Fans off mark in attacking Bok performance online

MY pretest prediction was a Springbok win by five points or less against the Wallabies, but I felt there was so little to separate the two squads that it would not surprise me if Australia sneaked in by a similar margin.

The two teams could not be separated in the history of the Rugby Championship – formerly the Tri Nations series.

Both had won 42 games, drawn two and lost 57 of their respective 101 matches.

Remarkably, the two countries conceded pretty much the same number of points.

South Africa had a 32% win ratio in Australia and had won three and drawn one of the eight tests played in Perth.

The Boks were five from five for the season, but were playing an Australian team that was within two minutes of beating the All Blacks in Dunedin the previous fortnight.

The Australians, based on the nine tries scored in two tests against the All Blacks, deserved respect and acknowledgement for their attacking potency.

Their lineout game was also the best in the early rounds of the competition.

Give Australia their due for their part in forcing a 23-23 draw against the Springboks.

The vitriol and negativity of South African supporters around the draw on social media have been outrageous.

The Springboks did well to put themselves in a position to win the test with their final play of possession.

Elton Jantjies’s drop goal was charged down and the Springboks nearly profited from a favourable bounce after that.

The margins in test rugby are minute when two evenly matched teams clash.

We saw that in the All Blacks and British and Irish Lions series – and again in Perth.

The quality of the match disappointed but the intent and conviction from both teams made for a proper test.

The arrogance and ignorance from so many South African supporters condemning the Springboks on social media are what should be condemned. Get some perspective on where the Boks were a year ago – in terms of test pedigree – and appreciate what this team have achieved in its first six tests of this year.

The Boks were stifled in the first 20 minutes in Perth and survived on defence and 35% ball and field position in the first half.

Yet they turned just three points in arrears against an Australian collective that was dominant in winning the ball and retaining it.

The Boks were great in fighting back from a 20-10 deficit on 50 minutes to lead 23-20 with 15 minutes to go.

They were also the stronger team in the final five minutes.

It is a credit to the Australian discipline and defence that South Africa could not force any pointscoring opportunity.

The Springboks’ opening 40 minutes was their least effective of the season, so credit must go to the Australians.

The period between 50 and 65 minutes was as good as South Africa have played this year, and they were playing a team superior to the French and Pumas.

The pessimism of many South Africans on social media defies belief because it is an insult to the Wallabies – the same side which scored seven unanswered tries against the world champion All Blacks in Sydney and Dunedin.

I was hugely encouraged by the fight of the Boks defensively.

South Africa’s defence was in a shambles a year ago, but it has been transformed.

The Boks’ conditioning is also incomparable to a year ago. South Africa have controlled the final stages in every test this season. The Bok bench players are making an explosive and influential impact that, for the past two seasons, had been exclusive to the All Blacks.

It is remarkable how negative so many South Africans were after the draw – more so when weighted against the praise from within the All Blacks coaching and playing staff of the quality of the Wallabies and Springboks in the Rugby Championship.

Perth represented further progress and there will justifiably be conviction within the Bok squad that there are more possibilities than improbabilities of a rare win against the All Blacks in New Zealand.