Robshaw's England are battered by Boks

South Africa 22 England 17: Coach Lancaster's first southern-hemisphere Test sees red rose cut down as fired-up and supersized South Africa pack turn half-time stalemate into victory

kings park

England may have finished within a score of the Springboks in the first southern-hemisphere challenge of Stuart Lancaster's coaching regime, but they were heavily outpointed in the close-quarter contest when the home side flexed their alarmingly large muscles in the second half. Ben Foden's try in the final seconds of the game – a spectacularly fine wing's finish under pressure from the full-back – could not disguise the fact that the tourists had finished on the painful end of physical battering.

Not that they conceded an inch more than was necessary. Led with fire and fury from the openside flank by Chris Robshaw, they reacted to a pummelling in the third quarter by forcing their way upfield and giving Owen Farrell two shots at goal, both of which he nailed to reduce the deficit to 19-12. But if they were thinking of a table-turning comeback, the Boks had other ideas. Morne Steyn, scorer of all but five of the home points, landed a wrap-up goal with three minutes left when Manu Tuilagi was caught offside, attempting to snuff out another ferocious green-shirted assault.

If this was virgin territory for England – never before had they played a Test in Durban – the burning issues surrounded the newcomers: the young Mohican-haired Harlequins prop Joe Marler; his fellow debutant in the pack, the Exeter flanker Tom Johnson; and Mike Brown, another Quin, who was last capped at full-back in 2008 and had regained his place in red-rose favours through sheer force of will.

Brown was the first to find himself under the Springbok microscope and he responded brilliantly, fielding a gruesome high ball that descended on the 22-metre line complete with a threatening human attachment in the form of Bryan Habana, before hitting a pearl of a relieving touchfinder with his trusty left boot. A minute or so later, Johnson made his presence felt by charging down a laboured clearance from the almost terminally hesitant Bokke scrum-half Francois Hougaard, and when Marler made an eye-catching tackle on Zane Kirchner in open field – the kind of tackle generally associated with centres rather than props – he earned England a promising attacking position. Owen Farrell kicked away the advantage in a rare moment of impatience.

Farrell was his usual dependable self from the tee, however. The outside-half's opening penalty from the best part of 50 metres, awarded as a result of Eben Etzebeth's failure to roll away after grounding the hard-driving Dan Cole, was as perfect an example of the rugby marksman's art as could be imagined. There would be a second three-pointer before the interval, courtesy of Ben Morgan's powerful charge deep in the South African 22 and some illegal handiwork from Marcell Coetzee. If his half-back link with Ben Youngs was not all it might have been at times, England's 20-year-old playmaker still performed as if to the manner born.

Even though Farrell's points were matched in similar fashion by Steyn, the tourists were the happier at the interval. They might have conceded a try to the No 8 Pierre Spies early in the second quarter but Tuilagi's scrambling defence was up to the mark. So was everyone else's, from Marler at the sharp end to Brown and Chris Ashton at the back..

On the resumption the Boks turned up the blowtorch. As England, smashed on to the back foot by a Springbok pack who had received a ferocity transfusion, started to fall off tackles they had been making with comfort, Habana and Patrick Lambie launched a withering attack down the left. Willem Alberts, a supersized flanker if ever there was one, and Jannie du Plessis made further ground and after a goal-line siege, Steyn was presented with a straightforward finish in the right corner.

More bad tidings arrived a dozen minutes later. After Farrell had squared up to sundry Springboks after a run down the right by JP Pietersen, the payback came in the form of a try from the South African skipper, Jean de Villiers, who ran half through and half over Brown to maximise another spellbinding contribution from the fleet-footed Habana. The argument was effectively over. Like the All Blacks and the Wallabies, the Boks can win a game with a short, sharp spell of something extra-special.

The tourists will be bruised, bodily and psychologically. Since Lancaster's accession, initially as interim head coach in December, the red-rose forwards have finished at least all square against all-comers. Yesterday was another story.

There were encouraging individual performances from the likes of Marler and Johnson, Geoff Parling and the ever-willing Robshaw, but collectively, the pack knew they had been bested. And, indeed, beasted.

South Africa Z Kirchner (Blue Bulls); JP Pietersen (Kwazulu-Natal), J de Villiers (Western Province, capt), F Steyn (Kwazulu-Natal), B Habana (Western Province); M Steyn (Blue Bulls), F Hougaard (Blue Bulls); T Mtawarira , B du Plessis, J du Plessis (all Kwazulu-Natal), E Etzebeth (Western Province), J Kruger (Blue Bulls), M Coetzee (Kwazulu-Natal), W Alberts (Kwazulu-Natal), P Spies (Blue Bulls). Replacements W Olivier (Blue Bulls) for Habana, 31-40; P Lambie (Kwazulu-Natal) for Kirchner, 40; C Oosthuizen (Free State) for J du Plessis, 48-58; R Pienaar (Ulster) for Hougaard, 56; F van der Merwe (Blue Bulls) for Etzebeth, 58; A Strauss (Free State) for B du Plessis, 65; K Daniel (Kwazulu-Natal) for Coetzee, 72.

