2nd SA Test a review - little by little

[Digby]

Minute 31

SA kick their pen, such as it is, out between our 22 and 10m line, win the lineuout and Faf passes away from the lineout. The ball goes to Green 12, and he runs at Billy and loses the ball in contact, it's more obvious than his earlier error Vs Maro, so much so Shields has the ball and gets it to Farrell. We've barely had the ball for a while and Farrell has a hooker facing him, so he kicks the ball away. It's a pretty good kick down into the SA half, and it's something they were told off for not doing last week, but there's not kicking for the corners when you have a lead, and there's kicking away turnover ball when a back has a front row fatty in front of them

[Raggs]

Minute 28

Farrell does about as much as he can to draw WLR before passing to Daly running backwards alongside him, and this all started with us kicking away ball after 2 good carries.

Daly prods the ball down into the SA 22, but Faf is under no pressure and belts the ball out on the full from inside the 22. England lineout just outside our 22

England win the lineout but are pinged for obsruction trying to set up the maul. So we'v now not only lost control of territory (again) we've also coughed up possession (again). SA are barely having to work for this.

That penalty was nonsense though. I watched it back and there wasn't even a slight case for obstruction - simple ref error or Poite's got an understandable hump with Fazlet lecturing him.

Puja

It's not obvious what it's for certainly.

Ref said obstruction, only Shields comes round a little, and he's far from stopping people from getting to Itoje, I'm with Puja in thinking it was a nonsense call, certainly no worse (and better) than many of the SA setups.

[Digby]

Minute 32

SA win their lineout, and Faf clears down field, though not even to their 10m line and Billy takes the ball under a challenge and drops it. This one is sort of a forced error, just, but our handling errors are hurting.

[Digby]

I'm going to pause here for the u20s, It's also questionable if I'll get back to this much before Tuesday.

[Puja]

Minute 30

Ford restarts out to the left. Green 12 takes a catch under no pressure though SA are allowed to block for the fun it it . SA run a few phases, Faf kicks clear, Brown catches the ball and pops it back to Slade. None of which matters as we're heading back for a pen to SA for Mako being inspired to push Green 7's head into the ground, okay gently, but FFS

(Btw in the handbags that follows Sinckler has the ball and is walking around the far side from the ref and bops the ball on the head of Vermuelen simply to amuse himself, given the day Poite is having it's what Sir Humphrey might label a brave move by Kyle, there's less in it than Mako's effort, but still)

I was actually quite pleased by that from Sinckler - a little wind-up for his own amusement, out of the sight of the ref and not serious enough for the TMO to bother with. He then ignored a shoulder barge from an irate Saffer with a cheeky grin. That's the kind of shenanigans I want him involved in - being an irritating prick to the opposition without losing his rag and chinning someone.

Frankly, that's the best thing to have come out of this tour - Kyle Sinckler finally learning that not every pushing and grappling match requires his input and, in fact, it's far more fun to win other people up and see if they will get sent off instead.

Puja

[Scrumhead]

Mako’s discipline has definitely become increasingly iffy. While the yellow card last week was harsh, he’s getting involved in more unnecessary rubbish like the head push, a couple of incidents in the 6N and a dropped elbow on the Lions tour. I don’t remember him being like that a couple of years ago?

[16th man]

Mako’s discipline has definitely become increasingly iffy. While the yellow card last week was harsh, he’s getting involved in more unnecessary rubbish like the head push, a couple of incidents in the 6N and a dropped elbow on the Lions tour. I don’t remember him being like that a couple of years ago?

I don't think it's a coincidence that it's mainly started since Eddie said he liked players with a bit of edge.

