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South Africa vs Ireland 1st Test: Post-match analysis

Allister Coetzee's games haven't gone to plan so far. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
Roar Guru
16th June, 2016
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Ireland’s June series began with an eventful win over South Africa in Cape Town.

Ireland started the game better than they could have imagined, going wide early to find space at the edges of the South African defence. They forced four penalties from South Africa in the first ten minutes and built a lead through a Paddy Jackson penalty and a well-taken Jared Payne try following a grubber kick from Luke Marshall.

There was a huge momentum swing in the second quarter when CJ Stander received a red card in the 22nd minute for colliding with Pat Lambie when trying to block the Springbok’s clearance kick. This was followed soon after by a yellow card for Robbie Henshaw in the 32nd minute for a high tackle on Elton Jantjies.

Stander’s red card has been a source of controversy in the media. Some believe the red card was warranted, while others have deemed it harsh.

Stander jumped into the air in an attempt to block Lambie’s clearance kick and his hip made contact with the side of Lambie’s head. At no point during or before contact did Stander look at anything other than the ball, therefore it was accidental.

Yes, it is unfortunate Lambie sustained a serious concussion. However, Stander’s actions were not intentionally dangerous, and should not have warranted anything more than a yellow card.

Henshaw’s yellow card, too, was baffling. His right shoulder made contact with Jantjies’s left shoulder and then moved upwards due to momentum and the difference in height between the players. The slow-motion replays showed Henshaw had committed to the tackle before the ball was released, so it’s not late either. Yet the referee deemed it too high.

With Ireland down to 13 men, two or three South African tries were expected before the break, followed by a procession afterwards.

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The second half panned out differently, though, with Ireland taking control of the game. They blitzed South Africa with a Conor Murray try in the 43rd minute to take the lead. They also developed an upper hand at the breakdown, forcing kickable penalties.

The error count from South Africa began to skyrocket as nerves and frustration set in when they realised Ireland weren’t going to give up. Jackson’s 68th-minute penalty put Ireland 10 points ahead, but two phases later, he gifted the ball to Pieter-Steph du Toit to set up a nervous endgame.

The wisdom of Andy Farrell’s appointment has been questioned by many in the Irish media due to his involvement in England’s failed World Cup campaign. As it turned out, his defensive system provided Ireland with the foundation for a historic win.

Ireland’s aggressive press in midfield was key to shutting down South Africa’s wide movements and the organisation and speed of their kick-chase allowed them to stifle counterattacks from Willie le Roux and co. That Ireland were able to cover the pitch evenly and number up when they were not at their full complement defies belief.

Ireland were content to kick to South Africa as the second half progressed because they knew their defence was good enough to get them the ball back further down the pitch, a clear sign of confidence. It was fitting that the game ended with Ireland shoving JP Pietersen into touch when he came within inches of going over in the corner.

The media have made much of the changes that South Africa are undergoing. They did lose several of their seasoned internationals after the World Cup and bringing in a new coach is always going to involve teething problems. That should not take away from what Ireland have achieved.

The Springboks still put out a starting XV that included Tendai Mtawarira, Adriaan Strauss, Eben Etzebeth, Lood de Jager, Francois Louw, Duane Vermeulen, Damian de Allende, JP Pietersen and Willie le Roux, all of whom have performed well in (and in some cases dominated) games against the top teams in world rugby.

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To go out and play a team like that on their home patch, while being down to 14 men for three-quarters of the game, not to mention spending 10 minutes of that time with just 13 men, is extraordinary.It’s a victory that’s up there with the best of Joe Schmidt’s tenure.

Although they won this game by working as a collective, some of the individual displays from Ireland were outstanding. Rory Best would be the first person to acknowledge that he didn’t have a brilliant Six Nations, but he hit top form in this game. His razor-sharp throwing meant his team could use the lineout as a starting point from which to pressurise South Africa. He was combative in every single collision, not content to just make the tackle, looking to rip the ball as well.

