England player ratings vs South Africa: 3rd Test
England’s tour of South Africa came to its conclusion earlier today, as the visitors salvaged pride with an impressive and disciplined 25-10 win at Newlands in Cape Town.
The conditions were different to the ones England experienced in Johannesburg and Bloemfontein, with rain sheeting down ahead of the kick-off and a slippery surface, but they handled them well and sent their fans into the offseason with a much-needed performance and result.
We have run the rule over the players involved.
It's full time in Cape Town and England have beaten the @springboks ?#RSAvENG #CarryThemHome pic.twitter.com/gZvBdVY5mV
— England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) June 23, 2018
- Elliot Daly – 6
Not the best series Daly will have, with his struggles kicking from hand continuing to plague him in the third Test. He did, however, continue to impress as a link man in attack, popping up as the option to draw defenders in the wider channels and unleash the wings, putting them into one-on-one situations with Warrick Gelant.
- Jonny May – 8
Another class showing from England’s man of the series, in a game with conditions which wings had no right to shine in. His positioning, tackling, work under the high ball and footwork were all excellent on a wet day at Newlands, whilst he also proved the most effective of England’s chasers, constantly harassing the Springboks. Richly deserved his late try.
- Henry Slade – 5
Not the kind of game to get the best out of Slade, with England picking and choosing their moments to go wide, rather than risk handling errors. He was brushed off in a couple of tackles by the Boks, one of which led to Jesse Kriel’s try a phase later, when there was no sweeper present and South Africa were able to kick in behind.
- Owen Farrell – 7
Not a vintage Farrell performance but he kicked well at goal, making all seven of his kicks, and it was as a captain where he looked most impressive. Where Farrell had joined in the handbags between the two teams in the previous two matches, this week he was calming down his players and assuming the role of captain, rather than just star player. Some early signs of chemistry between he and Danny Cipriani, too.
- Mike Brown – 7
Rotated well with Daly, often moving into full-back for defensive situations, and proceeded to shut down multiple Springbok attacks with good one-on-one defence. Showed his power as a carrier, too, when receiving the ball in a limited amount of space on the left wing.
- Danny Cipriani – 7
Went well, albeit quietly, for the first 60 minutes and played the conditions smartly. Linked well with Farrell and the two interchanged effectively, as well as offering playmaking options at different depths in the back line. Pulled off a moment of magic with his kick – whilst under significant pressure – to send May in for a try.
- Ben Youngs – 6
Youngs’ kicking game was valuable to England, particularly given the conditions, but there were a couple of times he delayed too long to get the ball out of the breakdown and an outnumbered England were counter-rucked and subsequently conceded possession. Ultimately managed the game well, though, and successfully marshalled his pack around the Newlands turf.
- Joe Marler – 8
The loosehead dealt well with some of the questionable angles that were being thrown at him by South African tighthead Frans Malherbe. In addition to strong scrummaging, he also popped up with impact at the breakdown, forcing a couple of turnovers out of the Springboks and helping deliver relatively quick ball for England.
? #CarryThemHome pic.twitter.com/dOt6eVf8PT
— England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) June 23, 2018
- Jamie George – 6
Having put in a cleaner performance in the second Test with his throwing and his discipline in the breakdown when compared to the series opener, the testing conditions in Cape Town pegged him back. He missed four of his 13 lineouts, albeit two of those four were scrambled back by England in the ensuing melee.
- Kyle Sinckler – 7
Surprisingly, we had to wait until the wettest and worst conditions of the series to see Sinckler’s ability in the loose. Showcased his soft hands as a playmaker on the gain-line and proved effective as a carrier close to the rucks. Scrummaged well and though he conceded one breakdown penalty for going off his feet, even that was a 50/50 call and certainly impacted by the conditions.
- Joe Launchbury – 6
Showed his value on the wet surface at Newlands, cleaning up some scrappy ball and proving a reliable target for George at the lineout. He was busy in the loose, too, with his performance ranging from the low of isolating himself as a carrier and conceding the ball to the Boks, to the highs of getting his hands in the South African maul and forcing a turnover.
