England vs South Africa: A statistical look

The second full round of fixtures in this year’s Autumn Nations Series saw a mix of tight clashes and resounding victories – we take a look at some of the key stats from the weekend.

After the Southern Hemisphere sides recorded a clean sweep against their northern rivals one week earlier, Europe’s best managed to restore some pride during the second full round of fixtures in this year’s Autumn Nations Series.

England vs South Africa

There was a real sense of déjà vu at the Allianz Stadium on Saturday, as England narrowly lost a fifth consecutive game and another one in which they had held the lead at some point during the final 25 minutes.

Many of the stats between the two teams were similar, while England enjoyed more possession and territory. However, the Springboks punished Steve Borthwick’s side when they did get into scoring positions, averaging 3.3 points per 22 entry from eight forays into the red zone. England made more 22 entries (10), but scored roughly half as many points per entry (1.7).

Part of the reason for that was how costly England’s missed tackles were compared to South Africa. Of England’s 25 missed tackles, 15 directly led to a line break or a try being scored – the highest such tally of any team in the Autumn Nations Series at the weekend.

Meanwhile, South Africa – who boast one of the best scramble defences in world rugby, missed just one tackle fewer than England (24) but 75% of those misses saw the attacking player tackled before being able to break the line or score a try.

South Africa will aim for a clean sweep of the British nations when they face a wounded Wales next weekend, while England welcome Eddie Jones’ Japan to the Allianz Stadium, hoping to end 2024 on a more positive note.