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Springbok player ratings: South Africa vs England 3rd Test

By Online Editors
Faf de Klerk during the third test match between South Africa and England at Newlands Stadium

South Africa failed to complete a clean sweep over England at Newlands in Cape Town on Saturday – report Rugby 365.

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Instead, courtesy of some brilliant goal-kicking by Owen Farrell and a Jonny May try, the Springboks went down 10-25 to England in the final June Test series match.

A win for the hosts would have been amazing especially with the news that the encounter could be the last Test match ever played at Newlands.

The result means South Africa win the Series 2-1.

Leezil Hendricks rates the South African players!

15 Warrick Gelant
Showed maturity under the high ball. Not only did he impress with his side-steps but the fullback also displayed great strength with a hand-off on Owen Farrell in the first half. In the second half, the fullback’s grubber was instrumental in Jesse Kriel’s try. But with the switch to wing, his performance faded in the last 20 minutes and conceded two silly penalties.
7

14 Sibusiso Nkosi
Looked keen to get involved, had a couple of great runs and showed vision when he put in a vital grubber which could have resulted in a try at the closing stages of the first half.
6

13 Jesse Kriel
Had a quiet first half but gradually worked himself in the match. He had a valid try-scoring opportunity, along with Sibusiso Nkosi, in the first half, but the Jonny May’s crucial defence came up on tops. However, the centre’s second-half performance was much better and scored the Springboks’ only try in the 45th minute.
6

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12 André Esterhuizen
Good test, but not a great one. Had some good runs in the second half but struggled to find space. He did put in a noteworthy defensive performance.
5

11 Aphiwe Dyantyi
Less involved than the other wing Nkosi, his first real moment was in the second half with an impressive line break. However, failed to make an impact.
4

Continue reading below…

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10 Elton Jantjies
Had a horrendous performance, which included a missed penalty kick in the opening minutes. Also had two catastrophic moments under the high ball.
4

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9 Faf de Klerk
His box kicks weren’t as accurate as last week. Made some silly errors but put in a few huge tackles – which include the massive hit on No.8 Nathan Hughes.
7

8 Duane Vermeulen
The No.8 bit farewell to the Series with yet another a solid performance. Wasn’t that spectacular as last week but instrumental at the breakdown battle, vital on attack and managed to steal a line-out!
7

7 Pieter-Steph du Toit
Whether at flank or at the lock, Du Toit’s work rate is impeccable. His cover defence in the opening minutes nullified Johnny May’s opportunity to score points. He made some strong carries with ball in hand and was solid in defence.
8

6 Siya Kolisi (captain)
Seems like the breakdown battle kept him busy. He was absent as a captain and failed to lead the team as well as he did in the two previous matches. Subbed after 65 minutes.
5

5 Franco Mostert
Did the basics well, had some carries and set up the Boks try. Was also solid in defence and at line-outs.
5

4 RG Snyman
Similar to his lock partner, Snyman did the basics well, he had a noteworthy run but didn’t bring anything extra.
5

3 Frans Malherbe
Solid shift but failed to make an impact especially in terms of scrummaging. He put in five tackles before he was subbed after 55 minutes.
4

2 Chiliboy Ralepelle
The hooker’s line-out throws were solid, however, he was too over-enthusiastic and conceded silly penalties which handed England a 6-0 lead.
3

1 Tendai Mtawarira
Failed to produce effective carries and struggled to gain the upper hand over England’s prop Kyle Sinckler.
4

Replacements:

16 Schalk Brits (On for Ralepelle, 44th minute)
First touch was a line-out throw which was a perfect platform for the first try of the match. His mobility did not quite suit the wet conditions but a notable impact when he came on.
6

17 Steven Kitshoff (on for Mtawarira, 44th minutes)
Made his presence felt immediately with some huge tackles. He did concede a questionable scrum penalty but other than that the prop proved to be a great replacement.
6

18 Thomas du Toit (on for Malherbe, 44th minutes)
Didn’t make a massive impact, but made a few tackles in open play
5

19 Jean-Luc du Preez (On for Snyman, 58th minutes)
Showed great work rate with a couple of runs and solid tackles.
5

20 Sikhumbuzo Notshe (on for Kolisi, 65th minute)
Not enough time to be rated.

21 Embrose Papier (on for De Klerk, 75th minutes)
Not enough time to be rated.

22 Handré Pollard (on for Jantjies, 58th minute)
The crowd erupted when the flyhalf entered the field. Struggled with his first touches but eventually found his feet and added some value.
5

23 Willie le Roux (On for Nkosi, 50th Minute)
Not perfect but was showed real intent in terms of his attack. Unfortunately his knock-on aided the Jonny May try.
6

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A
Adrian 58 minutes ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

7 Go to comments
T
Trevor 3 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

21 Go to comments
B
Bull Shark 7 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

29 Go to comments
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