Cape Town – They made heavy weather of it at times, but the Springboks – sparked by a Makazole Mapimpi brace – managed to ease to a 30-15 over a gritty Scotland at Murrayfield on Saturday afternoon.
Left wing Mapimpi continued his record of scoring against every nation he’s faced with a try in each half – both of them fabulous efforts – with the second touchdown putting the Boks into a 15-10 lead that they never relinquished.
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But the South Africans once again made life difficult for themselves in clear conditions in Edinburgh by battling to convert possession and territory into points in the first half.
Captain Siya Kolisi, just as he did against Wales last week, again opted for kickable penalties to be booted into touch instead of going for the posts, which cost the Boks nine points – something that could’ve come back to haunt the visitors.
The South Africans gained the physical dominance early on, and the front row of Ox Nché, Bongi Mbonambi and Trevor Nyakane drilled their Scottish counterparts in the scrums.
But time and again the Bok maul was thwarted by the home side, and even when the ball was taken through 14 phases, it didn’t result in points.
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There wasn’t much ingenuity on attack, with one-off runners from Herschel Jantjies pop passes easily stopped by the Scotland defence.
Flyhalf Finn Russell eventually slotted a penalty for a 3-0 lead, which was equalled by Elton Jantjies soon after, and then it was time for the Mapimpi effect.
Lonwabo Mtimka and Makhaya Jack were absolutely 𝙡![CDATA[]]>𝙤![CDATA[]]>𝙫![CDATA[]]>𝙞![CDATA[]]>𝙣![CDATA[]]>𝙜 Makazole Mapimpi's second try against Scotland 🎙️🔥#AutumnNationSeries pic.twitter.com/aIqnhyQGEZ
— SuperSport 🏆 (@SuperSportTV) November 13, 2021
Outstanding centre Lukhanyo Am sparked the counter-attack with a brilliant turnover, and quick hands from Damian de Allende and captain Siya Kolisi saw Mapimpi race away down the left touchline.
But Scotland hit back before halftime, with Russell’s cross-kick caught by Duhan van der Merwe, with the big wing evading Jesse Kriel’s tackle, and eventually Stuart Hogg finished off to claim a 10-8 lead.
It felt as if the home side were in front without having fired a real shot, while Kolisi and his team wasted a number of scoring opportunities.
But the Boks managed to kick into gear with much greater purpose in the second half.
11 November 2006 ➡️ 13 November 2021
— SuperSport 🏆 (@SuperSportTV) November 13, 2021
Introducing the longest serving Springbok of all time: 𝙁![CDATA[]]>𝙧![CDATA[]]>𝙖![CDATA[]]>𝙣![CDATA[]]>𝙨 𝙎![CDATA[]]>𝙩![CDATA[]]>𝙚![CDATA[]]>𝙮![CDATA[]]>𝙣. #AutumnNationSeries pic.twitter.com/S058227EL4
The moment of the match came in the 43 rd minute, when another terrific turnover saw the ball swept out wide to De Allende, who charged at the Scotland defence and pulled off a sensational offload to put Mapimpi away for his second five-pointer.
Two more Jantjies penalties put the Boks out of reach at 21-10 ahead, and despite a second Hogg try at the end of the third quarter, South Africa closed out the victory in a calm manner, courtesy of penalties from replacements Handre Pollard and Frans Steyn.
Points-Scorers
South Africa 30 – Tries: Makazole Mapimpi (2). Conversions: Elton Jantjies (1). Penalties: Jantjies (3), Handré Pollard (2), Frans Steyn (1).
Scotland 15 – Tries: Stuart Hogg (2). Conversion: Finn Russell (1). Penalty: Russell (1).
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