At last some full-throttle rugby to raise the pulse in south-west London. It may have been a frustrating August for English supporters but here was the thunderous real deal, disguised as a so-called friendly. If this was a warm-up, those about to encounter a rampant South Africa at next month’s World Cup should brace themselves for something massively impactful.
By the end it was about as grisly a dress rehearsal as New Zealand could possibly have experienced. South Africa’s triumph was their most convincing in the 102-year history of this fixture and a depleted All Black pack were left in pieces on the floor.
Even before Scott Barrett’s 38th-minute red card, his side were creaking and the tighthead prop Tyrel Lomax looked to be a serious injury casualty on a heavy-duty evening.
The All Blacks have never lost this heavily and a full house of almost 81,000, some 30,000 more than are set to attend England’s game with Fiji this weekend, were also reminded of the importance of discipline in the modern game. Barrett’s dismissal after a shoulder to the head of the outstanding Springbok hooker Malcolm Marx could have sizeable implications for his team, with their second-row resources stretched already.
On this evidence the Boks will make mincemeat of one or two packs at the World Cup, though they will be relieved that Pieter-Steph du Toit was shown only a yellow card for a stiff arm challenge on New Zealand’s captain, Sam Cane.
It was the only blemish on an otherwise stunning night for South Africa, who are very much the team the rest of the world now have to beat. New Zealand’s head coach, Ian Foster, called them “magnificent” and said his side had been taught “a good lesson.”
In truth, New Zealand could have conceded even more points. The hugely promising Canan Moodie had a glorious weaving score ruled out and at times New Zealand were struggling simply to stay afloat.
Marx and his fellow hooker Bongi Mbonambi underlined the Boks’ power and smart execution when given a sniff in the opposition 22 and Kwagga Smith, whose pace is another handy tool later in games, turned the screw further to put his side 35-0 up.
Cam Roigard did put the All Blacks on the scoreboard with eight minutes left but, by then, a stark message had been delivered. The sheer amount of pre-match braai smoke in the Twickenham air had already given the occasion a distinctive flavour. Short of the Rugby Football Union’s chief executive changing his name to Biltong Sweeney for the evening it could hardly have felt more like a South African home game.
To judge from the hordes of green replica jerseys in the crowd, the Springboks will not lack for London support if they ever join the Six Nations.
If there was the slightest speck of consolation for New Zealand it lay in their initial defiance having been reduced to 13 players in the first quarter. They were under heavy set-piece pressure, though, even before the referee, Matt Carley, lost patience with the rising number of ruck offences and sent Scott Barrett and Cane to the bin within three minutes of each other.
With Lomax also being carted off in the first 20 minutes with a deep cut to his lower thigh, New Zealand were seriously under the cosh.
South Africa surely had to take advantage and, finally, they did so, their skipper, Siya Kolisi, forcing his way over from close range in the 19th minute. When Richie Mo’unga then struck an upright with a penalty effort from almost straight in front of the posts, it further compounded a desperately difficult period for Foster’s side. It could easily have been worse when André Esterhuizen blasted through Jordie Barrett’s tackle and put the Boks back on the front foot.
Briefly, though, the mood shifted after the All Blacks were restored to 15 players. As both sides moved the ball with dexterity and skill, it was good to be reacquainted with a sport full of dynamism and ambition as opposed to safety-first conservatism.
Unfortunately for New Zealand, they were about to run into a brick wall. Jordie Barrett, 25 metres out, offloaded straight to South Africa’s Kurt-Lee Arendse to concede a second killer try and Scott Barrett’s costly clearout on Marx effectively sealed his side’s fate.
It would definitely have been upgraded to a red in the review “bunker” had it not been the lock’s second yellow card of the night and earned him the dubious distinction of becoming the first All Black to be sent off twice in his Test career.
Ultimately, the abiding memory will be South Africa’s hunger, ruthlessness and sheer power. Their first pool game against Scotland in Marseille has assumed a fresh complexion, as has New Zealand’s opening night contest against France in Paris.
On this evidence, the world champions will take some dethroning.