Jack McGrath’s omnipresence in both attack and defence was unfathomable for a prop. A lot is expected of modern-day front-rowers in the loose, but turning up to make tackles for two consecutive phases at a time and running support lines off a player’s inside shoulder after they make a line break are traits you’d expect from an openside flanker.

Mike Ross made more tackles than would normally be expected from him, but he endured a tough afternoon in the scrum at the hands of Mtawarira. His replacement, Tadhg Furlong, fared much better against Trevor Nyakane, getting underneath the Bulls prop and winning a penalty in the 60th minute.

It would be a gamble to start Furlong in Johannesburg on Saturday. There is a series at stake and scrummaging against Mtawarira is a completely different prospect to taking on Nyakane.

Ireland’s sternest test was in the second row, and they were up to the challenge. Devin Toner’s man-of-the-match award was well-deserved. He took a step forward as a leader within the team, putting in big tackles and varying Ireland’s lineouts well enough to keep South Africa guessing.

Iain Henderson put in an immense performance. Every time he carried the ball, two South Africans were required to bring him to ground and the intensity of his grappling tackles increased as the game progressed. He effected four turnovers, one of which came when Ireland were defending on their own five-metre line and looked like they were one phase away from conceding a try.

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Ultan Dillane, picked up from where Henderson left off, carried the ball five times in the space of nine minutes, each carry getting his team moving forward against an angry Springbok pack.

Despite being on the pitch for just a quarter of the game, Stander put in some bruising carries, the most notable being at 17:08, when he charged through Etzebeth towards the South African try line. His red card was always going to put Ireland’s remaining back-rowers under pressure but they responded better than any Irish supporter could have hoped for.

Jordi Murphy’s yards after contact weren’t great and he was blasted out of the ruck every time he attempted to poach, but his work-rate in defence was superb, putting in low, driving tackles to avoid conceding the gain line.

Jamie Heaslip had one of those games that makes you question how non-Leinster supporters still question his ability. His leg drive in contact, tackle count and leadership qualities were all to the fore in this game. Between himself and Murphy, they made up for the absence of Ireland’s best-performing back-rower this season.

The technical aspects of Ireland’s forward play were important in this victory and Simon Easterby’s influence cannot be understated. The Irish forwards carried in twos and threes to give themselves the best chance of holding on to the ball. Their mauling and counter-mauling, which had been problem areas earlier in the year, improved out of sight. Three of their four mauls yielded penalties (with another generating the initial momentum for Murray’s try) and they repelled the South African drive four times without conceding a penalty.

Murray’s performance has been lauded as the best of his career to date and for good reason. His intelligent box-kicking was, as always, vital for Ireland’s territorial gains and his delivery to those outside him was as quick as it has ever been. He drew in the South African fringe defence to give his forward carriers space to run into and he continues to be a frequent try-scorer.

There were a few minor complaints you could make. His box-kick out on the full at 12:43 should have been kicked further infield because the South African back three had all joined the attacking line. Pietersen’s charge-down of his clearance kick at 19:34 was heart-in-the-mouth stuff, but to play as well as well as he did while taking a hiding out in Ireland’s defensive line for most of the game was impressive.

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Stepping in for Johnny Sexton was always going to be challenging. Jackson lost some collisions, which is to be expected when the players he was tackling lift weights that are bigger than him, but he never shied away from his defensive duties. His kicking out of hand in the final quarter was too long and there were errors that could have altered the course of the game. A restart out on the full was the last thing Ireland needed after losing Stander and his intercepted pass put Ireland in an uncomfortable position when they should have been closing out the game.

While Jackson wasn’t perfect, he never once looked hurried in his passing or decision-making. His 37th minute drop-goal and willingness to have a cut at the South African defence showed you just how far his game management and confidence have come since being thrown in the deep end against Scotland back in 2013.

The difference in size between Marshall and his opposite number and his history of concussion were worries going to this game, but the Ulster centre gave a good account of himself and, on balance, outplayed de Allende. He tormented South Africa with his kicking game, used first-rate passing to get the ball to the men outside him and didn’t lack anything in the physical exchanges, with his decisive tackle on de Allende at 24:15 being one of several moments of uncompromising defence.

