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South Africa made work for win over Italy at Loftus
By Ian Cameron
Rassie Erasmus’ South Africa picked up their second win of the 2025 Test season with a 42–24 win over a depleted Italy side in Pretoria.
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The scoreboard did not represent the at times scrappy performance at Loftus Versfeld from the reigning world champions.
The home side never really looked in danger of losing. With that said, the Boks lacked cohesion for long stretches, particularly after the break, with Gonzalo Quesada’s side capitalising on South Africa’s ill-discipline to score three second-half tries and briefly threaten a comeback.
The Springboks had established a commanding 28–3 lead at the interval with first-half tries from Jesse Kriel, Kurt-Lee Arendse and a brace from scrum-half Morne van den Berg.
Italy – playing with three debutants from the bench and captained for the first time by Niccolò Cannone – struggled for territory early on and were punished during Lorenzo Cannone’s 10-minute spell in the sin bin.
Despite the early setbacks, Italy grew into the game. Manuel Zuliani’s score five minutes after the restart was followed by tries from Luca Dimcheff—who crossed moments after winning his first cap—and captain Cannone, whose effort on 68 minutes reduced the gap to 35–24.
South Africa’s discipline and intensity had clearly dipped, and only Marco van Staden’s late try settled matters.
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There were strong performances from the Springboks’ front row, with Ox Nché, Malcolm Marx and Wilco Louw laying a solid platform early on, while Arendse showed his class with a sharp finish and a try-saving tackle.
However, the much-vaunted Bomb Squad struggled to add impact off the bench, and the breakdown in particular became an area of concern, with South Africa conceding two tries from turnover ball in the second half.
The two teams will meet again next Saturday in Port Elizabeth in the Azzurri’s final match of the season.
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Comments on RugbyPass
2 Go to commentsNo it is not, you are always more than welcome to come play the Māori, boys probably be more than happy to come North tbh and Samoa Tonga still can get a good team together it’s the getting them together with zero cash that’s a problem
92 Go to commentsAbsolutely relevant. It's because of useless refs that the game is taking a nose dive. If he did his job properly, there would be way less problems. Too long have refs gotten away with officiating that's even worse than school rugby. Too long have the NH had their fingers in that nice big fat pie of WR. Doing everything in their power to give the NH the edge, trying to force everyone else to play the game via the NH way by changing, deleting it adding new laws. Currently the main man might be Australian, but he has no power surrounded by the NH lackeys isn't it? Which refs gets preference at most tournaments including the WC? The NH refs. Brace always blows against the Boks. This hasn't been his first time not his last time.
22 Go to commentsThat just doesn’t make sense!…
9 Go to commentsThat is a good result for rugby Spain are a good team and those 2 teams would benefit from playing each other more yup it is good to play better sides but not getting hidings by 60 points
92 Go to commentsItaly is much better than what people give them credit for. The Boks cohesion is the biggest problem. I am not worried about the Boks. Everyone see what they want to see. You want to see the Boks as weak and want them to lose. Like some AB's fans ( not most of them ), that expects the AB's to make it 2 run away wins against the Boks. Big scores. Should I remind you that the Boks are double WC champs? That they have beaten the AB's 4 times in a row? Whatever you may wish in your fairy land of dreams, that is not going to happen. Games between the Boks and AB's is always a closely fought contest that could go either way. Where teams like the Barbarians, Italy and Georgia aren't taken that seriously, the same can't be said of the AB's. We treat them them with the respect they deserve. There will be no experiments. They will get the best the Boks have and the Boks will be razor sharp. Honed in like snipers. Whoever wins those two tests will be deserved winners, and I can promise you this… Players on both sides will be sore and bloodied, because they will leave everything on the field like they always do.
9 Go to commentsAll player development
roads should lead to MLR in that part of the world?it would be in US benefit to have a strong neighborhood and gives opportunities in the pros so many dudes are from way further away than Canada or even Chile
9 Go to commentsI suspect a rather large number of naturalized Eagles will be soaring in 31 and the games leading up to it, MLR got good money in it for the long haul
92 Go to commentsI didn't know he was injured too. Vincent Tsithuka is available and Roos did play well. Kolisi it seemed they were monitoring on a day to day basis. He might play to be ready for the RC. No matter who we think of, we can be sure that Rassie will surprise us all again
9 Go to commentsFiji and Japan going to probably be playing with the big boys next year with ABs touring SA and this will mean something has to change up ? If that goes well then you could add Uruguay and Chile to that comp, and then u sort out something good for the rest?
22 Go to commentsShould be upgraded to red and a 3 week ban minimum
1 Go to commentsNiue is a famous rugby nation despite its lack of size.
Just as well for the rest of the world there aren’t a million of them.
Keep it up James!
16 Go to commentsStill using laughing emojis to compensate for your lack of wit I see? 🤡
The country with the biggest rugby resources in the world fluking a couple of matches is hardly worth your goose stepping around the place Tommy Goebbels!
13 Go to commentsWell said. Thanks. I’m afraid after this match I now have as little respect for the Ities - and the referees who let them get away it - as I used to have for the Argies. Their spoiling and continually offsides play is perhaps the only way they can win, but it gets really irritating, and which no doubt got under Wiese's skin. But, hey, it almost got them near to the Boks last week, but luckily not this time, by a country mile.
3 Go to commentsThere isn’t team to teach new Lions Farrells systems. So unless there is a standout candidate then an Irish player will be heavy favourite.
13 Go to commentsBarely human - and completely unintelligible.
6 Go to commentsClarkson was magnificent against Bulls and has had a great season for Leinster. Unless there is a standout candidate then the Irish players have an advantage as there is simply no time left for New Lions to learn Farrells system.
13 Go to commentsThe family brain cell had been loaned to his brother for the day.
13 Go to commentsAt what point should it have become something?
A Springbok, in a test match, in front of cameras from every angle, aimed a headbutt at an opponent. A headbutt. If you assigned an IQ to that action and doubled it it would still be a single digit.
6 Go to commentsAll other things being equal Irish players have a huge advantage for late call ups as they already know Farrells system. Late Lions call ups don’t now have weeks to learn the system to play tests or for training sessions. So if the standards are comparable, then the better choice is the player who already knows the system.
92 Go to commentsYou really are talking rubbish. Do you seriously think Rassie is in the business of handing out candies to needy kids?(Rugby speaking of course.) It always astounds me when people who don’t know the difference between off sides and off form and have never played the game at any level beyond U13c suddenly think they know better than a Springbok coach. And I have many contacts inWP rugby at top level (Stellenbosch Phys Ed Department) and there is no conspiracy to make SM the next permanent captain but he did captain SA schools and SA U 20 and Western Province. If you really have your ear to the ground in the Western Province you would know that the word is that the up and coming next Bok captain is SFM. And I certainly take that with a tablespoon of salt.