‘We shot ourselves in the foot,’ says Springbok skipper Du Toit after Ellis Park defeat
· Citizen
A stunned Springbok skipper Pieter-Steph du Toit admitted that his team shot themselves in the foot, after they crashed to a bitterly disappointing 33-16 loss in their Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry opener against the All Blacks at Ellis Park on Saturday night.
The Boks were the better team over the first 55 minutes of the match, but somehow found themselves trailing at that point, and then produced a disastrous and ill-disciplined final 20 minutes that allowed the All Blacks to pull away emphatically.
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It was a finishing clinic from the visitors, who came away with points from almost every 22m entry, while the Boks could only score one try, despite having more 22m entries than the All Blacks.
In the post-match on-field interview Du Toit was frank with his assessment of the game, and explained that they now had to go back to the drawing board.
“All credit to New Zealand. We made some mistakes and weren’t able to convert those opportunities we had. So unfortunately we shot ourselves in the foot, and in a game like this those small errors and opportunities count,” said Du Toit.
“We definitely have to go back to the drawing board and see what we did well (and improve on that) and what we can do better.”
All Blacks record try-scoring wing Will Jordan made a fantastic return from injury, after missing all three tour games against the franchises, and didn’t look off the pace at all as he scored two tries in a man-of-the-match showing.
It means everything
“It (the win) means everything. Ellis Park, what an arena. It was a serious shift for 80 minutes. I loved the way our boys dug deep,” said a pleased-looking Jordan.
“Some guys were playing here against the Springboks for the first time and got a taste of what it is like. It is just one game of four. But an awesome start to the series for us.
“Test footy is about absorbing pressure and then being able to turn your (pressure) into points. In the first half we were just withstanding a real Springbok onslaught and then in the second half we took our moments, so I am stoked.”
New Zealand captain Ardie Savea, who was also playing his first game of the tour after being given extra time off after the Nations Championship, looked absolutely spent but very happy with his team’s performance.
“We always knew the Springboks were coming at us with big carriers and quality players. When they get a head of steam they are hard to stop. So I am really proud of my boys’ efforts tonight,” said Savea.
“It was a boxing match out there. It just came down to crucial moments and I thought we held it together when it was tight, and we got there in the end.
“It’s always special coming to South Africa. Especially with the Greatest Rivalry. Just to see the crowd, the fans and even our New Zealand supporters here. It’s just an amazing spectacle to be in. We will take this win, but we know it’s not over, we have got to keep going.”