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Onthou julle toe die bokke gewen het? Verlede jaar (2005)? In Wallis? Pieter en Anca was daar!

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It might not have been as emphatic on the field as it was on the scoreboard, but the Springboks would have been well pleased with the 33-16 win over Wales as an ideal confidence builder for next week’s clash with France in Paris.

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After the All Blacks ran all over Wales a few weeks back, many were expecting something similar from the world’s best team. But the simple reality was that on the day the Welsh played a great deal better than they had against the All Blacks, and John Smit’s team did well to survive the pressure and win with something to spare.

The Boks were always ahead, and they scored four tries to one. Although they were only 11-6 ahead at halftime, they could have been a lot further ahead had they nailed down the several opportunities that were wasted, and Percy Montgomery’s off-day with his goal-kicking boot kept the Boks from drawing clear.

Two of the Bok tries came from wing Bryan Habana, who proved that maybe a talking to from the coach can bring the desired results. Jake White told Habana to pull up his socks after the Argentina test in Buenos Aires, and Habana responded in kind with a busy performance which was impressive for much more than his two tries.

Both Habana’s tries were regulation efforts on a day when the Bok inside backs created more space and opportunities out wide than has generally been the case this year. His most impressive try would have been the one that he was prevented from scoring by what looked like a bit of obstruction from the Welsh backs.

Habana’s body language was very different from Argentina, and he looked to have back all the zip, flair and unpredictability which has seen him entered as one of the finalists in the IRB World Player of the Year competition.

But Habana was not the only Bok to end the game with reputation enhanced. Juan Smith had a mighty game as a ball carrier, every bit as outstanding as his performance in Buenos Aires, and for my money he was a shade better on the day than Bakkies Botha, who won the television Man of the Match award.

The Bok lineout forwards were outstanding, and it was off this phase that they created their forward platform. The scrumming, by contrast, was not as good as it had been in Argentina, and the Boks were pushed off their ball at an attacking scrum in the first half, prompting White to send Os du Randt onto the field as a replacement for Lawrence Sephaka.

The driving off the lineouts was also far more accurate and efficient in Argentina than it was in Cardiff, and there were again periods, particularly in the first half, when the Boks were too sloppy.

As in the first 40 against Argentina, there were elementary errors such as dropped passes and kicks which flew directly into touch. Michael Claassens, making his first start for his country at scrumhalf, was responsible for his fair share of these, and will look back on his first full outing in the green and gold with mixed feelings.

In amongst his mistakes Claassens also did some good things, and he successfully negated the Welsh attempts to place pressure on himself and new flyhalf Meyer Bosman.

The last mentioned name was probably the best reason for White to end this game feeling chuffed. He took a lot of flak in the build-up for his decision to field Meyer, a rookie who has made just eight provincial appearances, most of them as a replacement and very few of those at flyhalf.

But Meyer came through his baptism with flying colours, particularly considering that the service from his scrumhalf was not always great. His pick up from his ankles off one misdirected pass in the second half enabled him to free the backs outside him and put Conrad Jantjes in for his try.

If that was the moment in the match that proved Bosman’s class, there were several others where he showed he has the temperament to do well at top level. His kicking out of hand was mostly faultless, and while his distribution wasn’t always as accurate or polished as it should be, it was good enough.

He also did extremely well when he ended up having to cover two positions later in the game when fullback Percy Montgomery was sent from the field after two challenges which were hardly deserving of the action taken against him.

When Montgomery was off, Bosman did well in dropping back to field kicks and clear the Bok lines, particularly as this was a period when the Bok defence was scrambling a bit in the face of a late onslaught from a Welsh team that is always dangerous when it gets a chance to play with width.

Bosman weighed in with two goal kicks, one of them a difficult one from the touchline, something which suggests that he might go one better than the man he is compared so often to, Henry Honiball, by also offering possibilities as a points machine.

It is early days in Bosman’s career, and he was helped in Cardiff by the protection offered by the forwards, but certainly it was easy to see from the stands at Millennium Stadium what it is that makes White such a big Bosman fan. He is a big player, he is physical, and he is also skilled to boot. Let’s just say that after his first outing, there is a lot of potential.

Alongside Bosman was Jean de Villiers, who also had a much better match than he had in Buenos Aires. There was more emphasis on creative thrust from the inside centre/flyhalf channel than there has been at other times this year, and the two first half tries scored by Habana were both well executed efforts.

Certainly there is more than enough for White to be positive about ahead of the clash with France. Having said that, there are also points of concern, such as Montgomery’s goal kicking and the at times inconsistent scrimmaging.

There again, maybe we should give the Welsh pack more credit when it comes to the latter aspect of the game.

The Welsh, although denuded by injury, are the Six Nations champions, and they contributed to what was at times a quite edifying spectacle, particularly in the second half when they ran the ball at the Boks.

A 17-point defeat sounds like a big margin, but the hosts also have something to build on ahead of next week’s game against Australia. Slowly but surely their wide game is starting to come together again, the attacks are starting to become co-ordinated again, while the Welsh pack never allowed itself to be bowed by the physicality of the Boks.

Scores
South Africa – Tries: Bryan Habana 2, Conrad Jantjes and Danie Rossouw (replacement).Conversions: Meyer Bosman 2. Penalties: Percy Montgomery 3.
Wales – Try: Ceri Sweeney. Conversion: Stephen Jones. Penalties: Stephen Jones 3.

Pieter het al gesien hoe hulle op Twickenham en in Skotland verloor het. Dalk moes Anca lankal saam gegaan het...