The All Blacks were superb at Mount Smart Stadium, particularly in the first quarter, but aside from the first 20 minutes where the Boks really struggled to keep a lid on the All Blacks, I don’t think Jacques Nienaber’s charges will be too disappointed with the form they showed last weekend. Five years ago, the Boks could have taken 40 points against the All Blacks, but their fightback underlined the resilience in this side.
An interesting statistic from the 104th Test match between the old foes showed that the All Blacks kicked 28 times as opposed to South Africa’s 14. Those numbers did seem a little bit strange. Normally if you look at those stats they will be more even or probably the other way round from a kicking perspective. You could say it was a bit of shadow boxing in the first Test between the two sides in the build-up to a World Cup. The sides meet again next month at Twickenham and it appeared that the Boks were also holding back some tactics at the lineout, having hardly contested the All Black throw-ins in Auckland.
One New Zealand scribe wasn’t impressed with the Bok display and wrote: “This was an old Springbok side. A team of World Cup-winners nearer the end of their careers than the start.”
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Denne historien er fra July 23, 2023-utgaven av The Rugby Paper.
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Ten-try Chiefs show Pirates no mercy
TEN-TRY Exeter inflicted the backlash from six successive defeats in their worst ever start to a Premiership season on a young Pirates side suffering their own problems in the Championship.
South America look to keep on building
AS Sebastián Piñeyrúa's historic six-year term as President of Rugby Sudamérica comes to an end, his replacement shows no signs of slowing down.
Scarratt excited by new pathway
ENGLAND centurion Emily Scarratt is delighted with the new women's BUCS programme which aims to provide a smoother pathway for young aspiring female players.
Baxter: I want to make things better
ROB Baxter will not be walking away from Exeter, the only club still looking for a Premiership victory this season, believing he can get the Chiefs back on track and he cannot bear the thought of anyone else doing the job.
Pearce walks in his father's footsteps
PADDY Pearce is living a dream after emulating his father and great-uncle by playing for the club he supported as a boy, Bristol.
New England group will cause uncertainty
SO JUST when we thought that everything was getting sorted between the RFU, the clubs and players, a number of new agreements and a new group raises its head.
Galthie turns his sights to the future
FRANCE head coach Fabien Galthie offered the clearest hint yet of Les Bleus' future on Wednesday, when he released 19 players back F to their clubs for the ninth and final Top 14 round before the international break.
Gilmore has tightened up our defence - Anderson
CAMERON Anderson has hailed the impact made by defence coach Jason Gilmore, below, since he arrived at The Stoop in the summer.
Ampthill given 11-try lesson in class from Bath
BATH secured a thumping away success in the opening match of their Premiership Rugby Cup campaign against Ampthill at Dillingham Park.
New faces take the plaudits for Saints
NORTHAMPTON handed out a thorough lesson to a tame Leicester team in this one-sided East Midlands derby to launch the Premiership Cup.
