Oosthuizen injury adds to South Africa’s woes

DUBLIN: The fall- out from South Africa’s record 38- 3 defeat by Ireland intensified Sunday when prop Coenie Oosthuizen was ruled out of the rest of the Springboks’ tour of Europe.

Oosthuizen was on the field for barely a couple of minutes at Dublin’s Lansdowne Road on Saturday before a thumping challenge by Ireland debutant Bundee Aki forced him off with a knee injury.

A South Africa Rugby statement issued Sunday said Oosthuizen would first undergo a scan in Dublin before f lying home to Durban.

It added a decision on his replacement would be made shortly.

Springbok loose forward PieterSteph du Toit sustained concussion in the closing minutes of the match and will be managed accordingly in the coming week, the statement said.

Saturday’s loss was South Africa’s worst against the Irish, easily surpassing the 17- point margin of defeat they suffered in a 32-15 reverse in Dublin in 2006.

This result came just a couple of months after the Springboks suffered an all-time record 57- 0 loss to world champions New Zealand, for so long their traditional rivals at the summit of the global game, in Albany and added to the growing pressure on South Africa coach Allister Coetzee.

“It is difficult to explain. It was disappointing and as a group we take full responsibility,” said Coetzee after Saturday’s match.

“We have three games left on tour and we have to fight our way back. Credit to Ireland they played tactically, very, very well.”

South Africa’s tour continues with a Test against France, beaten 38-18 at home to New Zealand on Saturday, in Paris on November 18.

B efore that match, South Africa will discover if they have won the right to stage the 2023 World Cup.

A technical evaluation report conducted on behalf of the Rugby World Cup board placed 1995 hosts South Africa in front ahead of rivals France and Ireland.

But the final decision rests with the 26 remaining members of the World Rugby Council, who will vote in London on Wednesday.

Between them, those 26 nations control 39 votes, with the winning candidate requiring a simple majority of 20 to win the right to stage the 2023 edition. The three bidding countries are barred from voting.

The current state of rugby union in South Africa, who first won the World Cup on home soil 22 years ago, has led some observers to argue that staging the global showpiece tournament again would act as a catalyst for the revival of the sport in the country. — AFP