South Africa overpowered Italy in their 2025 Test opener, but a mixed display outside the set piece left Rassie Erasmus with plenty to fine-tune, writes MARK KEOHANE.
Writing for TimesLIVE, Keohane says the Boks’ dominance at scrum time and the impact of the Bomb Squad were standout positives, but the overall performance lacked polish, precision and a clinical edge.
“The breakdown was a contest, but little else troubled the Springboks,” Keohane writes. He notes that Erasmus fielded a match 23 including 19 World Cup winners, while another 15 – including Kolisi, Roos, Am and Moodie – sat out entirely.
The sheer depth, he argues, underscores why South Africa are world champions and ranked No 1. Yet the Bok display in Pretoria earned “closer to a C-” for execution and finishing. “The rest of the Boks performance, in facets outside of the scrum, was a mix and match of decent, at best, and indifferent, at worst.”
Wilco Louw and Ox Nche anchored a dominant Bok scrum, while Etzebeth and De Jager provided stability at lock, though the lineout failed to impose itself. Keohane suggests the breakdown remains a concern heading into this week’s Test against Italy at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.
At scrumhalf, Morne van den Berg scored twice and showed composure but didn’t lock down the jersey in the competition against Faf de Klerk and Grant Williams. “Van den Berg was good, without owning the No 9 jersey with his performance,” Keohane writes.
Keohane contrasts the Bok performance with New Zealand’s 31-27 win over France earlier on Saturday, and closes with a sharp verdict: “The Boks are not a rebuild, but a reload – and in Pretoria they fired way too many blanks for the Sheriff of Bok town that is coach Rassie Erasmus.”
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Photo: Grant Pitcher/Gallo Images