[Digby]

Minute 33

The props have a cuddle, but there's no ball in play. Not one front rower is sent from the pitch

[Digby]

Minute 34

Again feck all ball in play, but there is a free kick against SA so the 9s swap sides and it's England not putting the ball in whilst sod all happens. Again no front rowers are ordered off the pitch to answer for their refusal to restart the game

[Digby]

Minute 35

England win the scrum, Ford to Farrell who sends Slade on a line between Green 10 and 12. It's not a bad carry from Slade, there's some leg drive, but to that one phase where ball isn't presented well and it's all rather slow we've put in 2 backrowers and both centres, no Saffas contest a ruck and there was only Green 12 on the floor who recycled quickly to the blindside. So on 2nd phase our options will be limited.

Launch makes a decent fist of carrying, again ball isn't quick, again atk (quite naturally) is resourcing more than defence.

SA haven't numbered up well, basically not enough players have worked across and they've 1 if not 2 too many defenders on the blindside. England move the ball wide to Brown, nice hands from May to Daly, Daly's pass to Brown checks Brown a little (you takes your pick on whether you blame Daly or Brown, I tend to think Brown is coming up too early). Brown steps inside Green 14 and is then taken around the head/neck by Green 13, nothing even slightly dangerous in it but it's a pen with the only issue being no pen is given.

England move back to the right, nice enough looking ball from Sinckler to Mako, but SA have the numbers and again we can't get a quick presentation and play of the ball. Finally Ford floats a ball over the top to Shields. Shields is tackled by Green 10, and Green 7 is a tackler assist, Green 7 is pinged for putting his hands on the floor beyond the ball, and even if he hadn't been pinged for that he then also refuses to release just in case the ref hadn't seen the first offence.

[Digby]

Minute 36

England win the lineout and the ball arrives in midfield where Sinckler takes it up, Kyle doesn't do himself any favours by running at a man not a gap, seemingly he doesn't on purpose which is odd in many ways. SA struggle to get Sinckler down but it's slow and at the next phase the ball to Mako to try and up the tempo sees Mako spill the ball going into contact, SA have the ball as the minute ends with a knock on advantage,

Again it's handling errors causing us a problem, and given it's hardly pelting down with rain this should be a major concern.

[Digby]

Minute 37

Vermuelen runs at Curry and bounces him, man Vs boy understandable at times even if Curry is going well in the main. Faf clears to touch almost up to the Saffa 10m line

(there's a replay of the Mako handling error from the previous minute, shockingly the pass from Youngs was not a good one)

England win the lineout, Ford to Farrell who runs into Green 10 and goes to ground, at best this is going to be a slow 5 second ruck off our own lineout, but in the event we can't even make it to phase 2 from our own attacking lineout ball and we're forced into a pen for holding on. Amateur hour this is not, they'd be more professional - also just as Faz is going into contact the space being taken up by the slowest 3 SA forwards to move across holds 5 England forwards, which maybe shows where some of the problems are coming from

[Digby]

Minute 38

Nowt happens

[Digby]

Minute 39

Pollard kicks the pen from inside his own half

Ford restarts long into the SA 22 where Green 12 takes the catch, not quite enough height on the kick, but also Green 5 is running his own zigzag line to accidentally stop Daly (our only chaser) getting anywhere near a challenge. In fairness to green 5 everyone cheats like crazy on restarts, and everyone is allowed to, I suspect you could use a gun in this area of the game.

Maro applies some pressure to the SA players over the ball but at most it's barely more than ruck inspection. Faf clears off the pitch, falling shorter of the 10m line this time

[Digby]

Minute 40

England go to the middle with Launch, and SA have read that lineout well (also they're taller I suspect), the ball breaks over the back of the lineout where it's gathered by Green 2. The last attacking lineout we had finished before phase 2 got going, this time we cough up the ball earlier in proceedings and rather than being on our attack their hooker is now breaking into our half. Just one thought (and I'm reaching a bit here, and you can't always sell yourself with who's where, but we throwing to the middle and the front lifter Curry is shorter than the rear lifter Shields, which I assume costs some height)

Good scramble from England and Brown is there to force a turnover, we also get a knock on advantage, and then SA get excited and push the situation resulting in a full pen to England.

Just enough time for England to kick the pen and have a 3rd attacking lineout in a row .

