NOW FOR WALES
QUARTERFINAL: SPRINGBOKS OUTGUN BRAVE JAPAN
After a sloppy first half, Rassie’s men turn on the power.
The Springboks marched into the World Cup semifinals yesterday after beating a brave but outplayed Japan 26-3 in Tokyo.
It wasn’t a pretty victory for the Boks, but it set up a last-four date with Wales, who edged a 14-man France 20-19 in a thrilling quarterfinal.
“It was exactly what we expected,” Bok captain Siya Kolisi said of the strong Japanese challenge.
“We knew exactly what Michael Leitch (Japan captain) and his boys were going to bring. They set the battle lines the whole of last week, and they said they were coming for us and our set-piece.”
Kolisi lauded his team’s solid defence, especially after conceding just three points while prop Beast Mtawarira was off the field following a yellow card in the 10th minute.
“It took a lot out of us to keep fighting, but credit to the boys. We kept fighting and ground out the win,” the skipper said.
“We played in front of a beautiful crowd and the people of Japan have been amazing. “They should be proud of their team. They gave it everything they could.”
The Boks enjoyed a superb start, with wing Makazole Mapimpi beating two defenders and scoring their first try after just four minutes, following a crisp pass by scrumhalf Faf de Klerk.
Matters then went a bit pearshaped for the SA side, however, when Mtawarira was yellow-carded for a tip-tackle, which put their defence under immense pressure, and with Japan threatening to take control of the game, only some desperate Bok defence managed to keep them out.
After leading just 5-3 at the break, decisive tries by Mapimpi and Man-of-the-Match De Klerk, who dotted down after a superb offload from the back of the maul by hooker Malcolm Marx, enabled the Boks to put some daylight on the scoreboard.
The Boks were guilty of poor execution and were not clinical enough in the first half, with fullback Willie le Roux and centre Lukhanyo Am costing them at least two tries, while a try just before the break by centre Damian de Allende was disallowed because he had his knees on the ground.
Another potential try by flank Pieter-Steph du Toit seven minutes after the break was also ruled out by referee Wayne Barnes, with Le Roux involved again by delivering a shocking forward pass.
Progressing to the penultimate round, the Boks are set to face Wales in their semifinal clash in Yokohama on Sunday.
South Africa booked a showdown with Wales in the semifinals after a powerful effort – and even denied Japan a try.