2nd SA Test a review - little by little

[Digby]

Minute 52

Faf kicks clear, and Mike Brown under minimal pressure knocks on into touch. Worse because he's cross about his mistake Brown switches off and doesn't ensure SA can't go quickly from the lineout, luckily Slade has it covered or we'd have been in the poop.

SA take the scrum not the lineout so obviously nothing else happens.

[Digby]

Minute 53

SA win the scrum and send the ball down the line to the 13, it's basic ball in front stuff which enables Green 13 to easily beat Farrell on his inside shoulder. SA make another positive carry and then move the ball right where England have Williams, Mako and George defending Vermuelen and at least two backs. Luckily Pollard passes into touch or I'm supposing a Saffa back might have done George with metres of space either side of him

England win the lineout and Youngs passes to Hughes on a crash ball, it's not a bad pass actually though Hughes doesn't win contact. England recyle.

[Digby]

Minute 54

Youngs goes quickly on the blindside, it's not a linebreak but it is some momentum into out attack. Curry keeps it going as an acting 9 with a one out ball to Mako, ball to ground again and Hughes picks and goes. This is worryingly coherent. Curry again acting as 9, but now a problem as George who's come to stand flat seems astonished he's been given the ball. Maybe George was saying the ball should go back the other way, but he's there as an option. We don't get quick ball from George going to ground and Ford chooses to kick. It's not a good kick and it's easily claimed as a mark in the SA 22, not even May had a prayer of applying pressure.

Turns out Green 11 is a leftie, but the reason he perhaps doesn't kick much is I'm reminded of watching Lomu kick, it's not graceful, and the touch judge seems to take sympathy with where he gives touch or maybe he just can't be bothered to run back. It doesn't matter as England take a quick lineout in their half, Ford to Brown.

Brown runs into the SA and half and sends the ball back to Ford who drops an inside pass to May. Our 14 makes good ground but then spills the ball in contact, and Faf boots the loose ball clear and it rolls into our 22

[Digby]

Minute 55

Daly goes back to gather and puts a kick downfield nearly up to the Saffa 10m line. It's a good kick, but whilst territory hasn't net changed much from a few seconds back possession has.

Possession changes again however as SA can't claim the lineout. Looks to be a timing issue as the jumper isn't close to reaching his full height as the ball is already past. Curry gathers and goes sideways a little but presents the ball. Williams on a charge which is a stronger carry and we recycle (sadly both Mako and Launch decided to ruck inspect, perhaps knackered but any which way reducing options)

England put if through the backs next and someone, I think Green 6, tries to nail Slade man and ball but isn't quick enough and Slade gets a quick ball away to Brown. Brown is gaining ground quickly and has Daly outside, Green 12 and 13 are scrambling back/across.

Green 13 and 1 combine to put Brown down, Daly and Farrell do just enough to win the ruck, and whilst a hand gets through onto Youngs his ball to Hughes is taken.

Hughes makes a metre or so but can't get the ball down/back which is a shame as SA had no blindside defence. By the time Itoje picks up SA have got defenders in place, Itoje pops the ball back to Farrell who pops it to Youngs

[Digby]

Minute 56

England get the ball to Mako, and he's into the 22. A good clearout by Launch allows Youngs to get the ball to Ford, but SA are organised in defence and Ford can't spot an option he wants and takes the ball into contact. Ford loses the ball in contact and we're back for an earlier SA infringement, I assume offside.

It was offisde. Farrell kicks down almost to 5m out and Itoje wins another lineout. England set a maul and drive forwards, ref awards Eng a penalty advantage

[Digby]

Minute 57

England continue to drive, once the maul halts with players in at the side, pulling down and so on the ball comes out and George takes it down the shortside (we don't seem to have enough options to attack down the shortside as an aside, maybe that's being too keen to use the width Ford/Farrell offer). George stopped 2m short of the line and Curry acting as 9 passes to Mako who's also tackled a couple of metres short

England work the shortside again and Shields almost crashes over. As Poite is calling for the review he's shaking his head at England, given he awarded the try I assume he's telling either Ford or Farrell not to take a quick drop to stop any review as either Ford or Farrell knows full well it's not a try.

It's certainly a knock on. Though there's maybe a question as to whether Green 5 tries to play the player or the ball

Back for another England penalty, again Farrell pokes it to touch.

(Reverse camera angle on the non try suggests Green 5 played the ball, so he's lucky boy, but kudos also for keeping working on trying to stop a try)

England win another lineout, again Itoje, again front ball. England try to set a maul

[Digby]

Minute 58

England sort of set a maul, go backwards and SA win a scrum turnover.

