Following Ireland’s clutch 25-24 victory over the Springboks in Durban to level the series at one apiece, here are our five takeaways from the game.
The top line
South Africa had unfinished business in Test I, and Ireland clearly had the same feeling in Test II as they came out hammering and dominated the collisions and breakdowns in a truly remarkable first-half performance.
A Conor Murray try, and 11 points from the boot of Jack Crowley gave them a 16-6 lead at the break, and frankly put, the scoreline flattered the hosts, who were bullied just about everywhere other than the scrums.
The 2023 Rugby World Cup pool stage clash between these two sides was a heavyweight clash played at an insane pace, with unreal physicality and intensity. For the first 40 minutes – which was actually closer to 60 – the men in green reproduced that kind of performance, and their opponents did not.
But that all changed in the second half as the world champions came out steaming, turning the table with a tweak in their game plan and a far more kick-focused game plan, for the most part, as Handre Pollard dissected the uprights six further times, adding to three in the opening half.
Yet, Ireland weathered the storm, dusted themselves off, and the marvellous Ciaran Frawley channelled his inner Ronan O’Gara – or perhaps more fittingly Johnny Sexton – to bang over two drops goals and clinch a sensational victory.
It means that the hotly anticipated series finishes all square and leaves us all yearning for another Test between clearly the two best teams in the world, one that will not come until 2025 at the earliest.
Incomings prove their worth
When Dan Sheehan, Bundee Aki and Craig Casey were ruled out in midweek, there was concern how Ireland would fare without that trio and also the absence of Hugo Keenan, Mack Hansen, Jamison Gibson-Park and Jack Conan, who are at home for differing reasons. Those coming in proved there was nothing for fans to worry about.
Ronan Kelleher, Garry Ringrose and Murray were excellent, while Jamie Osborne followed up last week’s effort with another assured performance at full-back. While there were outstanding performances throughout the Ireland side, the impact the aforementioned incoming trio had deserves singling out, with Kelleher in the thick of the action physically, Ringrose showing what an important attacking point of difference he brings and Murray being that cool presence at the base.
It may not have been the successful tour that Andy Farrell’s charges would have wanted after their historic success in New Zealand two years ago, but perhaps this one will be even more telling with their ability to deal with the setbacks they had against a true powerhouse nation in their own backyard.
Throughout both Tests, so many of the fringe players and rookies rose to the occasion in the most testing venues and not only held their own but thrived. When the star men return for the next batch of Tests in November, they might not be handed their starting roles back as quickly as they would have in the past – which is an outstanding position to be in.
Fronting up physically
Much was made of the Springboks’ new attacking intent and willingness to get the ball wide but one thing still hasn’t changed, you have to front up to their physical challenge and today, Ireland did and some.
Siya Kolisi admitted as much after the final whistle; he conceded that the Irish dominated them with their physicality and intensity in the first half and that it was the turning point between Test I and II.
The Irish were brutally effective at the breakdown and outside of the scrums, either got parity or better in the physical exchanges, perfectly highlighted by Joe McCarthy rolling out of a maul with ball in hand after the Springboks had set from the lineout. By hook or crook or sheer brilliance, the Irish pack got the upper hand at the crucial moments.
Ireland player ratings: ‘Heroic’ bench snatch last-gasp victory over poor Springboks
Moment of madness
“That’s career-ending,” one Springboks player yelled at referee Karl Dickson after Malcolm Marx was croc-rolled out of the breakdown in the 47th minute of the match.
The English referee duly reviewed the incident, and whoever had made that statement was spot on as both Caelan Doris and James Ryan rolled the Springboks hooker – who was playing just his third Test back from a long-term knee injury – out of a ruck in an incredibly dangerous fashion.
Planet Rugby makes a point of not referee or officials bashing but in this case, it was a player safety issue and the questions need to be asked. Like, why Doris’ was the one to visit the sin bin when Ryan’s actions were far worse and really, why does it have to be one or the other and not both?
It was an incredibly dangerous clearout in the match and the kind of incident that World Rugby is desperate to stamp out, highlighted by the fact that the croc-roll has been outlawed completely.
It doesn’t just stop there as Doris’ actions weren’t upgraded to a red card – correctly so – but the reasoning was because of the ‘dynamics of the other player’s actions’, i.e. Ryan.
Effectively, what Ryan did was worse, and therefore, Doris’ card wasn’t upgraded. Why both players weren’t just sent to the bin and had their actions individually reviewed is mindboggling.
Fabulous Frawley, Doris’ dark arts and flat Boks
There is a concerning trend in the Springboks that when the squad is not changed from week to week, then there is a dip in performance.
For just the third time since Rassie Erasmus took over, the Springboks matchday 23 remained unchanged from one game to the next. But there is a clear trend in all three matches with the Boks losing two and winning one.
The All Blacks defeated the Boks in the 2019 World Cup opener after Erasmus opted not to tinker from the side that dispatched Japan but were beaten in an underwhelming performance against Steve Hansen’s men. The next time it occurred was in the 2023 World Cup semi-final when the Springboks needed a major fightback to edge past England and reach back-to-back finals, and today, they needed the same after a poor start, but the impact off the bench was just not enough.
However, this should not take away from the utter stones on Frawley, who slotted two brilliant drop goals to seal the win. The first was off a poor goal-line dropout, something the Boks struggled with and, in fact, kicked poorly for most of the match. And the second was from a last-gasp attack. It was a sublime performance from the Leinsterman to clinch the win, especially after missing twice in the Champions Cup final earlier this season.
But much of Ireland’s victory must also be credited to their brilliant back-rower and captain Doris, who would have reminded many Bok fans of the great Richie McCaw, who had the ability to bend and get the blind eye of the officials. How he managed to strip Kwagga Smith of the ball without being deemed illegal, only he and Smith will know and his subtle movement for the final drop goal denied Cheslin Kolbe a clear run to Frawley, giving the playmaker all the time in the world to slot the winner.
The best players in the business know exactly where the line is drawn with the officials and who should press the envelope, and today, Doris got his side the slightest edge but toed that line perfectly.
READ MORE: Ciaran Frawley drop goals stun Springboks as Ireland level series in Durban epic