The Boks proved too powerful for Scotland, Ireland dominated the All Blacks while England saw off the Wallabies in a scrappy old affair. Shaun Goosen looks back at the weekend that was.
Springboks make it two from two on the road
South Africa’s physicality proved far too much for Scotland as they claimed a 30-15 win at Murrayfield on Saturday for a second win on tour. In spite of the final result, it was a far from polished performance from Siya Kolisi’s men. The first half was particularly messy, with the Boks coughing up possession on numerous occasions and letting the hosts off the hook time and again with some uncharacteristically careless errors. In the end, though, the sheer brutality of the World Champions’ game battered Scotland into submission, with the impact of the Bomb Squad again coming to the fore late on. Man of the Match Eben Etzebeth should be singled out after putting in another monstrous shift to underline his status as arguably the best second-rower in the game at present.
Despite something of a fightback midway through the second-half, Gregor Townsend’s Scotsmen faded badly towards the latter stages of the contest. They should get a chance to produce an improved showing when Japan visit Murrayfield this weekend, but will be wary of underestimating the Asian outfit considering the result of their clash in the 2019 World Cup pool stages.
Lonwabo Mtimka and Makhaya Jack were absolutely 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜 Makazole Mapimpi's second try against Scotland 🎙️🔥#AutumnNationSeries pic.twitter.com/aIqnhyQGEZ
— SuperSport 🏆 (@SuperSportTV) November 13, 2021
Heroic Irish dominate All Blacks
Ireland produced their best performance of the Andy Farrell era to beat New Zealand 29-20 at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday. The win is just Ireland’s third in 33 Tests between the nations and came after a phenomenal effort that saw them dominate possession with over 60% and claim 56% territory over the course of the contest. The hosts made six line breaks to the ABs’ one and forced the visitors to make a whopping 238 tackles altogether.
The first-half stats were even more damning, with Ireland having 71% possession and 73% territory, plus 276 carry metres to just 99 and making New Zealand tackle 158 times. Despite that, it was the visitors that miraculously went into the break leading after a Codie Taylor try, but the Irish were not to be denied and came away with a famous win in the end.
The 𝗔𝘃𝗶𝘃𝗮 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗱𝗶𝘂𝗺 𝗲𝗿𝘂𝗽𝘁𝘀 after Ireland's stunning victory over the All Blacks 🥳 pic.twitter.com/AmGpkvUvWy
— SuperSport 🏆 (@SuperSportTV) November 13, 2021
England maintain winning run over Aussies
England beat Australia 32-15 at Twickenham on Saturday to a record their eighth-straight win over their old foe. Since Eddie Jones has been at the helm, England have totally dominated this fixture and now boast 26 wins to the Wallabies’ 25 from 52 Tests. Despite the pre-match hype surrounding Marcus Smith and Owen Farrell’s partnership at 10 and 12, it was 20-year-old fullback Freddie Steward who stole the show for the hosts. The Leicester Tigers man was sublime at the back for the English and even managed to bag a try in a fantastic individual performance.
The gap. The step. A first England try for @freddiesteward_ 🔥🔥
— England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) November 13, 2021
Live on @primevideosport 📺#ENGvAUS pic.twitter.com/KuQmdNYdEi
