Jean’s boys bury the Brisbane bogey
THIS was a seminal day in SA rugby as the Springboks secured a record win in Australia, surpassing their 18-6 margin in Sydney in 1971, at the same time laying down a marker for the All Blacks who loom in Auckland next week.
The nature of the victory and the sheer brutal dominance of their performance, thanks to a pack that simply crushed the Wallabies, will have caught New Zealand’s attention.
Next weekend the world champions await at Eden Park where the Boks haven’t won since 1937 and the All Blacks haven’t lost since 1994.
But until yesterday the Boks hadn’t triumphed in Brisbane for 42 years. This side has rewritten one piece of history and who would now bet against them adding the most prized scalp of all to their collection under coach Heyneke Meyer?
“It will be a huge mental challenge next week, but we have crossed some barriers this year,” Meyer said. “We won in Soweto and Mendoza for the first time and now here in Brisbane.”
The Boks have now won their last nine matches in a row including their last five away from home, scoring four tries yesterday to earn a bonus point, which took them to the top of the overall Rugby Championship standings with 14 points.
The Boks’ defence was outstanding with the Wallabies trying to run the ball from increasingly impossible positions as they grew more desperate.
What our loose forwards bring to the game is unbelievable
“We won the game in our minds and without the ball,” Meyer said. “All week we spoke about that we had to be able to win the game without the ball. Our set pieces were great, but we needed to stop their momentum. We were able to attack from the platform we laid.”
The Boks were always on the front foot after prop Coenie Oosthuizen, who entered the fray after only three minutes for a bleeding Jannie du Plessis, smashed his way over the try line after a lineout 5m out.
That start rocked the home team and their already attacking mindset went into overdrive after falling behind. It was a suicidal ploy against a Bok loose trio who were at the top of their game.
Even a yellow card for Willem Alberts, who was adjudged to have deliberately knocked the ball on, didn’t upset the Boks. They conceded three points and added three during his cooling off period.
The effect of the bludgeoning Springbok pack took its toll on the Wallabies, who visibly wilted under the barrage of Bok wrecking balls.
Lock Flip van der Merwe and hooker Bismarck du Plessis were especially destructive and after an hour of being smashed all over the park the Wallabies collapsed.
Three tries in the space of eight minutes by Jean de Villiers, fullback Zane Kirchner and wing Willie le Roux ensured the five points.
“Our scrumming is immense at the moment and the new laws are suiting us,” captain Jean de Villiers said. “What our loose forwards bring to the game is unbelievable and I’m so glad they are on my side.”