Second-half fightback allows Lions to draw first blood in crucial Cape Town Test

South Africa 17 (12) British & Irish Lions 22 (3).

You have to go back to 2001 for the last time a series involving the British & Irish Lions was won by the team losing the first Test. On that occasion, Australia came back to win 2-1, which is now the task that faces the Springboks after they went down 17-22 against the Lions at Cape Town Stadium on Saturday.

“Of course, it’s salvageable, we have no other choice, do we,” coach Jacques Nienaber said after the match.

So, the pandemic series is off to a not entirely unexpected start as the rusty Springboks battled to maintain their brilliant first-half energy; eventually, they fell away against the deserving Lions on the night.

There was enough controversy from the officials to leave many question marks over the result because the Boks will feel aggrieved at some crucial calls that went against them.

The tourists trailed 3-12 at the break and were losing all the key battleground areas – the scrum and kicking game chief among them. But after halftime, the momentum shifted 180 degrees as the Lions returned to the field with more intensity.

The Lions won their air battles and from there everything else followed. The Boks could barely escape their own territory and the amount of tackling they had to do sapped their energy. It was their second Test in 21 months and the lack of game time showed as they gradually wilted.

Mauls, rucks, scrums and lineouts virtually all went against the Boks; it was a downward spiral.

The Lions came out for the second half with more tempo and from a penalty and lineout they drove to the line where hooker Luke Cowan-Dickie scored. It was the perfect start and the lift they needed.

Flyhalf Dan Biggar landed three second-half penalties to add to his lone first-half strike while Owen Farrell also slotted a late penalty to ensure that the Boks needed to score a try to win in the dying moments. It was a bridge too far.

Controversial calls

The Boks will not publicly complain about some decisions, but Australian referee Nic Berry allowed Lions flank Hamish Watson to stay on the field after a poor tip tackle on Willie le Roux. In many games, it would have been a red card, and was definitely worthy of a yellow at least. On this occasion, it was only a penalty.

The Boks also had what looked like a legitimate try chalked off by television match official (TMO) Marius Jonker. Le Roux dotted down after chasing Makazole Mapimpi’s kick ahead and Berry’s on-field decision was a try.

Bizarrely, Jonker said to Berry: “We have no clear evidence, but we believe 15 (Le Roux) was in front (of the kicker).” Besides pondering who “we” was, if there was no clear evidence, the try should have stood.

Before the match, the British & Irish Lions management expressed “fury” that South African Jonker was on duty, questioning the “neutrality” of the process. We’ll never know if the pressure they applied through the media influenced Jonker’s decision-making, but it was a strange outcome.

The Springboks would not be drawn into the debate immediately after the match, playing down the decisions that also saw a try for centre Damian de Allende rightly disallowed for a justified earlier knock-on.

“They [the officials] are in a position and have all angles and I trust their call,” Nienaber ventured. “It was a tight call.”

Regardless though, the Lions were the better, sharper unit after halftime. The Boks conceded seven consecutive second-half penalties as they were put under pressure at the breakdown and in the scrum.

Le Roux’s disallowed try followed soon after and then minutes later industrious flank Pieter-Steph du Toit broke, fed Mapimpi who hacked ahead. Du Toit shinned it ahead and somehow between Mapimpi and the supporting Faf de Klerk they managed to dot down.

In truth, however, it was a score against the run of play as the Boks spent most of the half buried deep in their territory. They simply had too little territory and possession in the second half to create pressure and force mistakes as they had done in the opening stanza.

Before the break, the Boks’ kicking game led to penalties and momentum, and their scrum edged a tight battle. They were on the front foot and created penalties which flyhalf Handre Pollard greedily converted. He landed four from four before the break.

In a strange way, it was too easy for the home team in the first 40 minutes. Lukhanyo Am’s monstrous tackle on opposite number Elliot Daly in the first minute set the tone.

Lock Eben Etzebeth was magnificent in a losing cause while the likes of Kwagga Smith, Siya Kolisi and Du Toit got through mountains of work. The Lions appeared a little shell-shocked at first.

Flyhalf Dan Biggar was jittery and the pack struggled – with the exception of the colossal Maro Itoje. The Saracens lock was very good in the first half, but after the break he was nothing short of heroic.

No one epitomised the Lions’ effort more than Super Maro. His inspired display dragged his teammates up to his level, which was too much for the home team.

The tourists “won” the second half 19-5, as South Africa battled to gain a foothold after Nienaber swapped the entire front row of Ox Nche, Bongi Mbonambi and Trevor Nyakane for Steven Kitshoff, Malcolm Marx and Frans Malherbe.

It was a ploy that backfired as the more established trio battled to impose themselves on the Lions. That was a combination of the Lions’ improvements and all areas of the Boks’ game going off the boil.

Scorers:

South Africa – Try: Faf de Klerk. Penalties: Handre Pollard (4).

British & Irish Lions – Try: Luke Cowan-Dickie. Conversion: Dan Biggar. Penalties: Biggar (4), Owen Farrell. DM