Australia had just 24 per cent of territory at the Cake Tin, they spent almost the entire 80 minutes on the back foot and they were forced to absorb wave after wave of South African pressure. And yet, by the end, somehow it was they who progressed to face the hosts New Zealand in the semi-final at Eden Park in Auckland on Sunday.
There have already been significant consequences for South Africa, with the captain John Smit, second row Victor Matfield and coach Peter de Villiers all announcing their retirements immediately after the game.
The departures of Smit and Matfield – the latter described by Smit as the “greatest Springbok ever” – were expected, but not so De Villiers. Cynics might argue that given South Africa’s failure to advance beyond the quarter-finals and the volatile rugby politics in the country, he was merely jumping before he was pushed.
At least he had the satisfaction of leaving at a time and place of his choosing and to coincide with two extraordinary players who served him so loyally, not least when times were difficult and the flak was flying.
“It’s a sad occasion, stepping down, and you are never prepared for when it ends. You want it to be a fairytale, you want it to be in a final,” said Smit, who captained his team for a remarkable 83rd time yesterday. “I have been blessed to play and captain the Springboks and although I am devastated today I have always been proud to be a Springbok.
“It was a sad way to end but when you look at the players that are left and coming through we are in a good place. I spoke to all the guys afterwards and told them to remember this game and how it feels to lose by millimetres.
“ Peter is not from the normal mould of coach, but with him even the bad days are good. He has made us enjoy every minute and has given us leeway to be ourselves. He has been a great man and helped us enjoy these four years.”
De Villiers was gracious while reserving a parting shot for his critics . “It was a brilliant journey and something that none of you [media] guys could take away from me,” he said. “I wanted to be the best I could be and that is the way I want to be remembered. There is a time to come and a time to go and the journey for me is over. I enjoyed it. I am privileged to have been in a position to help my country.”
Any team who defend as heroically, and for as long, as Australia did here have earned the right still to be in contention in the closing stages of the match. They enjoyed some luck, especially in referee Bryce Lawrence’s laissez-faire control of the breakdown, which saw Australia’s openside, David Pocock, appear to get away with offending at will. But equally their sheer bloody-mindedness frustrated the Springboks into making some poor decisions and into turning the ball over with untypical regularity. The absence of South Africa’s long-range kicker, Frans Steyn, who was injured in the game against Samoa last week, was also telling.
The Tri-Nations champion Wallabies were forced to fight a rearguard action for much of an incredibly intense encounter with the world champions in Wellington before emerging 11-9 victors yesterday.
"That was a very good performance from the Springboks," Deans said. "You don't want to underestimate that, it was a very experienced side and there were some players who were at the top of their games.
Advertisement
"It was their last performance, they knew it was their last performance, and they played out of their skins.
"The Springboks really upped the ante and put our blokes in a vice and they came through that test," he added. "We're delighted to be in the semis and we'll bring some of that forward with us."
Great history
Deans said it was inevitable that such an encounter would take a physical toll on the players but as far as injuries were concerned, he seemed reasonably confident he would have most of his party fit to face the All Blacks.
Centre Pat McCabe had suffered a "couple of stingers" to his shoulder but had "recovered well", while fullback Kurtley Beale (hamstring) and prop Sekope Kepu (ankle) would both have scans.
"It's very much mental at this time of year but there are obviously some physical realities with that," he said.
"It was pretty evident that that was an exchange that was out of the ordinary. We'll recover and ... we'll make sure we get back to where we need to be before we put any physical demands on the group, and we'll be ready to go at the weekend."
Australia have played New Zealand only twice at the World Cup in the 1991 and 2003 tournaments. Both meetings were semi-finals and both won by the Wallabies.
"We know each other well as teams," said Deans. "There's no greater history than that between Australian and New Zealand. There's quite a bit of history at World Cup time as well, it's going to be great."
The Wallabies have not won at the stadium since 1986, however, although Deans thought that precedent was one reporters could safely ignore.
"It's the first occasion we've played them in a World Cup semi-final at Eden Park, so there's no history there," he said.
No comments:
Post a Comment