Wallabies vs Springboks takes: Lonergan's masterclass, Suaalii is a midfielder

It was a wild finish in Perth as the Wallabies held on with 11 men for a 42-38 win over the Springboks to reclaim the Nelson Mandela Plate.

For 68 minutes Less Kiss’ undefeated team had built a commanding 42-17 lead that looked secure before a catastrophic final quarter saw four yellow cards issued.

With the Springboks playing 11, they were able to land three converted tries to go within one play of a miraculous comeback but ran out of clock.

Here are four takes following the Wallabies’ statement win.

Wallabies have uncovered a world class No.9 in Lonergan

The 28-year-old halfback only made his Test debut last year against the All Blacks, despite being in the Wallabies’ squad back in 2023.

This was a masterclass kicking performance by Lonergan in all facets, who kicked 100 per cent off tee until the final conversion out wide, hauling in a total 17 points.

Having a clutch kicker is a luxury the Wallabies haven’t had for awhile. Carter Gordon can’t take the goal kicking duties when healthy and Ben Donaldson has a sketchy record, missing two tough ones against Ireland earlier in July.

He executed his box kicks perfectly, whether exiting too touch with long gains or keeping the ball in play down narrow short sides. The accuracy of Lonergan’s aerial game gave the Wallabies’ control that they don’t usually get from their halves.

This proved pivotal in winning the aerial battle against South Africa, with Max Jorgensen winning multiple possessions back. Combined with Suaalii on the other side, the Wallabies won the aerial game.

It was a Lonergan box kick that led to Len Ikitua’s second try, exposing Aphelele Fassi one-on-one with Suaalii in the air. The rebound was caught directly by Ikitau who went 20 metres untouched.

Lonergan made smart plays for most of the game until his dicey call to attempt to prevent a try with the Boks pushing the scrum over. But not even he could predict they would lose two more players to yellow cards after that.

He read one scrum play beautifully chasing down a wrap-around play by South Africa and his pressure on Pollard caused a rush pass that led to a first phase turnover.

Lonergan gave the Wallabies control and game management, whereas their other 9s like Jake Gordon and Tate McDermott offer high upside and attacking play missing polish. Helter-skelter execution can often hurt the Wallabies.

Lonergan played the perfect hand that was required to beat the Boks, his yellow card withstanding.

Wallabies pack is massively underrated 

The Wallabies forward pack does not often get the credit they deserve, but they’ve earnt it now. The Test was going to be when the Boks reserve front row came on, and while their were two tries from the scrum, they excelled in a number of areas.

For 68 minutes they overpowered the Bok forward pack. The forward runners smashed down the front door and it led to multiple tries using their power game.

In the first half a well-executed switch maul play put Hunter Paisami right up the lineout seam down to the 1. From there, power carries hammered the defence before a clever handoff to Len Ikitau by lock Lukhan Salakaia-Loto gave the Wallabies seven points.

A similar set of power in the second half ended with a try to Harry Wilson reaching the ball over the pile to score a critical try to go up by 37-17.

The scrum was rock solid before the injection of the Bok bench, while Jeremy Williams pinched multiple lineouts as they picked off South Africa’s throwers.

The Wallabies own lineout was exceptional for the most part, with some issues after the reserves came on that they quickly rectified.

Openside flanker Fraser McReight finished with three turnovers in another heroic showing. The world’s best poacher came up big.

Joseph Suaalii is a centre

Suaalii wore the No.11 jersey for the first time and while there were benefits of this, namely in the aerial game, but there were signs that this is a dangerous experiment to continue long term.

When centre Canan Moodie split the defence in the first half after a poor rush out of the line by Ikitau, what was a two-on-two situation was not covered well with Suaalii unable to pull in Edwill van der Merwe.

He didn’t have the top end speed required on the outside and appeared to underestimate how much time he had. That is the risk the Wallabies are running, but for certain match ups, the selection might be used sparingly. The trade off for aerial dominance is speed in defence.

Suaalii played like an extra midfielder, and you could see that skill on display when he threw a no-look pass to put Ben Donaldson over in the corner. He wasn’t stationed on the wing permanently.

Overall the role worked well in this game, and Suaalii was extremely unfortunate to be yellow carded late in the game when replays showed he was onside.

Len Ikitau we know is a genuine 13. Suaalii has yet to play a game in the No.12 jersey, but that should be the combination the Wallabies trial.

To have a massive body like Suaalii at 12 to play against South Africa and France, can set up the Wallabies’ attack for success.

The Boks were never in this game

Make no mistake, this was a dominant win by the Wallabies. The Springboks were never in this game and after Max Jorgensen’s runaway try at 42-17 there was a 25-point deficit.

Erasmus gambled on unloading his entire bench early in the second half to boost his side, but it failed to get the desired impact. They were stuck with Eben Etzebeth, who tried to go off ‘injured’ but was sent back into the game.

The delays to the game with TMO involvements coming down by phone calls to a mobile phone added plenty of drama.

The final 10 minutes of game clock took close to 30 minutes to unfold, while a late intercept try to Tom Wright with three minutes to go was scrubbed off after another TMO involvement earlier in the sequence.

It added to the tension and was closer than it ever should, but the reality is South Africa never had a grip on the game. They were relying on a four-man advantage in a 10-minute period to steal victory from the clutches of defeat and couldn’t do it.

Yes the Springboks played a fresh line-up with new starters, but that was required after putting the same team out four times in a row against the All Blacks.

We are told that there isn’t much difference between South Africa’s A side and B side, so this is as good a win as any. The Springboks bench was loaded and played against 11 men for nearly 10 minutes, and the Wallabies held on for a dramatic win.