The Springboks are on notice – give away penalties to the Wallabies on Saturday at your peril.
Reece Hodge has tested the range of his powerful boot at altitude, and the results should frighten South Africa ahead of the Rugby Championship clash at Pretoria’s Loftus Versfeld (1.05am Sunday AEST).
After holding off for the early part of the week, the 22-year-old Test newcomer finally unleashed at Australia’s training ground in Johannesburg on Thursday and casually nailed a penalty from around 60m out.
“I’m not sure if it’s a small field out there but at least 60m on the angle, so I’ll see what happens when we go to Loftus,” Hodge told reporters.
“There was a bit of wind behind us so we can’t count the whole altitude factor but they are definitely flying far.”
Hodge became a viral internet hit last year when he uploaded a video to Instagram of him slotting a penalty from a ridiculous 70m, albeit with the aid of another handy tailwind.
But there was no such breeze behind him when he crunched an impressive 65m penalty on his Test debut against New Zealand in Wellington last month.
Bernard Foley remains Australia’s first-choice goalkicker but Hodge has been given licence to take aim from distance if the right situation presents itself.
“We want to score tries first and foremost but it’s something we can have in the back of our minds,” Hodge said.
Hodge is yet to play at altitude, having suffered an injury that ruled him out of Melbourne’s Super Rugby match against the Bulls in Johannesburg earlier this year.
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