BRISBANE, Australia, September (ANA) – The Wallabies ground out an uninspiring 23-18 win over the Springboks in an error-riddled Rugby Championship clash in Brisbane on Saturday.
It's a second loss in a row for the Boks, and this one will especially hurt considering that the South African side were their own worst enemy for so much of the match.
Basic errors and soft moments cost the Springboks dearly, with the Wallabies ultimately overturning a half-time deficit to claim what for them is a much-needed win.
The Boks made the worst possible start to this clash when they were exposed on defence once again, with Wallabies captain Michael Hooper ultimately diving over for a try in the second minute.
However, the Springboks responded well with Steven Kitshoff winning a scrum penalty, which allowed Elton Jantjies a shot at goal that he duly converted.
The visitors then opted to twice turn down a shot at goal to instead set up an attacking lineout, and at the second time of asking, Bongi Mbonambi barged over from the back of another powerful drive to score.
It signified an impressive turnaround from the Springboks, who continued to suck the life out of the Wallabies up front before a beautiful pass from Faf de Klerk put Makazole Mapimpi away to score in the corner on the half-an-hour mark.
Despite all that good work, Mbonambi then endured a horror moment as he overthrew a lineout five metres from the Bok tryline, which allowed Matt Toomua in for the easiest of tries under the posts. Notably, Mbonambi was then subbed five minutes before halftime.
At that point, the Springboks desperately needed something to settle them down after an error-riddled period of play, and that came through a scrum penalty just before the break, with Jantjies slotting the three points to send his side into an 18-14 lead.
Yet, the Wallabies would have the last say of the half when Reece Hodge slotted a long-range penalty to cut the deficit to just a solitary point.
At the start of the second half, the Boks spent 10 minutes camped on their tryline as the Wallabies went on the hunt for another try, but could find no way through a solid wall of defence.
Nevertheless, the Wallabies would hit the lead through a 55th-minute penalty to Toomua,
The game degenerated into a terribly scrappy affair in wet-weather conditions, but Australia would edge further ahead when Toomua slotted a penalty with 10 minutes left to play.
The Boks would have an opportunity to snatch an undeserved victory when they camped in Australian territory late in the game but typically failed to convert any opportunity.
Scorers: Wallabies 23 (17): Tries: Michael Hooper, Matt Toomua. Conversions: Toomua (2). Penalties: Reece Hodge, Toomua (2).
Springboks 18 (18): Tries: Bongi Mbonambi, Makazole Mapimpi. Conversion: Elton Jantjies. Penalties: Jantjies (2).
– African News Agency (ANA)