- Maro Itoje – 6
Another solid, if unspectacular performance from Itoje, who claimed five lineouts, as well as managing to steal a Springbok lineout. A cleaner performance in terms of discipline, too, with an early drive at a defensive lineout his sole infringement. Fronted up with some big tackles on the gain-line against South Africa’s power carriers.
- Chris Robshaw – 7
The week off seemed to do the world of good for Robshaw, who looked much fresher at Newlands. Not only was he busier around the field, but the tackles on the gain-line, where he was losing the collisions during his recent starts for England, he was winning in Cape Town. Popped up with a couple of steals at the breakdown, too, dovetailing well with Tom Curry.
- Tom Curry – 8
Another strong outing from the openside, who was a pest to South African ball-security throughout, stealing ball at the breakdown and by holding up Springbok carriers and forcing mauls. He was also quickly away from the scrums, scything down carriers like Duane Vermeulen and Faf de Klerk for little to no gain.
- Nathan Hughes – 5
Struggled to impact the game in the way in which he usually does for Wasps, with the N8 driven backwards in the tackle multiple times, most notably so by de Klerk when Hughes picked and went from the base of the scrum. In Hughes’ defence, he is coming off the back of a lengthy injury layoff and is clearly short of fitness and form, but it was certainly a day to forget in Cape Town.
Replacements
- Luke Cowan-Dickie – n/a
Unused sub.
- Alec Hepburn – n/a
Unused sub.
- Harry Williams – 6
Came on early in the second half in an attempt to counter the scrummaging of Steven Kitshoff. Kitshoff looked to have the upper hand in the few engagements they had, but Williams did win a penalty out of the South African for his angle at their third and final scrummaging confrontation.
- Jonny Hill – n/a
Unused sub.
- Mark Wilson – 6
Impact off the bench, including charging down an Elton Jantjies kick and winning England possession back deep in South African territory.
- Sam Simmonds – n/a
Unused sub.
- Ben Spencer – n/a
Unused sub.
- Denny Solomona – n/a
Did come on, but in the 77th minute, with no opportunity to affect the game.
Comments on RugbyPass
I hope Leinster’s proud of themselves fielding a poor team. They should decide if they’re all in or not.
1 Go to commentsJordie is looking at 16 games maximum if Leinster reach both the URC and champions cup finals. Thats not guaranteed. Some of those home URC fixtures will be cakewalks as well for Leinster and there is not much doing during the 6 nations in Feb and March so he can probably get a decent rest then. He will have to really put in it for maybe 7 or 8 games max. It should be a good move for both.
13 Go to commentsThe game was a quarter final, not a semi final. Barrett will be here for 6 months, he is no one's replacement at 13. That mantle will most likely ultimately go to Jamie Osborne, though Garry Ringrose has at least 4 more years in him. The long term problem position (in the next 3 years) for Leinster is tighthead prop, though there are a couple of prospects at schools level.
24 Go to commentsSo much for all that hype surrounding the ‘revival’ of Aussie rugby. The Blues were without the likes of regular starters Perofeta, Sullivan, Christie etc… This was a capitulation of the highest order by Australia’s finest. Joe Schmidt definitely has his work cut out for him.
2 Go to commentsYes they can ignore Sotutu. Like Akira Ioane plays OK at Super level but gets lost in tests. Too many chances too many failures.
2 Go to commentsA wallaby front-row of Bell, Blake and Tupou…now that would be hefty
1 Go to comments“But with an exceptional pass accuracy rating “ Which apart from Roigard is not a feature of any of the other 9s in NZ. Kind of basic for a Black 9 dont.you. think? Yet we keep seeing FC and TJ being rated ahead of him? Weird if it’s seen as vital to get our backline beating in your face defences.
1 Go to commentsThanks BeeMc! Looks like many teams need extra time to settle from the quadrennial northern migration. I think generally the quality of the Rugby has held up. Fiji has been fantastic and fun to watch
13 Go to commentsLets compare apples with apples. Lyon sent weak team the week before, but nobody raised an eyebrow. Give the South African teams a few years to build their depth, then you will be moaning that the teams are too strong.
41 Go to commentsDid footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
13 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
10 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
13 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
6 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
25 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
6 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
10 Go to comments