Henshaw’s selection at 13 saw him being used as a distributor rather than just a means of getting Ireland over the gain line. He threw a cracking pass to find Andrew Trimble in space, and it was refreshing to see Ireland utilise this part of his game.

After Payne, Keith Earls was Ireland’s most dangerous player in attack. His pace and footwork got him in behind, and like Payne, he looked to keep the ball alive after making a break by linking up with support runners. It wasn’t just the glamorous stuff he excelled at. He took a heavy hit from le Roux at 70:43, but still held on to the ball, when the force of the collision made that seem like an unrealistic outcome.

Like Best, Trimble was another player who put a disappointing Six Nation’s campaign behind him. He exerted a lot of pressure on Lwazi Mvovo under the high ball, forcing a number of mistakes from him. It wasn’t just in defence or in the air where the Ulster winger impressed. He made two breaks down the right wing (benefitting from Payne’s offloads) and he used footwork to catch South African defenders flat-footed.

Payne was prominent in attack from fullback, scoring Ireland’s first try and creating the second. His line break in the middle of the pitch in the 36th minute created the platform for Jackson’s drop goal. The understanding between the Ulster players was crucial in Ireland’s attack being able to function fluently.

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Ireland’s ability to play effective attacking rugby was bolstered by the quality of their passing. They were guilty of handling errors in the Six Nation’s when presented with try-scoring opportunities, but the same could not be said for this game.

There was also more intent on Ireland’s part to offload than during the Six Nations. While the most prolific of these came from Payne, there were occasions where other players in the team looked to get their arms free and pass to a trailing support runner.

Following his line break, Murray offloaded to Henderson at 07:29. Although Henderson knocked on, the offload was the right option as Henderson had run a good support line. Heaslip tried to get his hands free and looked around for a support runner at 16:54 after pumping his legs through the tackle. McGrath was coming on to the ball at pace, but Heaslip couldn’t quite free his hands from Frans Malherbe’s grasp.

Earls’ offload to Murphy at 44:13 went too low for him to be able to gather it without knocking on, but with the Springbok defence at sixes and sevens, there was a chance of a try if the ball had gone to hand. If Henshaw had been able to offload to Heaslip at 66:15 after beating Jantjies on the outside, there was an overlap on the left, with Earls on Heaslip’s left and only Pietersen in front of them.

South Africa will continue to receive stinging criticism in the media until they can redeem themselves this Saturday. They turned the ball over far too often for a team who pride themselves on forward dominance and ball retention.

Holding the ball loosely out in front made the Springbok forwards vulnerable to having it ripped from their grasp, or knocking on following a big hit from an Irish defender and carrying the ball too upright into contact allowed Ireland to effect the choke tackle in the second half.

They made the mistake of assuming that Ireland’s defence would soften and the offloads would flow following the red card.

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There were some individual performances from the South African forwards that will have enraged their coaches. Malherbe gave away two cheap penalties that handed Ireland six points. De Jager’s yellow card was costly for South Africa and he had less and less influence around the pitch as the game went on.

Vermeulen’s move to the Top 14 has not done him any favours. He did put in aggressive carries, but there were times where he looked half a second off the pace of the game. His knock on at the base of the scrum at 33:55 handed possession back to Ireland at a time when South Africa should have been putting them to the sword.

It wasn’t just up front where South Africa struggled. Their half-backs failed to make the most out of being up a man. You can’t expect every new player to acclimatise to Test rugby instantly, but the likes of Faf de Klerk, Rudy Paige and Jantjies (who play at Super Rugby level every week) should have the awareness to spot weaknesses in a team that are down a man.

With Ireland using Murray in the defensive line, there was space in behind. South Africa never looked to exploit this, instead shovelling the ball on and running cross-field, hoping for a gap to appear.

De Klerk’s speed to the ruck and passing were of a high standard, but he didn’t cover himself in glory defensively. In the eighth minute, he misread Ireland’s intent and rushed off the line too early, leaving a gap at the tail of the lineout for Murray to run straight through. Another defensive error came at 44:12, when he lost his footing, allowing Earls to make a break down the left wing.

