The Springboks delivered a clinical performance in Tokyo on Sunday bringing and end to Japan’s fairytale run at the World Cup at the quarterfinal stage.
Coach Rassie Erasmus’s players defended like warriors to withstand the attack launched on them from the hosts, keeping a free-running Japan outfit tryless in the encounter.
As expected, South Africa soaked up the pressure for the first 60 minutes of the match, before cutting loose towards the end.
Marshalled superbly by Man of the Match Faf de Klerk, the Boks kicked the ball 35 times, made 120 tackles to Japan’s 77 and only had 46 percent of the possession.
From those stats it is clear that they allowed Japan to speel themselves moeg, before the Boks' slow poison could take full effect.
TWICE AS NICE: South Africa’s Makazole Mapimpi. Picture: Jae Hong/AP.
SA's first strike came in the third minute already when wing Makazole Mapimpi brushed off two defenders for the first try of the match (5-0).
With Japan then giving it their all on attack, Bok prop Beast Mtawarira was then yellow-carded in the 10th minute because of a tip tackle.
Japan tried to make the most of their numerical advantage, with the Boks making 48 tackles in the 18th minute already.
The hosts were finally rewarded for their efforts when flyhalf Yu Tamura successfully converted a penalty kick they earned from a scrum (5-3).
BULLDOZING: Springbok centre Damian de Allende. Picture: Issei Kato/Reuters.
And that’s how it stayed until the break, with SA centre Damian de Allende having a try disallowed on the stroke of half time for “crawling”.
With the Japan storm weathered in the first half, the Boks knew they had to open up a buffer.
Three penalty conversions from the boot of Handre Pollard gave them that breathing space (14-3), before they turned on the style in the last 20 minutes.
DREAM IS OVER: Hosts Japan gave their everything. Picture: Kimimasa Mayama/Reuters.
After a superb rolling maul in the 64th minute, De Klerk broke free for his try, before Mapimpi finished off his second three minutes later (26-3) after a steal from captain Siya Kolisi led to a great counterattack.
While Bok fans would have been nervous with the tight scoreline, the Springboks executed their plan to perfection and not only kept Japan tryless, but finished them off when they needed to to set up a semifinal meeting with Wales.