Jean de Villiers was a welcome addition to the SA lines, and Jaque Fourie took his tries well. But this award will be returning to New Zealand. Dan Carter recovered from so early wobbles to stamp his usual authority on proceedings. Jerry Collins and Chris Masoe were as cerebral as he was forceful. Rico Gear created much those around, and Sitiveni Sivivatu had one of his better games. But we're handing this award to the calm and ever-dependable Mils Muliaina, the unsung hero of New Zealand's dazzling backline.
Moment of the match: The early exchange raised a few eyebrows -- you don't see idols melt into mortals on everyday of the year. But for that eternal "that was-the-game-in-which..." moment, look no further the that soaring 62m penalty from Dan Carter on the stroke of half-time -- it meant so much than three points.
Villain of the match: Isaia Toeava will feel a little villainous after dropping a try-scoring pass, but we'll leave the AB fines council to sort that one out. As usual, a few silly slaps were exchange by the 'prettier' members of both sides; more unusually, several of the bigger fellows decided to come to blows in a few very ugly encounters. There's plenty of video to pick over, but for the moment we'll single out the most obvious offender, Ali Williams, who landed a accomplished right-hook to Johann Muller's face. The big AB lock seems destined to miss out on a the trip to Rustenburg. Not much of a punishment, granted.
The scorers:
For South Africa:
Tries: du Preez, Fourie 2
Cons: Pretorius
Pens: Montgomery 2, James
For New Zealand:
Tries: Tialata, McAlister, Sivivatu, Muliaina, Gear
Cons: Carter 4
Pens: Carter 4
The teams:
South Africa: 15 Percy Montgomery, 14 Akona Ndungane, 13 Jaque Fourie, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Butch James, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Jacques Cronjé, 7 Pierre Spies, 6 Solly Tyibilika, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 Johann Muller, 3 CJ van der Linde, 2 John Smit, 1 Os du Randt.
Replacements: 16 Chilliboy Ralepelle, 17 BJ Botha, 18 Albert van den Berg, 19 Pedrie Wannenburg, 20 Ruan Pienaar, 21 Wynand Olivier, 22 André Pretorius.
New Zealand: 15 Leon MacDonald, 14 Rico Gear, 13 Mils Muliaina, 12 Luke McAlister, 11 Sitiveni Sivivatu, 10 Daniel Carter, 9 Piri Weepu, 8 Chris Masoe, 7 Richie McCaw, 6 Reuben Thorne, 5 Ali Williams, 4 Greg Rawlinson, 3 Greg Somerville, 2 Anton Oliver, 1 Neemia Tialata.
Replacements: 16 Keven Mealamu, 17 Tony Woodcock, 18 Chris Jack, 19 Jerry Collins, 20 Jimmy Cowan, 21 Sam Tuitupou, 22 Isaia Toeava.
Referee: Alan Lewis (Ireland)
Touch judges: Chris White (England), Hugh Watkins (Wales)
Television match official: Eric Darrière (France)
Assessor: Michel Lamoulie (France)
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