WIZARDS OF OZ: Bok magic downs clueless Wallabies Down Under
|Published
HOT STEPPING: Kurt-Lee Arendse breaks free to score a try v Wallabies
Captain Siya Kolisi and his Springboks made a fantastic start to this year’s Rugby Championship after dominating the Wallabies 33-7 in Brisbane on Saturday.
It was South Africa’s first win at Lang Park in five attempts after suffering four defeats at the venue since 2013.
But those results did not faze the Springboks as they took control of the game early, with Kolisi and his fellow forwards making their physicality felt against a retreating Wallabies pack.
The Boks also showed off their skills with Kolisi the scorer of the first try from a lineout move that bamboozled the Wallabies, with Ben-Jason Dickson receiving the ball before flicking it back to a lifted second-rower Eben Etzebeth to set up a maul for the Bok skipper to drive over from.
Single lineout ❌
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) August 10, 2024
Double lineout ✅✅
The Boks are over for their first try of the 2024 Rugby Championship 🏉💥
📺 Stream #TRC2024 live: https://t.co/0P0NNhnwKw pic.twitter.com/Z0QR2x0uzf
The Bok backline also showed off their class with the new man at 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (SFM) pulling the strings and even busting through the Wallabies’ defence from a raid started in SA’s half.
Although the initial SFM break did not bag a try, the No. 10 would set up their second try with a neat pass that put Pieter-Steph du Toit through a gaping hole in the Aussie defence and then converted for a 14-0 lead.
The #Springboks displayed power, class and experience to put Australia to the sword with a 33-7 victory in Brisbane - match report: https://t.co/SUb6c4NOYL ⚔#ForeverGreenForeverGold #AUSvRSA pic.twitter.com/ganDhuXBuT
— Springboks (@Springboks) August 10, 2024
Reaction from #Springboks captain Siya Kolisi after Brisbane win: “Next week is going to be a completely different challenge and we know it will be tougher, so we need to remain focused and keep working hard” - more here: https://t.co/9aPhP1y3RC 🗣#ForeverGreenForeverGold… pic.twitter.com/MybORu6ESo
— Springboks (@Springboks) August 10, 2024
Winger Kurt-Lee Arendse then provided the next moment of magic when, from a dominant Bok scrum, he scooped up Cobus Reinach’s wayward pass and jinked three Wallaby defenders to score under the sticks for SA’s comfortable 21-0 half-time lead.
The first 20 minutes of the second half would remain scoreless as Bok boss Rassie Erasmus started to call on his replacement bench, before they regained the momentum with loose-forward Kwagga Smith crashing over for the bonus-point try.
Kurt-Lee 'The Silent Assassin' Arendse 😤⭐
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) August 10, 2024
How good is that step by Jesse Kriel though? 🤯
📺 Stream #TRC2024 live: https://t.co/0P0NNhnwKw pic.twitter.com/u3RKZ7K4HM
Arendse then struck SA’s final big blow with his second try from centre Jesse Kriel’s lethal linebreak.
But SA’s swak discipline cost them more punte after Kriel, Malcolm Marx and Marco Van Staden each got sin-binned by referee Luke Pearce.
Hunter Paisami broke the Wallabies’ duck with a try at the end of the one-sided contest.
The two teams face off again this weekend in Perth.