Lambie’s concussion means that Jantjies will likely start at 10 for the rest of this series and South Africa will hope that he can bring his club form in their next two games. The substandard handling and outright lack of imagination from their centres should see Jesse Kriel come into the starting line-up this Saturday at the expense of Lionel Mapoe.

Le Roux was a constant thorn in Ireland’s side when he got the ball in his hands, but his line breaks were often followed up by mistakes. He missed tackles in wider channels, one on Trimble at 00:57 and one on Earls at 16:43, both of which put his team under pressure.

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His positioning in the backfield was exposed when Ireland kicked the ball through. It’s a flaw in his game that has been exploited before, and if it’s something he is not able to correct, it would be worthwhile for Ireland to test it again.

If Ireland had a full deck to choose from and hadn’t been given either of the cards, this game could have been embarrassing for the hosts, but it wasn’t all bad from South Africa. Mtawarira’s carries punished Irish tacklers and he had a serious advantage over Ross at scrum time. Louw scavenged well at the breakdown until his substitution, slowing Ireland’s momentum, and he carried the ball strongly. The leg drive from the Springbok pack was excellent and their counter-rucking in the first half made Ireland fight to retain possession, with Etzebeth being a force of nature in this area.

Some of South Africa’s replacement forwards made noteworthy contributions. Du Toit had a big impact from the bench, outperforming the man he replaced. Warren Whiteley is worth taking a look at as a starting number eight in at least one game of the series, considering how well he got over the gain line.

Pietersen was potent with ball in hand and his charge-down of Murray’s clearance kick almost created a try for his team. Despite his struggles under the high ball, Mvovo ran a brilliant line to split the Irish defence off a scrum in the 32nd minute. The replays showed obstruction on Marshall to create the space for Mvovo, but the winger still demonstrated fine pace to cross the line.

You could see glimpses of the type of rugby that Allister Coetzee is trying to get his team to play. Their phase play was decent at times, dragging Irish defenders in close before moving the ball to the space out wide.

They also tried to add new dimensions to their game. Any Springbok team would be expected to maul off lineouts once they are in the opposition half and they used this to their advantage to create space further out for Siya Kolisi.

In the 13th minute, Strauss threw to Etzebeth at the front on the Ireland ten-metre line. The maul was set, but instead of attempting to drive, the ball was transferred from Louw at the tail to Strauss to de Klerk, who sent Kolisi off on a marauding run in midfield.

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The same tactic was used in the 29th minute, when the ball was thrown to de Jager at the front on the Ireland 22-metre line. Again, a maul was formed, but before it got moving, the ball was moved quickly from de Jager to Louw, who found Kolisi charging forward again.

It wasn’t just around lineouts where the South African forwards were used to distribute or carry the ball. During their multi-phase attacks, they were deployed in wider channels.

At 06:11, Lambie flung the ball wide to Etzebeth, who had Mtawarira, Kolisi and Pietersen on his outside. There wasn’t much of a gain in this instance (with Kolisi making a few yards) but the aim was to create mismatches between the South African forwards and the smaller Irish backs.

The South African management have clearly identified the value of Louw’s handling skills and Kolisi’s athletic ability, with the two flankers popping up in the centre and wing positions in the 29th minute. If Louw’s pass to Kolisi on the wing at 28:41 hadn’t been forward, the try line would have been at his mercy.

Another way in which South Africa tried to expand their attacking repertoire was the use of switch-back passes on the wing. The first of these came at 7:44, when le Roux flicked the ball back inside to Mvovo and the second came at 37:32, when Mapoe combined with Mvovo.

These new tactics may not have been particularly effective, but once South Africa develop a bit more fluency in their multi-phase attacks and a better understanding of when to use the offload, they will be dangerous.

The next game in this series is no doubt going to unfold differently. Heaslip is the only player in the entire Irish squad who has experienced Test rugby on The Highveld and the effect it has on the lungs and their exertions from the weekend will take their toll. The South African coaches and players will be furious with themselves and a backlash is on the cards.

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