[Digby]

Minute 59

SA win their scrum under some pressure (Marler just on for Mako?) but run an extra phase and pass back to Pollard who clears. Daly takes a quick lineout to Brown who passes to May, but really we've sent May clear on a 1 on 2 or 1 on 3 underlap up the middle. We recyle and move the ball left, Itoje offloads a bot early to George but George still cuts back and makes some ground. Youngs has a look at the shortside but there's only Shields there and Shields is of a view the ball should go the other way. It's nice Youngs is looking but our work off the ball on attack is... not something which will thrill Eddie. Hughes gets the ball and sets up a ruck heading back to the middle of the field in roughly the middle of the Saffa half

[Digby]

Minute 60

England put up a high kick from Ford, it doesn't suck, but WLR takes it well enough. With not enough carrying options we're looking to work off mistakes from SA rather than force something ourselves

Faf kicks clear, Brown takes a catch and the ball is moved to Marler who quickly moves the ball to Ford. Green 5 had bitten on Marler and Green 7 has bitten on Curry leaving Ford a 7-8m gap which he obviously is able to take, he could probably hop into that gap before anyone caught him. And this was slow ball with Youngs waiting to see if the ref would award a pen, and still the SA defence leaves such a gap... it's poor from both sides tbh

Ford moves the ball to Itoje, as Itoje is being ridden down Faf managed to grab Itoje's arms and forces a handling error. So yet another handling error for England, but this one isn't so bad

[Digby]

Minute 61

SA win the scrum with the left shoulder up and Faf breaks left, nice to see a team break conventional wisdom when they do get one side up/dominant in the scrum,

Kriel fresh on makes some ground and releases Green 11. The cover defence is getting across to Green 11 so he kicks back infield, Daly takes no chances and carries over for a 5m scrum to SA

[Digby]

Minute 62

The scrum goes down but the ref says the ball is available and simply tells SA to use it, saints be praised. De Allende carries between Farrell and Slade and whilst they lack a little power they get him down, and crucially they get him down with ball presented away from SA support.

Curry and Shields get in over the ball and SA give away a pen turnover for holding on, but it started with Farrell and Slade giving a little ground in contact and still managing a good outcome for England, no idea if it was intentional on their part, but it does help when your flankers actually arrive after you've gone to the trouble of getting ball down on your side

[Digby]

Minute 63

Daly kicks out some metres short of our 22, Youngs had a good look at going quickly but couldn't see any value, but at least he was looking.

Shields wins the ball at the front with LCD throwing in, under quite some pressure as there's a Green hand on the ball too. Youngs sets for the box kick and gets it away despite Green 5 really trying to put on a lot of pressure, indeed as he jumps over Marler we see Green 5 come down nastily on his back and maybe even neck.

[Digby]

Minute 64

SA knock on the kick, Hughes gathers and drops the ball off to Marler who gets driven back a little in contact. For how we play a prop losing contact really doesn't help.

We go wide and Curry thinks he can find a little space on the outside of Green 12, but he's covered and is spun in the tackle which slows our play the ball, he either needs to take that outside or run an inside line. We go left again and Kriel has really pushed up cutting off it seems the option Ford wants, Ford then takes it up himself and we recycle. Ball back to Maro who runs very upright into contact.

We're chasing this game but really for the most part we're going sideways, still Maro doesn't get take down immediately and continues to drive his legs so that's a good recovery. Youngs pulls the ball back behind both Curry and Shields, and then Ford pulls the ball back behind Hughes to Farrell. Farrell doesn't want to kick as we're chasing and doesn't like the options on the outside so drops the ball on the inside to Brown who heads back toward our backrowers. Brown looks for an offload but only manages to offload to himself, it's progress I suppose.

Ball back to LCD and he doesn't break the line but it takes two to get him down. Vermuelen then does good work to slow the ball, he''s perhaps not supporting his weight to begin with but it's an important play to stop momentum building,

Next we go left and use Ford and Farrell to find Slade. The defence is stretched by the width on the play, but Slade and Brown present little threat and Green 14 brings down Brown who received the ball perhaps a smidge too soon from Slade. England recyle the ball, and Farrell is excused tipping a Saffa player at the ruck, legs well end truly above the horizontal.

[Digby]

Minute 65

Sheilds presents as the one out option and isn't decided on running or passing, he loses metres in contact as a result, the harsh realities of test rugby.

Hughes next up and whilst he doesn't lose ground he's hardly pulling up trees either.

Ball to Ford and he's getting frustrated as he's reduced to a dink over the line, SA don't deal with it well though and Farrell gets a toe to the ball but can't direct it anywhere, that must have been close to Farrell putting SA right in the poop

Kriel covers before being tackled my Maro, not held, and then tackled by Maro again. SA move the ball down the line until they find WLR for the clearing kick.

