Johan Goosen 3/10: I don’t really understand the logic of sticking with Willie le Roux despite terribly subpar performances, and then dropping him after his most decent one (in Florence). Maybe it was purely experimental? Whatever the case, Goosen looked like a fish out of water at the back. He occasionally collected a high ball, put in one or two good pressure-relieving kicks and made a nice run or two. But he wasn’t effective enough. Conceded a turnover just before halftime. Knocked on a cross kick from Elton Jantjies.
Ruan Combrinck 3: Talk about an unfortunate game. He fumbled a pass from Uzair Cassiem and let it slip into touch. He conceded a penalty in the first quarter that gave Wales an opportunity to level the three-point score. But he made up for it a few minutes later when he gathered a loose ball that travelled all the way into the Springbok 22 and kicked them out of trouble after Jantjies’ kick was charged down. Poor kick into touch in the first quarter.
Francois Venter 3.5: Made a few sharp runs and breaks, but his hands let him down at times. Decent defensive effort.
Rohan Janse van Rensburg 5: Had the ball ripped away by Dan Biggar on the stroke of halftime. Contributed on defence. Provided some good go-forward with his powerful carries, especially in the first half. But I don’t think he got all the chances he should have and was skipped in midfield too many times. Why skip one of the men who are almost guaranteed to get over the gain line?
Jamba Ulengo 2: You can’t rate a player you only saw like twice on the field, twice max. But to be fair, how much was he used? He didn’t get half the chances he should have, but he should also look for work.
Elton Jantjies 3: It’s tough, because I still believe Jantjies is better than this. His game management wasn’t on, and he just made too many mistakes. His vision was good and he tried a few things with little dinks over the top, but the execution thereof wasn’t great. Misread his support when he sent an inside pass forward after Faf de Klerk’s swift play after the first lineout. Gave another poor one to Francois Venter, who lost it forward. And there was that forward pass to Ulengo, which was his first touch of the ball. His kick that was charged put the Boks under pressure.
Faf de Klerk 3.5: He fielded two high balls, which showed his enthusiasm since the men who are supposed to do it didn’t even bother. But it wasn’t a good game for the No 9. He gave a rather sketchy pass to Combrinck (who knocked it on) after a scrum, and he was yellow carded early in the second half for a deliberate knock-down. One or two horrible kicks. Worked quickly to gather a loose ball after a Wales lineout. Relatively quick work at the breakdown. Massive tackle on Ross Moriarty that drove him into touch when Wales looked set to score.
Warren Whiteley 3.5: Very quiet in the first 40. Worked a bit harder in the second half with strong defending and a few carries, but he hasn’t been carving through defences like he’s known to do. Lost a lineout ball after a Bok throw-in.
Uzair Cassiem 6: He was a workhorse on defence as he made some crucial tackles. He worked hard all over – he hit the rucks, made his tackles and carried with intent. And it was only fitting that he scored the Boks’ only try. But it was by no means a dream debut – his teammates made it kind of easy for him to stand out. Which he did, and he deserves praise for that, regardless of the low standards around him.
Nizaam Carr 3.5: He made some good hits and also got busy at the breakdowns. He effectively killed Wales’ attacking momentum when he secured a breakdown turnover just before halftime. But he didn’t make much of an impact, even though that turnover he won saved South Africa from possible trouble.
Lood de Jager 3.5: He was good at the lineouts, but he conceded a penalty at the set-piece in the first quarter. Lost control of the ball (and his temper) early in the second half AND he was offside. He carried well and made his tackles.
Pieter-Steph du Toit 5: He was caught out of position a number of times, but at least he worked harder than most of his colleagues. Got Jonathan Davies into touch 10 metres from his own try line. Won a maul turnover and made the most tackles in the first half.
Lourens Adriaanse 3: He wasn’t great, but he was a bit better at the scrums.
Adriaan Strauss 4: Not the way he would have wanted his swansong to go, I’m sure. He made a few carries and got involved, but it was by no means an inspirational outing.
Tendai Mtawarira 5.5: He did his thing at the scrum time, and he was also busy elsewhere. Helped stop Wales from getting quality ball at times.
Replacements:
Steven Kitshoff 5.5: He took over the scrummaging duties well, and he made a few tackles. Other than that, he was quiet.
Piet van Zyl 3.5: He was quicker at the breakdowns than De Klerk, but his decision-making was faulty at times.
Pat Lambie 4: Things looked a bit better when he came on. He showed good vision and decision-making skills.