The All Blacks Kept Try Less By The Springboks In Cape Town Winning 18-12
By Othieno Bonface
Frustrations in final quarter cost the All Blacks dearly as they faltered again in the face of South African pressure to lose the second Lipovitan-D Rugby Championship Test in Cape Town on Sunday. Springboks edge All Blacks in final minutes.
The All Blacks’ hopes of retaining the Rugby Championship are officially over. It was again the super sub hooker Malcolm Marx who punished All Blacks’ indiscipline which saw prop Tyrel Lomax mar an otherwise fine performance by a late charge on Springbok wing Cheslin Kolbe as he attempted to follow through a kick to the All Blacks’ line.
Down 3-9 at halftime, South Africa came out and looked to move the ball around more. They poured pressure on the New Zealanders throughout the second half once they were in All Blacks’ 22m area. Springboks got into the corner and pounced the defence and were awarded three penalties. Marx went blindside and the maul was played to score in the corner to go out to an 18-12 lead that the All Blacks could not pull back.
Defeat in Cape Town not only made New Zealand Rugby’s trophy cabinet lighter, but also came with a couple of other unwanted statsitics.
The Championship for South Africa, which but sealed the win all saw them claim the Freedom Cup for the first time since 2009 and completed four consecutive wins over the All Blacks, since 1949, for the first time.
Tryless, the All Blacks saw Springboks skipper Siya Kolisi score eight minutes into the second half, to give his side an advantage and a hold on the game the All Blacks couldn’t slip. The All Blacks were unable to score a try in this test, breaking a 64-match streak where they had crossed the line in every outing.
It was a game of dynamic defence, some powerful tackles being applied, and while South Africa missed 37 tackles to only 20 by New Zealand, the desperation of the home side and the seeming impatience of the All Blacks the further into the game they went, minimised their chance to pull the game from the fire.
While the first hit the post and was reclaimed by second five-eighth Jordie Barrett, All Blacks’ first five-eighths, Damian McKenzie, missed two penalty goal attempts, and couldn’t cash in on the chance.
When skipper and lock Scott Barrett couldn’t hold a ball that hit him in the face as a promising move shaped, their best chance of the half faltered. This summed up the side’s continuing inability to complete opportunities.
Down 3-9, South Africa, came out and looked to move the ball around more. They poured on pressure once in the All Blacks’ 22m area. Three penalties were awarded, and the Springboks got into the corner and pounded the defence.
Eventually, captain and flanker Siya Kolisi crossed for the game’s first try after eight minutes from a lineout.
The second half contrasted with a more controlled display in the first 40 minutes.
Past days of All Blacks-Springboks were played out with thrust typically met by counter-thrust. It was bruising as both sides got their power play working.
In spite superb tackling dropped the big men quickly, with flanker Sam Cane, captain and lock Barrett, prop Lomax and outstanding hooker Codie Taylor all making crucial plays, South Africa twice got close to the All Blacks’ line,. The pressure was on the home side as they coughed up the ball, and Cane, Barrett, and halfback Cortez Ratima picked off the turnover ball.
The All Blacks looking to get their running game going, and on the few occasions looking likely to have Taylor again leading the way with solid runs with the ball in hand. From new blindside operator Wallace Sititi, who stepped into the white-hot atmosphere with relish, he had good support.
The difference came when South Africa denied them the continuity they sought in proving capable of opening up gaps the more and retaining the ball and seeing South Africa miss 26 tackles to seven.
McKenzie took the chance to land two penalty goals from close to the posts, adding another from 42 metres for a halftime lead of 9-3 and that involved conceding penalties in their 22m area.
Muliana said, “They are [better than the All Blacks]. They are the world champions; they have now taken the Freedom Cup back that hasn’t been won since 2009. And all going well they should win the Rugby Championship.”
The New Zealand centurions Mils Muliana believes that it has very much settled the debate over which team is best after the Boks held onto their number one ranking. Against a resurgent Australian team, the challenge doesn’t ease as the All Blacks attempt to retain the Bledisloe Cup in their final two games of the Championship.
Since its inception in 2012, the All Blacks have dominated this competition, but South Africa have proved to be far too strong this year.
JUDY ROTICH