South Africa seal four-try demolition of Pumas to leave bad memories behind them
South Africa took another step toward banishing the bad memories of 2016 with a 37-15 win over Argentina to open their Rugby Championship campaign yesterday. The Springboks scored four tries to two and led throughout at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium to continue a revival that began with a 3-0 series whitewash over France in June.
South Africa began with a 16-phase attack and although Argentina held out well under that early onslaught, it was a sign of things to come.
But the home team twice had to respond to tries by Argentina, with the visitors touching down first, against the run of play, when scrum-half Martin their social activities did not hinder their efforts in training or in the midweek games against the Highlanders, Chiefs and Hurricanes. “That didn’t detract from us working our b------s off as much as we could because we wanted to be part of a successful Lions tour,” Marler said. “We wanted the boys to go out there and win 3-0. We trained very hard and we pushed boys in our positions as hard as we could to make sure they were ready for the Tests.”
Yet Marler says it was apparent early on who the coaches were favouring in certain positions. In his own case, Mako Vunipola, who acted as his understudy during the Six Nations for England, and Ireland’s Jack McGrath established themselves ahead of the 28-year-old in the pecking order.
“We knew pretty early doors what the crack was,” Marler said. “We knew it would be very hard to play your way into that Test team – you were kind of relying on someone playing their way out of it and hoping you were in a position to go right ‘needed for that spot’.”
How did he learn that? “Just the general selections,” Marler said. “You could read between the lines of when teams were picked and what teams were picked on what days and what teams they were playing against.”
Previous Lions tours have been derailed by the treatment or behaviour of the midweek side. The last tour to New Zealand in 2005 resulted in the midweek team being dislocated from the main touring party. In 1993, again in New Zealand, the dirt-trackers’ social activities had a distracting effect on the Test team. Landajo finished off a counter-attack in the 32nd minute. Winger Courtnall Skosan bounced up from a half-tackle by Argentina’s defence to score his first test try five minutes later. There was also a first test score for South Africa’s other wing, Raymond Rhule, in the second half.
Forwards Siya Kolisi and PieterSteph du Toit made sure of an openinground victory for the Boks after Emiliano Boffelli’s try closed the gap to game away from home this year, though, and will test the extent of the revival.
Allister Coetzee, the South Africa coach, who almost lost his job last year but has seen his team record four wins out of four this year, said: “We’re happy with the start.”
“We can’t wait for next week,” said Springboks captain Eben Etzebeth, who is standing in for injured skipper Warren Whiteley. Nevertheless, Marler has a certain degree of sympathy for Sir Clive Woodward, whose reputation took such a battering on the 2005 tour. “I had heard a lot about the ’05 tour and the fact that Clive Woodward had taken a big squad and split it – officially split it – they had separate coaching staff and they would travel at different times,” Marler said. “Having experienced what I did in the summer made me understand why he did that more, but you don’t need to do that in order to make it work. “You can still make it work the way we did. You are still altogether – there wasn’t a single separation or faction in that squad, irrelevant of whether the boys were starting in the Tests or the midweek games. It was genuinely a great group of blokes that had a really good time. My drinking ability had to step up a bit.”
Still, in light of Manu Tuilagi and Denny Solomona’s recent indiscretion, Marler is not prepared to tell Eddie Jones, the England head coach, to adopt the midweekers’ policy on socialising. “I don’t suggest anything to Eddie – I don’t say a word to him mate – just keep my head down and let the boss do what he
‘Every time I spoke to my wife on FaceTime she asked whether I was p----d again’
23-15. Fly-half Elton Jantjies landed two early penalties on his way to 17 points. South Africa also beat Argentina at home last year before being beaten away in Salta in the return game – one of eight defeats in 12 tests, the most losses ever for South Africa in a season. The 2017 team, with new personnel like Skosan and Rhule, should be in a much happier place when they head to Argentina for the return match next weekend. That will be the Boks’ first