The first five minutes of the Springboks’ 34-21 win over Argentina in Durban on Saturday highlighted the possible pitfalls of our country’s national team when they do battle against the real giants of the rugby world.
And patience is the key here.
From kickoff, South Africa had the perfect opportunity to launch a counterattack after the Pumas failed to find touch with the exit.
The forwards took the ball up before it went wide.
With the visitors shooting up on defence, Handre Pollard then put through a needless grubber kick which saw them concede possession.
It was in the Boks’ plan to kick at the Argentines and then put them under pressure at the breakdown.
So when they regained possession, scrumhalf Faf de Klerk again launched a kick.
This time an up-and-under and Malcolm Marx won a penalty within kicking range in the second minute. Plan worked, tap on the back.
But now against New Zealand, breaking the ice and getting points on the board first is worth gold.
Now Pollard didn’t pack in his kicking boots for this Durban Test, but that was still unknown to his captain Siya Kolisi, who I believe should have opted for goal instead of the lineout.
Decision-making is crucial in Test match rugby.
As it turned out, the Springboks went for touch and opted for an attacking lineout.
And after taking the ball out wide to the right, they then used the width again to get back to Aphiwe Dyantyi’s wing.
Problem is they made no metres and after receiving a skip pass from Willie le Roux on the touchline, Dyantyi again opted to use the boot.
This time the Pumas gathered the ball and kicked it into touch.
Another five-metre lineout and only four minutes played.
Set-pieces are so vital in Test match rugby and with another opportunity to right the wrongs of their previous move and get the first points of the game, Marx failed to find his jumpers and the Pumas could exit.
As good as Marx was on the day at the breakdown, his lineout throwing is just as big a factor on the day - especially in the strike zone.
In possession in the Pumas’ 22 again, De Klerk again opted for the box kick and the ball went over the dead ball line, despite a good chase by Dyantyi.
So with six minutes on the clock, the scoreboard still read 0-0, despite the Springboks dominating and having a lot of chances to build scoreboard pressure.
Patience, decision-making on and off the ball, lineout throwing and an over-reliance on the boot were the big problems.
They eventually got reward in the eighth minute when Lukhanyo Am barged over to score.
But the visitors allowed the Springboks the opportunity to create try-scoring opportunities.
If they come up against New Zealand, these opportunities will be limited and you have to take your shots at goal, secure your set pieces and not kick away possession.
It wasn’t all doom and gloom for the Springboks, though.
While they also had difficulty to adapt to the Pumas’ rush defence - with De Klerk especially feeling the heat when he tried to pass to the players on his outside - the positive is that they got the win.
What's more, is that there were a number of players that put up their hands once again.
They next travel to Argentina for the return leg, meaning they’ll have time to fix these things before taking on New Zealand and Australia.
But if the Bok do travel to Puma land with the same mindset, they might be in for an early surprise in this tournament.