Boks coach pleased with win over Wallabies

South Africa coach Rassie Erasmus says their 35-17 Test win over the Wallabies was far from perfect but he still had a lot to be pleased about.

South Africa coach Rassie Erasmus says some of his Springboks put their hand up for World Cup selection in their Rugby Championship win over Australia at Ellis Park.

The Springboks fielded a weakened side with 13 first-choice players sent early to New Zealand to prepare for next week's clash with the All Blacks.

But with exciting debutant halfback Herschel Jantjies scoring a try in each half, the hosts handled the big moments best against the Wallabies, scoring five tries to two in a 35-17 victory.

"A few guys certainly put their hands up for World Cup selection and although there was some rustiness and all our combinations weren't settled, we are still happy with the win," said Erasmus, who headed straight for the airport after the match.

"At times we were frustrated with how things went, and we were also lucky as they (Australia) had a try disallowed for a forward pass and lost the ball over the line.

"We are under no doubt that this isn't close to a world-class performance but some individuals stood out in the game and that's the biggest thing we can take from this."

The Springboks looked a bit disjointed in defence but skipped away in the second half after leading 14-10 at the break.

Jantjies's second try showed some individual brilliance when he took the ball from the back of a ruck and darted down the sideline to touch down.

"I think Herschel showed that he is comfortable at this level, if you consider that he only really made his mark at Super Rugby level this year," Erasmus said.

"The way he services his box kicks, the technical things, grit on defence, he can only grow from here."

He said his team was still outplayed in the air, despite the absence of Israel Folau, who had his Rugby Australia contract terminated in May.

"Australia still had our number in the air," Erasmus said.

"Nic (White) got some great box kicks for both (Reece) Hodge and (Dane) Haylett-Petty and they were awesome in the air.

"The second half we were better but in the first half they totally caught us off guard as we expected a long kicking game, like they did last year, so we were still beaten in the air without a doubt."


Share
3 min read

Published

Source: AAP


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world
Boks coach pleased with win over Wallabies | SBS News