We go to the middle again, this time Launch has Hughes (just on) as his front lifter but is also unchallenged which might be still more key in winning the ball. England can't get a maul going as Green 8 has assumed a squat position at the front of our maul and is accidentally pulling everything down, I assume Vermuelen was hoping to wait until HT before taking a shit and will only be apologetic about his unintentional disruption of our maul.

Youngs takes the ball off the right side of the maul before heading back left, FFS we should at least be able to present ball without having to run around our own players at the back of a maul, this is just slowing our own ball on purpose. Youngs takes 6, maybe even 7 steps before passing, there's making sure you're not scragged and then there's just being silly

Youngs hits Farrell who has Slade on a hard line and Ford looping around. Farrell I think passes to Ford but really throws a pass to nobody and Ford can't regather ball from the ground under pressure. The half ends with a knock on advantage to England, though 'tis possible Ford made a little knock on too, but it makes no difference and it's 13-12 to SA at HT

[Digby]

Minute 41

Ford restarts long, SA claim the ball and England contest the maul with Daly getting onto the ball carrier on the SA side and Itoje wrapping arms around from the England side. As the whole goes down Itoje has wrestled the ball back, Dallaglio or Deano would have been proud of that effort

Youngs picks up from the base after SA try to kick the ball around (accidentally) and Faf has found himself so eager to get off the mark he's what might be ruled offisde, it works against Faf (who isn't having a good game so far) with Youngs running into the hole where Faf should have been stood.

Faf then gets very lucky with Youngs being inspired to throw a hail mary ball back behind him with 39 minutes on the clock and his team down by 1, Faf collects the pass from the moron that is Youngs and belts the ball downfield. Brown collects but can't avoid being dragged into touch 5m outside our 22.

With a bit of help from the ref we could have had a pen down the other end, but we shouldn't have lost the ball from the turnover and Youngs break

[Digby]

Minute 42

Some issue with the picture, but SA have the ball with Green 14 after the lineout. A bit of a mess which SA tidy up before Faf tries to run around Itoje on the blindside, doesn't expose the lock as he'd like and throws a pass which Shields intercepts (yet another mistake from Faf in this game)

Sheilds sets off upfield, more issues with the picture and SA have taken the ball back in their own half .....

[Digby]

Minute 43 & 44

????

Minute 45

We rejoin the action 44:36, no change in score, SA on the attack in England's half. Faf kicks the ball down into England's 22 into space, May runs back but is unable to get out and SA force a turnover pen.

[Digby]

Minute 46

SA kick out for a 5m lineout, win the lineout, set a maul and make a yard or so, then run the ball and get tackled 1-2m short.

[Digby]

Minute 47

Faf sends the ball to the third man out, Mako closes in but with SA again ensuring footwork Mako clean misses his man. Shields and Sinckler get in on the ball and nearly force a scrum turnover, but SA do enough to get the ball over the try line to win an attacking scrum for Green

[Digby]

Minute 48

Again the front rows ensure fuck all happens. They don't even manage an engage, again none of them are sent to the sin bin and instead are allowed to slow the game and ensure the ball isn't in play.

[Digby]

Minute 49

They do manage to engage in the scrum. But we never get as far as the ball coming in, and ball coming back into play is a laughably distant dream

[Digby]

I wonder if it's a standard that 5-10% of a game is lost to front rowers dicking about in scrums. Maybe like cricket captains we could fine them 40% or so of their match fees given they're essentially denying paying spectators having anything to spectate. This isn't even an especially bad game and I'm fed up with their nonsense.

[Digby]

Minute 50

SA get a drive on, England can't cope, and it ends with a penalty try to SA. Eddie Jones for the 2nd week in a row is left to ponder on allowing tired props to scrum against fresh props.

And as I'm pissed off I'll add the game has just given up 3 minutes in a row to a restart, and the ball never became available for a contest from a restart, which begs the question again of can this restart possibly survive in the game, test cricket looks to have a more promising future

[Digby]

Minute 51

England restart long, SA run the ball back nearly up to their 22