Best Boks vs Scotland: Pollard On Point In Pretoria  

Handré Pollard showed his class and heart on a Saturday night when the Springboks were far from their best but still came away with a 42-28 win over Scotland in their Nations Championship clash at Loftus Versfeld, writes Quintin van Jaarsveld.

The back-to-back World Cup winners were anything but commanding whereas the visitors, led by a superb Sione Tuipulotu, put their best foot forward. Gregor Townshend’s men will look back on the game as a massive missed opportunity to break their duck in South Africa as they cut up the Boks and dominated the breakdown.  

The result was great, but it wasn’t the performance the men in Green and Gold would’ve wanted to produce to celebrate Rassie Erasmus’ record 55th Test as head coach. Their defence was abysmal, as they were far too passive and were fortunate to concede only four tries after missing a whopping 46 tackles.

Taking their opportunities on attack (scoring twice in the first half and four times after the break) and the spot-on timing of Erasmus to unleash his Bomb Squad were what saved the Boks against a Scottish side that’ll take a lot more out of the game than the hosts.

Yes, the Boks secured a second bonus-point win in a row and won by 14 in the end, but the scoreline very much flattered Pieter-Steph du Toit and company. 

Standing on the podium as our top three Bok standouts were:

Handré Pollard

Form is temporary; class is permanent. That sums up Pollard and the pivotal role he played in the Boks’ win.

South African supporters have been spoiled by the eye-catching antics of Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Manie Libbok in recent times, so much so that many don’t hold the more conservative and ageing Pollard in the same reverence as they did in his prime.

The 32-year-old’s selection at No. 10 wasn’t generally cheered after Libbok’s silky showing in the 45-21 tournament-opening triumph over England, not only because he’s not as flashy but also because the veteran was coming off two of the worst performances of his career for the Bulls in the United Rugby Championship semi-final and final.

Come game time at Loftus, an ominous early sign suggested the double World Cup winner was still in his slump when he was sat down by a hard-charging Ewan Ashman. However, he picked himself up, dusted himself off, and kicked on to deliver a Man of the Match performance.

A showing that spoke of his bulletproof self-belief and vast experience, Pollard put on a goal-kicking masterclass – slotting five from five (all conversions) – kicked well out of hand and created the match-sealing try for Jesse Kriel with a clever grubber.

Pollard, who was outstanding under the high ball to boot, showed his toughness as well as he bled for the cause and soldiered on after possibly tearing his hamstring, moving to inside centre rather than going off late in the game.

Paul de Villiers

The former Junior Bok captain has taken to Test rugby like a duck to water and was even better in his sophomore showing for the world champions than he was in his debut the previous week.

The prodigious openside flanker was omnipresent, popping up everywhere like a monster in a horror movie. Super dynamic, De Villiers shot out of the blocks on attack and defence, time and time again. It’s a shame his energy didn’t rub off on some of his tamer teammates.

Fast, ferocious on the carry, tireless in defence, and a nuisance at the breakdown, the 23-year-old has a long and bright future ahead of him in the Green and Gold.

Ruan Nortje

Nortje emptied the tank and showed what a complete player he is, with his work extending well beyond the engine room.

On top of performing his second-row duties with aplomb, the 27-year-old was a handful with ball in hand, his 45th-minute break and kick ahead being the highlight of his work on attack.

He was even better on defence, making an unrivalled 19 tackles and throwing in a textbook jackal on his 22m line for good measure.