Mission accomplished for Springboks as they look ahead to Wales

It might be arrogant to say, but the Springboks should arguably feel that they have accomplished their mission on their end-of-year tour, after picking up a 29-20 win over England at Twickenham on Saturday night.

It was another imperfect performance from the world champions, but it was also another massive flex as for the second weekend in a row they won comfortably in terms of the scoreline, despite not nearly being at their best.

Against Scotland the Boks led 17-15 going into the last 20 minutes, before a strong finish saw them pull away to a 32-15 win, and it was similar against England, with the tourists leading 22-20 going into the final quarter before another late flourish sealed the result.

Biggest challenge

England were always going to offer their biggest challenge of the tour, and so it proved as they tested the Boks on all fronts, so to come away with a nine-point win in front of a passionate crowd at Twickenham would have been especially pleasing.

Captain Siya Kolisi admitted as much, saying: “We had to dig deep, but the players never gave up and kept on believing. That’s special about this group, and it allowed us to go all the way.”

The Boks now turn their attention to their final match of what has been a fantastic year, against Wales in Cardiff this Saturday.

Their record this season reads 10 wins and two losses, and those defeats were both by just a single point, with Ireland knocking over an 80^th minute drop goal, while the Boks missed a late penalty against Argentina in Santiago del Estero.

That shows just how impressive they have been, and there is no reason to think they won’t see out their year with a big win over a struggling Welsh outfit.

Second clash this year

The Boks opened their season against Wales in a one-off game at Twickenham outside the Test window in June, when their UK and European based players, as well as Bulls players who were still playing URC, were all unavailable.

Four players made their debut in that game, but a relatively strong match 23 was still named, which saw the Boks go on to claim a thumping 41-13 win.

Another makeshift team is expected to be named for this coming weekend’s clash, as coach Rassie Erasmus will be eager to give some game time to the players in the squad who have yet to play.

Players such as Jordan Hendrikse, Cameron Hanekom, Johan Grobbelaar and Jean Kleyn should all get a run, either starting or off the bench, while a few other fringe players will also likely get another chance to impress.

Whatever team is named it would take a monumental upset for the Boks not to finish their UK tour with a clean sweep, and end their year with a superb record of 11 wins from 13 games.

Wales themselves have been on a disastrous run of form, stretching back to last year’s Rugby World Cup.

Having lost their last 11 straight games, they will be heavy underdogs against the Boks.

Possible Springbok starting XV v Wales

Willie le Roux, Canan Moodie, Lukhanyo Am, Andre Esterhuizen, Makazole Mapimpi, Jordan Hendrikse, Cobus Reinach, Cameron Hanekom, Elrigh Louw, Siya Kolisi, Franco Mostert, Jean Kleyn, Thomas du Toit, Johan Grobbelaar, Gerhard Steenekamp