Three tries in the final quarter by South Africa decided a pulsating reprise of the 2023’s breathless Rugby World Cup quarter-final with the 14-man Springboks stunning a Stade de France crowd, thirsting for revenge, with a 32-17 (halftime 13-14) victory to celebrate captain Siya Kolisi’s 100th Test in style.
Replacements Andre Esterhuizen and Grant Williams as well as starting flyhalf Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu added tries to a first half score by Cobus Reinach to record a ninth win in 10 matches against a stunned home team.
The Boks lost lock Lood de Jager to a permanent red card for a dangerous tackle at the end of the first half, trailing by one point at the time.
Astonishingly, they outscored France 19-3 despite the numerical disadvantage in the second half, resisting a home side that for the first quarter of that second period had looked capable of taking the game away from the Boks.
But the grit and resilience that has been bred into this team over the past six years came to the fore in the final quarter just when it appeared that the blue tide might be about to overwhelm the Boks.
Instead, the Boks reasserted forward dominance, cleared the bench and took control.
Esterhuizen’s power at the back of a maul put the Boks in the lead for the first time in the 64th minute, edging ahead after France had opened a four-point lead with a Thomas Ramos penalty goal – ultimately their only points of the half.
A second maul was halted on the opposite touch – the right – but when the ball emerged, the jet-heeled Williams sliced through to the poles on the angle to open up an eight-point lead with nine minutes to go.
And Feinberg-Mngomezulu hammered the final nail into France’s coffin with three minutes to go. He had moved to fullback – with Manie Libbok coming on at No 10 – and took a pass from the new flyhalf to go on an angling run from the 22 outside his defender to curve round close to the posts.
Scorers:
France 17 (14) – Tries: Damian Penaud (2). Conversions: Thomas Ramos (2). Penalty goal: Ramos.
Springboks 32 (13) – Tries: Cobus Reinach, Andre Esterhuizen, Grant Williams, Feinberg-Mngomezulu. Conversions: Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (3). Penalty goals: Feinberg-Mngomezulu (2).