England M Brown (Harlequins); C Ashton (Northampton), M Tuilagi (Leicester), B Barritt (Saracens), B Foden (Northampton); O Farrell (Saracens), B Youngs (Leicester); J Marler (Harlequins), D Hartley (Northampton), D Cole (Leicester), M Botha (Saracens), G Parling (Leicester), T Johnson (Exeter), C Robshaw (Harlequins, capt), B Morgan (Scarlets). Replacements T Flood (Leicester) for Barritt, 53; T Palmer (Stade Français) for Botha, 58; P Dowson (Northampton) for Morgan, 61; L Dickson (Northampton) for Youngs, 72; P Doran-Jones (Northampton) for Marler, 72; L Mears (Bath) for Hartley 75; J Joseph (London Irish) for Brown, 78.

Referee S Walsh (Australia).

South Africa

Tries: M Steyn, De Villiers

Pens: M Steyn 4

England

Try: Foden

Pens: Farrell 4

Independent Comment
blog comments powered by Disqus
Caption competition
Caption competition
News in pictures
World news in pictures
Sport blogs

New day (slowly) rising – As Brasileirão gets underway, Brazilian football stumbles, rather than leaps into the future

The average Serie A crowd last year was 13,000 - comparable to Australia’s A-League.

by James Young

iBet: Mercedes and Hamilton to roar in Monaco

Monaco is a street circuit where driver ability is more important than anywhere else and if we take ...

by Gareth Purnell

On The Road at the Giro d’Italia: It sounds sadistic, but the team live for the mountain stages

Three weeks ago as I drove off the Eurostar, I remember thinking what a very long time it was until ...

by Martin Ayres

       
Career Services

Day In a Page

Johnny Marr talks relationships and reunions

He's worked with Modest Mouse, the Pet Shop Boys and Beck, to name a few, and recently released his first solo album. So why, wonders Johnny Marr, do people still hark on about The Smiths?
After the flood: From Haiti to Britain, one man has captured the devastation of our increasingly deluged lands

In pictures: After the flood

From Haiti to Britain, one man has captured the devastation of our increasingly deluged lands
Death becomes her: Meet the very modern mortician who champions 'cool' funerals

Death becomes her: A very modern mortician

Ever considered baking a loved one's remains into a cake or putting their ashes in fireworks? If so, talk to Caitlin Doughty, champion of the alternative death industry.
How long can the 'Keep Calm' trend carry on?

How long can the 'Keep Calm' trend carry on?

At first it seemed clever and cute. Then the 'Keep Calm' motif went mad, spawning endless offshoots.
The man who built Brum: A lament for the demise of John Madin's Brutalist Birmingham

John Madin: The man who built Brum

The architect's buildings were supposed to leave an indelible, futuristic mark on his beloved hometown but they are now being inexorably torn down.
School of chop: Learning the art of butchery at the Ginger Pig

School of chop: Learning the art of butchery

How do you butcher a lamb? Or make Mexican street food in a British kitchen? Christopher Hirst finds out.
James Pembroke: The man who's eaten everywhere

The man who's eaten everywhere

Few people know more about restaurants than James Pembroke, who only spent five mealtimes at home during his entire childhood.
A Berliner in 1963 – but did John F Kennedy once admire Adolf Hitler?

A Berliner in 1963 – but did John F Kennedy once admire Adolf Hitler?

The young JFK praised 'superior' Nordic races during visits to Germany
Banned Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof to attend Cannes Film Festival 2013, his first public appearance since prison

Banned Iranian director to attend Cannes Film Festival

Mohammad Rasoulof to make his first public appearance since being imprisoned three years ago
Seeing the larger picture: Inspiring images of space

Seeing the larger picture: Inspiring images of space

An exhibition explores images how photography has shaped astronomy
Eat Spam and carry on: Wartime pamphlets could teach us a thing or two about healthy, thrifty eating

Eat Spam and carry on

Wartime pamphlets could teach us a thing or two about healthy, thrifty eating
Facial hair: Cat beards and the purrrsuit of excellence

Facial hair

Cat beards and the purrrsuit of excellence
The 10 Best salt and pepper sets

The 10 Best salt and pepper sets

Whether they're for everyday use or to make your dining table look just right, it's worth getting a stylish shaker...
Ferran Soriano: Predicting success if Manchester City 'vision' is followed

Ferran Soriano: Predicting success if Manchester City 'vision' is followed

Chief executive says trophies will come if a 'core' of suitable players is in place
Thomas Müller: We couldn't handle losing a Champions League Final again

Thomas Müller: We couldn't handle losing a Champions League Final again

The Bayern Munich forward tells Tim Rich his side have to shed chokers' tag after two recent final defeats