Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer lauded his team for a clinical performance in yet another wet-weather game as they beat England by 31-28 at Twickenham in London on Saturday afternoon.
The win stretched the Springboks’ unbeaten run over England to 12 matches, dating back to November 2006. It was also South Africa’s fifth successive victory at Twickenham.
Pat Lambie contributed 16 points with the boot via a well-taken drop goal late in the match, three penalty goals and two conversions. The Springboks’ three tries were scored by Jan Serfontein, Cobus Reinach and Schalk Burger.
“I’m very proud of the guys – it was a clinical performance and we played tactically very well in the conditions,” said Meyer.
“Even though it was wet and the ball was quite slippery, we still scored three tries, while there could’ve been a fourth.
“I also thought the players did very well to keep their composure and take back the lead after England scored two quick tries early in the second half.
“Our challenge this week is to keep building on this performance when we face Italy in Padova next weekend. We have to lift the intensity even more.”
Springbok captain Jean de Villiers said: “I think we set the tone with some brilliant defence early in the match and controlled matters in the first half. We definitely didn’t lack anything when it came to physicality or controlled aggression.
“We also had good ball, which made things easier. I think all things considered it was a good performance, but we know there are still areas where we can improve on and have to keep on working hard to fix that.”
Furthermore, loose forward Burger has been released from the squad and will fly to South Africa on Sunday.
“A decision was taken prior to the tour that Schalk will be released from the squad on Sunday,” said Meyer. “We still have good depth at loose forward and can also look at bringing in reinforcements if necessary.”
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