England Player Ratings v South Africa
- 3540
England Player Ratings v South Africa
England have beaten South Africa 27-26 in an enthralling encounter at Twickenham.
Marcus Smith landed a penalty in the 79 minute to secure the win for England.
Here is how we rated Eddie Jones' charges.
15. Freddie Steward - 8.5
Put the Springboks under early pressure with Le Roux saving his side from a dangerous position.
Just one error under the high ball under extreme pressure but he was otherwise resolute.
He won the big moments for England and topped the running metres (58) in the encounter.
14. Joe Marchant - 7
Marchant ran an excellent line to set up Quirke for his try and was solid for England once he moved into the centres. He defended well and linked up nicely with Slade.
13. Henry Slade - 6.5
Worked hard to get into a position to assist Tuilagi's try in the early knockings. Continued in that manner throughout the game with some neat touches and kicks in behind.
12. Manu Tuilagi - n/a
Kept his width well to speed over for the first try of the game but limped off immediately afterwards failing to last 10 minutes.
11. Jonny May - 6
Made a hash of a pretty poor kick by Reinach in the early stages and gave away a penalty soon after as the Springboks opened the scoring.
10. Marcus Smith - 8
Smith mixed his approach well as he put the Springboks under pressure with some neat kicks. His passing was accurate which helped England run in three tries and while his match-winning kick was relatively straightforward, he nailed it.
9. Ben Youngs - 7
Kicked well out of hand and his passing was accurate. Controlled England's attack well before he was replaced by Quirke.
1. Bevan Rodd - 6
Like Sinckler, Rodd started well in the scrums but as the game went on the Springboks gained ascendancy at the set-piece.
2. Jamie Blamire - 6
A solid 60-minute outing as England lineout operated well with him on the pitch. He was busy around the park too. Plenty to come from the young talent.
3. Kyle Sinckler - 6
Got the upper hand of Ox Nche in the set pieces but that dominance was short-lived as the Springbok gained the ascendancy. Somewhat quiet around the park but a solid enough outing.
4. Maro Itoje - 7
Itoje was involved in just about everything, as per usual. He competed well at the breakdown and was excellent with ball in hand and defensively. He did give a few penalties away but none that had too much barring on the match.
5. Jonny Hill - 6
Physical and abrasive making all eight of his tackles. Did his job and did it well.
6. Courtney Lawes - 8
A combative performance from the stand-in England captain. He was shunted back once or twice with ball in hand but managed to get a few big hits of his own on Green jerseys.
7. Sam Underhill - 6
One or two strong carries and a lovely pass that led that almost led to a try for Malins if it weren't for an incredible tackle from Damian de Allende. Missed two of his five tackles but was effective at the breakdown.
8. Tom Curry - 7
Curry contested over the ball superbly throughout the game. He was manhandled by Etzebeth and de Jager landed a hefty double hit on the no.8 but Curry recovered to have a solid performance overall.
Replacements:
16. Nic Dolly - 7
Had two shakey lineouts that didn't go his way but that was more down to the excellence of Etzebeth. Nailed one when it mattered for Quirke's try and won a key penalty.
17. Joe Marler - 6.5
Given a bit of a workover at scrum time but effective in other areas.
18. Will Stuart - 5
Kitshoff got the better of him in the scrums and was yellow-carded for a silly penalty while his side were on a warning.
19. Charlie Ewels - 5
Lucky to escape a yellow card for his tackle on Etzebeth. Otherwise solid.
20. Sam Simmonds - n/a
Just the 8 minutes, not long enough for a fair rating.
21. Alex Dombrandt - 7
Managed to deny the Springboks a try and defended really well throughout his 26 minutes.
22. Raffi Quirke - 6.5
A bit of a mixed bag with a few misplaced kicks and one being charged down. Ran a great support line to score a pivitol try.
23. Max Malins - 8
Came up with two try-saving interventions in quick succession. Almost grabbed a try if it weren't for Damian de Allende. Made some good reads defensively which included a dangerous kick over the top from Reinach.
