1 Gerhard Steenekamp — 6
Scrummaged solidly in his 35-minute stint before being replaced by Ox Nche. Nothing too much to write home about though after his late inclusion into the starting XV.
2 Deon Fourie — 6
A late change to the front row, making his return at 39 after last playing in the 2023 World Cup final. Delivered a good first lineout, with the resulting maul leading to South Africa’s opening try.
Was stepped by Ardie Savea for New Zealand’s second try before being replaced after 35 minutes.
3 Thomas du Toit — 7
The third of the late front-row changes. Held his own at scrum time, and the Boks just about had the edge while Du Toit was on the field. Put in an impressive 13 tackles before coming off after 57 minutes.
4 Eben Etzebeth — 8
A vintage Etzebeth performance, as he caused plenty of disruption at the lineout with a couple of excellent steals. Was heavily involved in the tackle and breakdown work, putting in a huge shift and getting through plenty of the hard graft.
5 Ruan Nortje — 8
Like Etzebeth, Nortje put in plenty of hard graft and was excellent off the ball, doing the unglamorous work that helped provide his team with a solid platform to build from.
6 Siya Kolisi — 7
Returned from recent injury issues to captain the side.
Made an early impact with a strong carry over the gainline before the opening try, then found space to score South Africa’s third from close range. Replaced after 42 minutes, seemingly as part of a planned minutes management approach.
7 Pieter-Steph du Toit — 8
Marked his 100th cap with another tireless display. Slipped and was stepped by McKenzie to create a chance, but otherwise made a game-leading 21 tackles and worked relentlessly.
8 Jasper Wiese — 8
Delivered with a lot of unseen work off the ball and plenty of carries into traffic which helped to create elsewhere. While he may not steal any headlines, this was a very strong performance from Wiese.
Double digits for both tackles and carries summarises what was a very good shift.
