DUBLIN — Well, where to start? The Springboks beat Ireland 23-14, their first win in Dublin since 2012 and underlined why they are by far the best side in the world. Usually that’d be enough.
But there’s much more to this match than that. This was an utterly bonkers Test. Sheer mayhem. Ireland were handed four cards in the first half; at one point Ireland were down to 12 men. Oh, and just before half time the Boks had a scrum on Ireland’s five-metre line and Rassie Erasmus chose that moment to replace both props. Two parts of the Boks “bomb squad” obliterated their Irish opponents and a yellow and penalty try followed. There were two disallowed tries too in the first 40. Also there were moments of madness from players usually so composed. And above all that, the Boks underlined again how they are so far ahead of the rest at the moment. And then came the second half.
Ireland have had the rub of the green against the Boks in recent times. They’d won four of their last five meetings, and there was quiet optimism Ireland had a statement performance up their sleeves.
The atmosphere in the Aviva Stadium was bubbling, smoke hung in the air, complete with an emotionally-stirring version of the Cranberries’ anthem Zombie seconds before kick off. Two years ago, that song boomed from the stands in Paris after Ireland’s monumental World Cup pool stage win over the Boks. Unpicking the defeat, Erasmus stood in the middle of the Stade de France, flicking a rugby ball around his hands, listening to the words of the song. It was a turning point; from there the Boks won the tournament, But the reprisal of the song ahead of tonight’s game on this freezing November night clearly sought to stir up Parisian memories and propel Ireland and the fans forward.
Right from the start you felt this game was going to be played on the extremity of emotions. As “Ireland’s Call” rang out, the camera lingered on Caelan Doris. A thin smile spread across his face. Ireland were ready, in their minds at least, to put down a marker. But what followed in the first-half was just crackers.
– England vs. Argentina: Fraser Dingwall injured, Max Ojomoh to start
– Malcom Marx wins World Rugby Player of the Year
A brief recap: Damian Willemse scored a wondrous try after four minutes. Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu avoided a yellow card for a high hit on Tommy O’Brien. Ireland were struggling to read the Boks’ defence and cope with their physicality. Ireland thought they’d got a try on the board through Tadhg Beirne, but it was ruled out for James Ryan’s illegal cleanout, which saw him handed a yellow card, later upgraded to a 20-minute red. And breathe.
Then the Boks had a try ruled out for a forward pass, but Cobus Reinach scored another soon after anyway. Dan Sheehan struck back, with Ireland down to 13 men (oh Sam Prendergast had been yellow carded by this point, victim of repeated offences), and even when Ireland went back up to 14 with Ryan replaced, they then fell to 13 again with Jack Crowley sin-binned for an idiotic play where he knocked the ball out of Reinach’s hands.
The Boks hammered away at Ireland’s line in the closing stages, Erasmus changed both props, Andrew Porter was yellow-carded, a penalty try followed and everyone was using hands and feet to count how many players were left on the pitch as the Boks headed into the break 19-7 up in a first-half which lasted an hour. Phew. Got that?
The second half saw Ireland slot a couple of penalties early and weather the Boks’ onslaught, only for Feinberg-Mngomezulu to dance through Jamison Gibson-Park and half of Ireland to extend the lead. With 20 minutes left, the Boks continued to bully Ireland’s pack, taking repeated scrum penalties, drawing a yellow card for Paddy McCarthy, seeking to grind Ireland into submission.
They could’ve tapped and probably scored on occasion, but no, the Boks wanted to just batter Ireland. It was brutal, them leaving a scar on the Irish pack. In the closing stages Ireland tried to get closer on the scoreboard, but they were left battered, bruised and nothing to show for it.
It was a mad game, but this was one of the most physically imposing performances we’ve seen this year, or any year, from the Boks. There was a lot of talk about the hoodoo Ireland previously had on the Boks here in Dublin. Erasmus had never won here as a coach. This was definitely part of the narrative — Erasmus also put that added bit of pressure on his team by basically saying in a season where they’d already won the Rugby Championship, this match would define whether the year was a success or failure. So that’s a 13-year hoodoo to finish off, and also “saving” their already incredibly successful season.
Pressure? The Boks answered the challenge and some. Malcolm Marx was outstanding, Feinberg-Mngomezulu had a couple of shaky moments early on but came through. The two centres were brilliant, but this was about the collective.
Ireland showed immense character to stay in the fight. Inferior sides would have just raised the white flag. So it’s to their credit that they kept the Boks at bay for so long in the second half. And they also finished strongly, camped on the Boks’ line and had a chance to make things interesting. But their complete lack of discipline will have infuriated Andy Farrell.
Their eventual penalty count of 18 shipped by Ireland says it all. And despite playing so much of the match with a numerical disadvantage, they lacked composure when they needed it and were mullered in the power game. They just didn’t have the depth to change the momentum. And their set piece was exposed. A fair bit for Farrell to sort, then.
At full-time, Ireland fell to their knees, and South Africa exhaled. It was Test rugby at its very limits. A physical challenge we’ve seldom seen. And everyone in the stadium tried to figure out exactly what they’d witnessed. South Africa won in Dublin for the first time since 2012, but it was so much more than that.
