Ratings: New Zealand v Sotuh Africa - Rugby World Cup

Ratings: New Zealand v Sotuh Africa - Rugby World Cup

The All Blacks and Springboks met for the 99th time on Saturday as the two sides kicked off their respective Rugby World Cup campaigns.

Nothing separated the two sides from their past three encounters, however, the All Blacks got the upper hand in Japan claiming a 23-13 victory.

New Zealand were far from perfect in their Rugby World Cup opener, but a six-minute spell of breathtaking brilliance showed why the two-time defending champions remain the team to beat. 

New Zealand


15. Beauden Barrett - 8.5

Covered the backfield well after a few early struggles. Put Bridge away for his try after he entered the line at first five. 



Looked dangerous whenever he touched the ball and put in a solid overall performance.

  

14 Sevu Reece - 7

Sprinted down the touchline to make the initial break in the build-up to his fellow wings try.

Beat a few defenders, had an excellent diving pass to Beauden Barrett while under pressure and did well on the attack but was a bit suspect on defence.

13. Anton Lienert-Brown - 7

A brilliant step off the left foot saw Scott Barrett go in under the sticks. He was excellent in this regard beating 8 defenders in 80 minutes.

Defensively he missed the odd tackle but was solid enough to keep the Springboks out for most of the game. His tracking work stifled a few Bok attacks.

12. Ryan Crotty - 7

A steady shift from Crotty as he steered the attack and organised the defence well for 50 minutes before he was substituted for Sonny Bill Williams.

11. George Bridge - 6

Saw a lot less ball than his opposite winger but was still excellent in the air and scored the try that swung the game in New Zealand's favour.

10. Richie Mo’unga - 7.5

Did well to adapted to South Africa's defensive pattern after struggling early on, missed just one kick at goal and played a major role in the build up to Bridge's try with a well-weighted cross kick to Sevu Reece.

9 Aaron Smith - 7.5

His kicking game was pivotal to the All Blacks' victory, particularly as the game went on. He was accurate and lifted the tempo of the All Blacks attack when they needed it.

8. Kieran Read - 7

Read fronted up to the big Springbok pack, as he usually does against the Boks and got stuck right in.

He pressed up well from the defensive line and although he made just 7 tackles, he was all over the pitch getting stuck into rucks.

7. Sam Cane - 6

Got through a mountain of work in just 40 minutes making 10 tackles and winning a turnover before he failed to return after the break after picking up a knock.

6. Ardie Savea - 8

Continued his fine form for the All Blacks this year with a monster performance.

8 carries and 9 tackles made, doesn't look very high but considering Pieter-Steph du Toit made the most tackles (13) and Duane Vermeulen made the most carries for a forward (11), Savea was busy.

His footwork and aggression in his carries saw him make 4 running metres and beat 5 defenders.

5. Scott Barrett -8.5

Arguably the better Barrett on the night despite older brother Beauden getting the man of the match award.

Scott came to the fore with Brodie Retallick out injured and put in a brilliant shift in. Anton Liernet-Brown did superbly well to set Barrett up for his try but it was his outstanding work rate that got him in that position to start off with.

His move to blindside during the game was effortless and his lineout and ruck work was just as impressive.

4. Sam Whitelock - 5

Far from an ideal game from the Crusaders captain, in a fixture, he normally thrives in.

He was found out somewhat in the lineouts and wasn't as influential as he normally is in that department.

It was his error that led to Pieter-Steph du Toit's well-taken try but did get around the park making his tackles.

3. Nepo Laulala - 6

Having effectively claimed Owen Franks' starting jumper, Nepo Laulala may not have impressed as much as he would have liked.

He was strong in the scrums against Steven Kitshoff but didn't make enough of an impact around the park, that being much of the reason Owen Franks was dropped.

2. Dane Coles - 4.5

A few shakey lineout throws were picked off and he didn't make much of an impact around the park with his strong and elusive ball carries which led to him being pulled at half time.

1. Joe Moody - 7

Had a nice battle in the front row with Frans Malherbe and put in a handy shift on defence making 10 tackles.

South Africa

15 Willie le Roux - 3

A poor game from the Springbok fullback who had a few shockers against the All Blacks.

He had some nice runs that didn't produce the final product, notably his horrid pass to Cheslin Kolbe that the flyer show managed to catch.

His work under the high ball was also suspect.

14. Cheslin Kolbe - 8

By someway the best Springbok back on the park. Courageous, exciting but lacked the support he deserved. 

He sliced through New Zealand's defence on a number of occasions beating an incredible 11 defenders for 118 running metres.

He chased kicks superbly, rushed up well on defence and despite missing a few tackles he fronted up.



13. Lukhanyo Am - 5

Had a few excellent defensive reads but was largely ineffective on attack and was replaced before the hour mark by Jesse Kriel.

12. Damian de Allende - 7

Gained some good ground with some great carries in the midfield, setting the platform for the Springboks attack. He made over 51 running metres and linked up well with Pollard. 

His work rate was also excellent from kicks.

 11. Makazole Mapimpi - 4

Starved of attacking ball, Mapimpi was forced to spend most of the match charging up and down the touchline after kicks.

He took one for the team and was lucky not to spend ten minutes in the sin bin after he chased Richie Mo'unga down but was also caught out by Sevu Reece for the first try.

10. Handre Pollard - 4

Started shakey with a clearance kick that didn't find touch as the All Blacks applied the pressure on the flyhalf by kicking all their restarts into the midfield forcing him to clear and not de Klerk.

His missed shot at goal was followed by an All Black penalty kick and two tries.

Kicked a nice drop goal but far from an ideal game for the Bok playmaker.

 9. Faf de Klerk - 3

Started well with a nice box kick but it was all downhill from there as his passing and kicking game was not up to scratch.

A sloppy pass led to an All Blacks' try and his kicks were often a few metres off.

8 Duane Vermeulen - 6

A mixed bag for the Springbok no.8 . A below average first half was followed by a strong second.

Carried strongly and popped up with a few turnovers but was uncharacteristically less dominant in the contact areas.

 

7. Pieter-Steph du Toit - 6.5

An average game by his recent high standards as he was far less dominant than normal but a solid one regardless. Got through a mountain of work on both sides of the ball, disrupted the All Blacks lineout and showed great understanding one the laws to score.

6. Siya Kolisi  -5

Looked a bit off the pace against New Zealand, which was highlighted by the fact that he was taken off with 30 minutes still too play. 

Not effective with his carries and missed three tackles.

5. Franco Mostert - 6.5 

Another workmanlike performance by the Gloucester lock. Carried strongly, tackled well and controlled the lineouts.

4. Eben Etzebeth - 7

Thrives in the big games and this was no different. Aggressive and accurate in everything he did from carries to tackles and probably shouldn't have left the pitch.

3. Frans Malherbe - 5

Solid in the scrums as he normally is but was anonymous around the park.

2. Malcolm Marx - 6

Fought well at the breakdown and was probably unfortunate with some of the official's calls.

Solid set piece work too.

1. Steven Kitshoff - 7

 

He looked broken in the 67 minute as he made his way to the bench after a massive shift.

Carried 9 times for 9 metres with each carry knocking the defender back. Won a penalty early on with good competing at the breakdown and continued to be impactful in this area.

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