Handre Pollard brought perfection off the kicking tee but the composure of the Springboks of 2024 is still lacking, as is the accuracy that won them 11 in 13 Tests.
Australia’s James O’Connor, influential in Johannesburg and a presence for the first hour, missed a conversion and two late penalties as the Boks relied on that good fortune, as much as Pollard and the introduction of tighthead prop Wilco Louw in the 62nd minute.
Louw is the strongest scrumming tighthead in the game, and he should have been on a minute into the second half. The Boks starting pack had no scrum dominance, and it took Louw’s physical presence to change this.
The Boks lineout again wobbled, and the inaccuracy in the final pass or an ill-timed last pass featured too prominently, as illustrated in the final movement of the game.
The hosts had a clear one player advantage, and Eben Etzebeth was inaccurate with the final pass. The try opportunity was lost, and it was a summary of the ills of the Boks over the past two weekends.
There will be relief that they got the win but, hell, it was not convincing and they look some distance off the warriors who showed temperament and class to win the World Cup in 2023 and last season cruised to the Rugby Championship title with five wins from six.
Too many players have looked out of sorts, and too many have been short of gallop.
Bok coach Rassie Erasmus has made on average 12 changes to his match 23 and 10 to his starting XV for every one of the six matches this season.
And it showed.
The Boks, despite so many being World Cup winners, played like a team that has not had two successive outings this season.
The rotation and building of depth is about the 2027 World Cup, but in the now this approach was a missed Australian kick away from back-to-back defeats against the improving Wallabies.
The Wallabies, in Johannesburg and in Cape Town, got stronger in the third quarter of the match, and the Boks again looked fatigued. This could be a result of a pre-planned conditioning programme, aimed at the two Test matches against the All Blacks in New Zealand, but in the present it did not make for easy viewing.
Australia will rue the missed kicks and poor execution in the final 10 minutes as they chased the game.
The Boks scored 30 points, but they got out of jail.
The aggressive rush defence was absent and, against such a passive approach, Australia exposed South Africa in the wider channels and highlighted a Boks fragility in how they manipulate space with ball in hand.
The Springboks — winners of four World Cup golds — have a formula, which is reliant on the calm and control of an imposing set piece, suffocating defence, a lethal back three counter-attack, and a goalkicking effectiveness close to 80%.
A week ago at Ellis Park, in conceding 38 unanswered points to Australia in defeat, the primary qualities were absent. There was no control in the lineout, losing eight, no intensity in the rush defence, isolation and confusion at the breakdown, and only fractures in a fragile counter-attack collective.
In Cape Town, it was always going to be different in approach, but it was not in conviction or in execution, and the Boks will know they got given an escape from another humbling defeat.
Relief is the emotion at the final whistle, and frustration.
Boks order was restored, with the win, but it was unconvincing, and it was more sterile than outstanding, and the intensity again could not be sustained beyond the first half.
This was one lost by Australia more than won by the Springboks.
Louw’s scrum presence was the biggest plus, as was Pollard’s performance and the contribution of winger Cheslin Kolbe.
Collectively, this was sub-standard in the context of a successful defence of the Rugby Championship.
Eden Park, in Auckland against the All Blacks on September 6, is now as much about trepidation as it is anticipation.
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