The Springboks and All Blacks heat up the Cake Tin

What a Test match. The best two teams in the world in a heavyweight bout with all the atmosphere and electricity of a title fight.

Unlike many other Springbok supporters, I approached this match with a cautious sense of optimism. I knew the Boks would show up and rise to the occasion. And boy, did they ever.

It was a loss but I easily could have been writing about a win this morning. But it was another case of “what if?” for Bok fans. What if Morne Steyn kicked out, what if we took the three points instead, what if Francois Hougaard didn’t go blindside – moot points all of them.

As it happened the All Blacks sealed the match with some monumental defence and a unwavering belief in their ability to win, clenching a record-setting consecutive home win and further cementing their position as the best team in the world. Their dominance of world rugby is unprecedented.

I don’t watch many other sports but I find myself wondering if any other team in the world has shown a level of dominance and skill as this current All Black side?

Unbeaten since 2012, unbeaten at home since 2009, unbeaten so far in the Rugby Championship’s tenure as a competition. Rugby writer Mark Keohane observed that this contest hardly remains a rivalry given the Boks have won a dismal 14 of the last 52 encounters against the All Blacks.

Give credit to where it is due, and then some, because this black machine swallows up everything you throw at them and refuses to lose. I believe that the Springbok performance needs to be taken in context of what this All Black team has managed to achieve.

From the first kickoff it was evident that the Boks had shown up ready to rumble. We hit the first few breakdowns and uncharacteristically contested them, catching the All Blacks off guard and affecting their ability to recycle ball. Our tackles were crunching, and we relied on our field position to implement set pieces.

The lineout was metronomic in the first half and Victor Matfield showed his value in that regard, though others have commented on his contribution in loose play and I tend to wonder if his value at lineouts justify his shortcomings elsewhere. The lineout allowed us to set up that well orchestrated backline move with some fine finishing by Cornal Hendricks.

I thought that Ruan Pienaar was playing well before his injury, and after Harry Jones mentioned his lack of effort in defence last week I made a point to observe this aspect of his play and was impressed by it. Hougaard erred on the side of conservatism when he came on to play, opting to kick for territory more than we had been doing previously in the match.

This came at the expense of some valuable counter attacking opportunities, chief among them when Duane Vermeulen came up with a dazzling turnover near the start of the second half and we perplexingly box-kicked away possession. Frustrating, but hardly an indicment of an archaic gameplan that the Boks get accused of using.

As Harry Jones mentioned in one of his comments we play a territory-based game with an emphasis on execution at set pieces. For the first half of last night it worked splendidly.

Unfortunately, it didn’t win the match. In the second half the Boks resigned themselves to defending rather than attacking, but we did that very well. The celebrated All Black attack found itself stifled by a granitic Springbok defence. It took some enterprising and inspired play by Aaron Cruden to kick for Kieran Reid on the far side of the field, who managed to stay standing in Jean de Villier’s tackle and offload to New Zealand’s talismanic captain Richie McCaw.

Ever involved in every facet of play, McCaw proved that he does not stop and plays with the hunger of a rookie instead of the veteran he is. Reid was simply brilliant in that try, as well as other moments in the match, where his offload ability drew in two Springbok defenders and created space. Beauden Barrett was an able replacement for Ma’a Nonu, making good decisions and important tackles, notably on Jan Serfontein’s strong run near the end of the match.

Brendan Hope wrote that the Springboks don’t deserve our sympathy as supporters in a rather harsh assessment of the Bok display in Wellington. In a sense, I know what he is trying to say – the Springboks have the raw ability and talent to turn these narrow losses into victories. Yet our perpetual inability to convert close encounters into wins is a lament for supporters.

It’s ever a case of “what if”, but I implore the supporters to take some positives from the match against the All Blacks. As I wrote last week, Springbok supporters are fickle and demand much, but I am proud of the Bok performance.

Heyneke Meyer can feel vindicated for his selection of young Handre Pollard at flyhalf, who stepped up to the plate against the best team in the world and maintained his composure, crafting that try with a deft inside pass and even slotting a drop goal (booed of course by the home crowd). Vermeulen was a machine and did not stop contributing at any point of the match, as did the rest of the forward pack, even going so far as to win a scrum on the All Black try line with a minute to go.

It was almost a fairytale finish to a thrilling Test match, but the All Blacks sealed it and credit to them for not buckling under the pressure.

In the end I yelled so loud I’m surprised the neighbours didn’t call the police. But, I am still proud of the fact that we fronted up to the mighty All Blacks with a lot of heart. At times inconsistent, sometimes dominant and for long periods of play without possession the Boks came close.

Many supporters on The Roar were writing at length about the steady regression shown by the Boks of late and weren’t questioning if the Boks would lose, but rather by how much. Unfortunately it was another loss for the Boks and it was heartbreaking to watch, but we can stand tall knowing we didn’t leave anything on the field.

As I wrote last week, keep calm and carry on Bok fans.