The Springboks continued their unbeaten run in
Tri Nations 2009 with an impressive win over the Wallabies at the Subiaco Oval in Perth on Saturday, to snuff out any chance they may have had of making a late bid for the trophy. In the process the Springboks put away the pattern which has been so successful for them up to now and instead dusted off their running game to score the tournament's first four-try bonus point.
Springbok tries
Two of the Springbok tries were a direct result of their normal pressure game: the first came as scrumhalf Fourie du Preez seized on a momentary lapse in concentration from the Wallaby defence to take a quick tap and crash over for a close-range individual effort. The second came as Wallaby wing Lachie Turner was unable to control a high catch and knocked the ball straight into the waiting arms of opposite number Bryan Habana who cruised over for an easy touchdown.
The other two Springbok tries were simple set-piece moves which were executed extremely well, to see first Jacque Fourie and then Bryan Habana run through the Wallaby defence without a hand on them. After all the recent criticism about the Springboks' "boring" style of play, it was thrilling to see them running the ball and scoring some excellent tries, and I'm sure the guys enjoyed it too!
Wallabies come back
At 6-22 down at half-time, the Wallabies looked completely out of the game. They'd been outplayed by the red-hot Boks, and their own mistakes had kept them on the back foot for most of the half. However, that all changed after the break and they ran out with renewed intensity and were rewarded shortly with the first of two Matt Giteau tries. After that they waited until the last five minutes of the game for a quick two-try blitz to gain their third losing bonus point for finishing within seven points of the opposition.
That they got so close is a testament to the Wallabies fighting spirit. The fact is they won the half 19-10, and while some of that may be attributed to the Springboks taking their foot off the gas, the Wallabies played very well in patches, as they've done throughout this Tri Nations. They've been regularly winning the first half of their matches - perhaps they're overdue for a game where they win both halves?
Wallaby scrumhalf problems
Scrumhalf Luke Burgess did not have a good game - his passing was imprecise, laboured and inconsistent, and one feels this had a lot to do with the Wallabies' lack of momentum in the first half. Flyhalf Matt Giteau had a poor first half too; without making excuses for him, one wonders how much of this was due to the service he was getting from Burgess? I wouldn't be surprised to see a different player starting at number 9 next week - Will Genia has looked good whenever he's come on, so perhaps he has earned a chance? With the Wallabies' chances in this Tri Nations now gone, they surely don't have a lot to lose, and should focus on using the remaining matches to build some momentum going into the second half of the season.
Springbok scrum problems
The Springboks didn't have things all their own way either. They were again outscrummed by the Wallabies, and conceded numerous penalties in this area of the game. There are still lingering doubts about John Smit's ability at prop, and this is something of a dilemma for the coaching staff. There is no doubting Smit's value as captain of the team, but you can't have a player on the field who's not on top of his own game. For now the situation is still under control, but if the scrum becomes an area of weakness that other teams can target, it will undermine the rest of the Springbok game, as it did to an extent on Saturday, and something will have to be done. Either Smit will have to move back to hooker, or perhaps the captaincy could be handed over to another player while Smit plays himself out in the first 50 to 60 minutes, to allow an impact player on in the closing stages.
State of the tournament
It's now hard to see the Springboks not winning this tournament. The All Blacks will have to win their remaining two matches with bonus points, and also rely on the Springboks losing their remaining two. Of course, this is not at all outside the realms of possibility, but with the way the Boks are playing at the moment, you'd have to back them to at least pick up a couple of bonus points, which will be enough to see them home. To be honest though, I believe they're aiming for far more than that, and will not be satisfied with less than at least one more win, if not a clean sweep.
