A tough test: South Africa beats England at its own game
It is a final of superlatives that the rugby world awaits next Saturday when the two triple world champions in rugby union, New Zealand and South Africa, meet at the Stade de France in the Paris suburb of Saint Denis.
While New Zealand was able to clearly beat Argentina 44-6 in a better training game at the same venue on Friday evening, South Africa and England delivered a real heart-stopping finale in the second semi-final. Two minutes before the final whistle, South Africa took the lead for the first time ever (16:15) after a penalty kick by Handré Pollard and then saved the lead over time. England will now face Argentina in the game for third place next Friday. A day later, South Africa and New Zealand duel for the “Webb Ellis” trophy.
The revenge game between the reigning world champion South Africa and the reigning runner-up world champion England – South Africa clearly won the final four years ago in Japan with 32:12 – had nothing to do with the offensive, high-speed rugby that hosts France and South Africa had met at the same place a week earlier had delivered. The Springboks only narrowly won the game 29:28. After the game, both fans and experts spoke of the “best rugby of all time”. Unfortunately, there can’t always be just caviar, and so on Saturday the audience was served dry brown bread instead. The English team, which had surprisingly made it to the semi-finals of this World Cup with its unsightly but extremely efficient game, left its mark on the game for a long time. However, this had little to do with modern rugby. It was more reminiscent of the 1970s and 1980s, when a kind of “kick and rush” rugby was practiced in the British Isles: chasing high kicks and trying to win the ball. If the ball is lost, you have at least gained space and can defend comfortably, relatively far away from your own in-goal area. In this concept, points are primarily scored with penalties or “drop goals”. No sooner said than done: Owen Farrell converted safely (3rd/10th minute of the game) to give the English team, who were playing in white jerseys with a red rose on the chest, a 6-0 lead. Farrell’s counterpart, Mannie Libbok, is considered a talent of the century in the position of “fly half” (the “playmaker”). The 26-year-old should bring more sophistication, more speed and more esprit to the Springboks’ traditionally very physical style of play. But against the English, who pounced like bulldogs on every South African ball carrier, Libbok was unable to develop his fine game. It wasn’t until the 21st minute of the game that he made his first and only appearance in the game, when he reduced the score to 6:3 with a penalty kick. Ten minutes later, Libbok had to make way for Pollard – Farrell had meanwhile increased England’s score to 9-3 with a penalty (24′). The change amounted to an admission by coach Jaques Nienaber that this English team could not be beaten with finesse, speed and esprit alone, but only with uncompromising toughness, kicks and ice-cold tactics.
Pollard immediately reduced the score to 9:6 with a penalty kick (35th), before Farrell (39th) increased the score to 12:6 at halftime. In the 53rd minute of the game it actually looked as if the English were on the road to victory. Farrell flashed his golden foot and scored a technically demanding drop goal from just under 50 meters away to give the team a 15-6 lead. Both teams then largely neutralized each other, with South Africa able to gain a little more share of the game.
In the 69th minute of the game, the South Africans, playing in green and gold jerseys, rewarded themselves with the only try of the game: after their own throw-in five meters from the English in-goal, the South African strikers conquered the leather oval, and Deon Fourie tucked the ball under his arm, put his head down and heaved himself forward, but landed almost two meters short. After a pass from Faf de Klerks, RG Snyman prevailed against three English defenders and finally pumped his way into the in-goal. After the increase (70th/Pollard) it was only 15:13 for England. It was also Pollard who converted the decisive penalty kick (78th) into the first and ultimately decisive 16:15 lead for the “Springboks” and thus scored South Africa’s fourth participation in the World Cup final since 1995.
The opponents next Saturday (9 p.m.) at the Stade de France are, as I said, the All Blacks from New Zealand. Their surprise opponent Argentina started the game well on Friday and led 3-0 after a penalty kick (5th) by Emiliano Boffelli. However, the statistics spoke clearly against »Los Pumas«, who up to this semi-final had only been able to win twice in a total of 36 international matches against New Zealand – in November 2020 and most recently in August 2022. From the 11th minute onwards, the favorite from New Zealand took control and didn’t let it go. Will Jordan opened the scoring after a quick passing game, Richie Mo’unga increased the score to 7:3 (12th). Jordie Barrett (16th) turned the score to 12:3 before Boffelli (31st) reduced the score to 12:6 with a penalty kick. Afterwards, only New Zealand played: After Mo’unga’s penalty (31′) and Shannon Frizell’s try (42’/additional time), the All Blacks jogged to half-time with a comfortable lead of 20:6. Four more attempts followed in the second half to make it 44:6 for the All Blacks, who will also be playing their fourth World Cup final next Saturday.
