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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Sport
Luke McLaughlin at Twickenham

South Africa’s Moodie takes centre stage and leaves New Zealand reeling

Canan Moodie of South Africa breaks during the Summer International match between New Zealand All Blacks and South Africa at Twickenham.
Canan Moodie’s flashes of jaw-dropping quality helped to give South Africa the edge against New Zealand. Photograph: Andrew Kearns/CameraSport/Getty Images

Canan Moodie had never played at outside-centre in a professional game. At least, not until this super-charged Twickenham evening, as fierce a Rugby World Cup warm-up as you will see despite the one-sided scoreboard.

In a match where the devastating power of the Springbok pack was again to the fore – when Jacques Nienaber selected a seven-one split in favour of forwards on the replacements’ bench – it may seem odd to focus on a back. But intelligently applied South African strength is a given these days, and the 20-year-old Moodie clearly has something special.

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