Boks are Green and Bold. Wallabies up Schmidt Creek without a paddle

Australia and South Africa say they are both "learning". One is learning quicker than the other

“Be Bold, Play On,” read the slogan painted on the halfway line at the Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane for the opening match of the Castle Lager Rugby World Championships on Saturday.

The Springboks were Green and Bold. Luke Pearce, the referee, spent most of the match telling both teams to play on. The Wallabies were up Joe Schmidt Creek without a paddle. Australia were neither daring nor were they allowed to compete in this 33-7 rout. Hell, the highest note struck by an Australian came from tenor David Kidd during the anthem before the game kicked off 16 minutes late.

Like hundreds of thousands of anthem singers before him, Kidd could not resist throwing in that affected warble at the end, that grand crescendo so beloved of what the British call Luvvies and the rest of the world call artists: “Advance Australia… Faaaaaaair!” Advance? We see your “advance” and raise you “Maluphakanyisw’ uphondo lwayo,” roared the Springboks and the thousands wearing green in the stadium. The horn of Africa was about to be raised high.

In the aftermath of this mauling, when Australia were left to pick up the pieces and the Springboks rued their inability to be more ruthless, both sides described themselves as “learning”.  

“We stuck to what we planned in the week, we are a learning team, coach Tony (Brown) is trying to make us play differently in attack,” said Springbok captain Siya Kolisi, who was mistakenly captioned as the Wallaby captain by Australian television.

“You have to credit South Africa, they showed up tonight and put us under pressure. We did not have the ball for most of the first half. It is a tough learning for our group but we have to regather and go again in Perth next week,” said Wallaby captain Allan Alaalatoa, who may have wished he was the Bok captain.

The learning was begun, as it had to be, by Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, who has been the talk of the town since he was named at 10. Much was expected of the 22-year-old. Australian commentators practised saying his name for days. Former Wallaby captain Michael Hooper got it just about right when speaking about the Bok flyhalf before the match. It would be the only thing Hooper would get right as a commentator for the rest of the game.

Feinberg-Mngomezulu took six seconds to steady himself after Pearce blew the whistle to start the match, then kicked deep and sweetly. Australia fielded it as sweetly, but within four minutes the tone would be set at the first scrum on the left touchline. This South African team had come with a new Boks of tricks to play.

It started when Cheslin Kolbe temporarily took over as scrumhalf to free up Cobus Reinach as an extra pivot option in the backline from that first scrum. Feinberg-Mngomezulu missed the first penalty attempt at goal, a horrid shank, but his second penalty kick, to set up a lineout on the five-metre line, could not have been more perfect. From it, Bongani Mbonambi hit Ben-Jason Dixon in the second pod of jumpers. While still in the air, Dixon flung it to Eben Etzebeth, who had jumped late at the front of the lineout. The maul edged right then left before Kolisi rocketed over for the first try.

And so it went for the rest of the first half. Pieter-Steph du Toit, a late replacement at lock for the injured RG Snyman, knifed through for the second try after eight quickfire phases. Willie le Roux butchered a certain five-pointer when he stepped inside with an overlap. Ox Nche offloaded like Kolbe. Kolbe tackled like Kolisi.

Andrew Kellaway was yellow carded for using Reinach’s head as a stake. Kurt-Lee Arendse picked up a loose flick backwards by Dixon after the Wallaby scrum had imploded once more, floated right and then straight past gold jerseys for a try that defies words.

Australia could not get within 25-metres of the Bok line for the first half hour. Carlo Tizzano, the Wallaby flank, flopped on rucks like a dead fish, desperate to make a difference. Jake Gordon kicked like Noah Lolesio and both were dreadful. The count of Pearce shouting “use it” at scrummies was into the dozens. Mbonambi went off as a “tactical” sub after 27 minutes. The Boks defended 14 phases in their 22 in the final two minutes. It wasn’t perfect, but it was as near as damn it.

On Australian telly, Hooper was getting delusional. The Springboks are fatigued after 20 minutes, he hoped. After a half-decent Wallaby scrum following four scrum penalties, he reckoned Isaac Kailea was putting up a good show against Frans Malherbe.

For the first 20 minutes of the second half there was some respite for Australia as the Boks struggled to find rhythm. When they did, Kwagga Smith hammered over for the fourth try. From the restart, Jessie Kriel found a hole in space and time, evaded tackles and floated a pass to Arendse on his left for the fifth.

Just as the Boks had re-discovered their stride, Malcolm Marx and Marco van Staden were yellow carded. South Africa adapted quickly. There was Kolbe, throwing in at the lineout. Arendse  The 13 men in green held the Wallabies out until the 75^th minute when they ran out of numbers wide and Hunter Paisami scored a try to rub out the zero on the scoreboard. To even things up again when Marx came back on, Pearce yellow carded Kriel for a deliberate knock on with two minutes left.

What was learnt? A hoodoo broken? A reality checked? A statement made? The Springboks continue to evolve but, said Rassie Erasmus, “didn’t cherish the ball and look after it like a piece of gold, but at times we played with good structure and intent”. They have extraordinary depth and should, all things working, get better.

The Wallabies? Joe Schmidt the coach, said earlier in the week he had mixed “continuity with freshness” for this match. Afterwards he was fresh out of ideas and continuity: “Our breakdown wasn’t right. We missed our marks with our lineout early on. Our scrum was under pressure early,” he said before clasping at straws. “We’ve got this as the benchmark now. I’m hearted by the way the boys rolled their sleeves up. 12-7 in the second-half is a lot closer that 21-0 in the first.”

Green and Bold versus being up Schmidt Creek without a paddle. You know which you would rather be now.

Scorers 

Australia: (0) 7

Try: Hunter Paisami. Conversion: Tom Lynagh. 

South Africa: (21) 33

Tries: Siya Kolisi, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Kurt-Lee Arendse 2, Kwagga Smith. Conversions: Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu 4. 

Yellow cards

Australia: Andrew Kellaway (29).

South Africa: Malcolm Marx (66); Marco van Staden (71); Jesse Kriel (78).

Teams:

Australia: 15 Tom Wright, 14 Andrew Kellaway, 13 Len Ikitau, 12 Hunter Paisami, 11 Filipo Daugunu, 10 Noah Lolesio, 9 Jake Gordon, 8 Harry Wilson, 7 Carlo Tizzano, 6 Rob Valetini, 5 Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, 4 Nick Frost, 3 Allan Alaalatoa (captain), 2 Matt Faessler, 1 Isaac Kailea. Replacements: 16 Josh Nasser, 17 James Slipper, 18 Zane Nonggorr, 19 Jeremy Williams, 20 Luke Reimer, 21 Tate McDermott, 22 Tom Lynagh, 23 Dylan Pietsch.

South Africa: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Cheslin Kolbe, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 9 Cobus Reinach, 8 Elrigh Louw, 7 Ben-Jason Dixon, 6 Siya Kolisi (captain), 5 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Bongi Mbonambi, 1 Ox Nche. Replacements: 16 Malcolm Marx, 17 Gerhard Steenekamp, 18 Vincent Koch, 19 Salmaan Moerat, 20 Marco van Staden, 21 Kwagga Smith, 22 Grant Williams, 23 Handré Pollard.

Referee: Luke Pearce (England).
Assistant referees: Paul Williams (New Zealand) and Hollie Davidson (Scotland).
TMO: Ben Whitehouse (Wales).