Ford can't get under the kick and waits for the bounce, and then Ford considers he can probably step a wing, he's not correct and throws an offload under pressure which Brown gathers, Brown has nowhere to go and is duly pinged for holding on.

[Digby]

Minute 66

Nowt happens

[Digby]

Minute 67

Pollard kicks the 3

[Digby]

Minute 68

A decent restart by Farrell, good height, Solomona gets there just after the catch but at such speed he's easily stepped. De Allende is carrying the ball in one hand and Itoje can easily rip that, but the ball squirts out sideways and SA can reclaim, ruck set and Faf kicks the ball off the park

[Digby]

Minute 69

LCD throwing in roughly on the SA 10m line

England win the ball at the middle with Launch and move it out to Farrell at 1st receiver with Slade, Cips and Solomona offering. Farrell makes a good decision to slip the ball to Slade but with Farrell in contact the pass just checks Slade. Slade scragged and the ball is blatantly slowed by a Green player off his feet, but we've got the ball and it's play on. Next up LCD, again no linebreak, again it takes two to get him down. Next up again it's Cips and unlike Farrell he times his pass to Daly very nicely indeed (though unlike Farrell he was also under no pressure)

Daly picks a line on the inside of WLR and is inches from making it past only for WLR to get enough on him to send him tumbling. In deciding to take on WLR Daly tucked the ball under one arm so wasn't able to find May. Annoyingly had Solomona and/or May realised he was about to be tackled they'd have been nailed on certs to receive a pop off the floor, but they're now running too fast and go straight past a forlorn Daly.

The ball comes back open and SA are betting the bank on applying pressure, allowing Cips to step around a rushing Green 7 and get the ball away to Wilson. Wilson either doesn't have or doesn't see support (bloody TV pictures) and it's another tackle.

Neither Launch nor LCD acted as 9 and that slows our play, we've gone from a 2 man overlap on the shortside to a 1 man underlap. It wouldn't have needed wonder hands to get that ball to Cips just some fraction of a second earlier. SA shit the bed with their overlap in defence and Cips gets another good ball away to Slade, Cips is doing well but too SA are making him look good.

Slade had slightly overrun the pass so he's heading sideways into touch and can't work the ball back, tries to nudge it down the line and knocks on

Green 19 (replacement backrower) runs the ball back with a knock on advantage, Farrell tries to take him high and is easily brushed. Faf goes to clear but Green 7 in an act of stupidity runs the ball again, and runs it out of the 22 so now Faf can't clear, with Faf forced to pass back to Pollard we find Hughes playing the ball off his feet, presumably to make Green 7 feel better about his stupidity. Penalty to SA,

[Digby]

It's not really imo any worse than some of the Saffa playing the ball off their feet in recent minutes, and that was with England on the attack, so I've some sympathy with England for that yellow, but none for Hughes the addle minded prat

[Digby]

Minute 70

SA in the lineout and England are penalised at the ensuing maul. I guess the game has most likely gone, but they could be a little smarter, if they want to back up penalties like this I hope they at least have the good grace to admit they're not really trying. Faf taps and goes quickly. From another ruck SA have a lot of space to use, and so they use it, another team say NZ wouldn't have drifted so much on attack, but SA still carry fairly easily up into the England 22 even if it's a little brainless

[Digby]

Minute 71

A further carry into the 22, and then with Curry feedling back into the line both Slade and Curry line up the same attacker, possibly not helped by Faz dragging he lineup just so he can shove Faf, WLR gets the ball to the outside of our defence with a pass to Green 11 but Daly is very close to up in the line and takes Green 11 as they try to cut back inside rather than get forced out

SA go sideways for 3 or 4 phases, and then Faf makes yet another error and the loose ball from his blind flip is gathered by Farrell , it's not good play from Faz but it doesn't draw pressure as Farrell is way offside

[Digby]

Minute 72

Pollard, somehow, misses the penalty. That's a shocking ball strike

[Digby]

Minute 73

Farrell restarts long up to halfway from the dropout, Solomona looks to be awfully close to needlessly playing someone in the air . SA run a staging phase open and then pass the ball down the line and Cips tackles Kriel. SA head back the other way, hardly the first time and again suggests they think a wide wide play open us up. They do again get to the outside of our defence, Solomona is still there as cover but rather gets flat footed by Green 14 stepping inside, the turf does come up as Solomona tries to push off his left foot on what isn't a great surface, Itoje tracks back and makes the tackle but the ball is offloaded to Green 17 who is then taken down by Spencer.

SA make two further plays going left, but nothing like the width of the previous couple of phases and the attack loses some intensity