Trailfinders, Ealing, London
This was a rare opportunity to see an inter-continental game played on neutral territory.
The Eagles had met the Boks five times since 2009, winning all but one of them. But the London game formed part of South African strategy to play top-ten ranked sides in their push to climb the ladder.
For the Eagles it was good preparation for the Pacific 4 series. For the Boks the Africa Cup was on the agenda, their route into the World Cup.
The game got off to the fastest try I’ve seen in a long while. The Eagles’ kick-off was dropped. The next moment Georgie Perris-Redding was dotting it down over the Boks line! Gabby Cantorna converted as usual. 7-0
At the other end the clearance kick was charged down. Somehow the Eagles managed to retrieve and escape, otherwise it would have been two scores inside two minutes.
The first scrum went the Boks’ way. As expected the pack was a potent force, but they need to take more profit from it. Driving mauls weren’t set up tightly enough. The penalties gained from advancing scrums rarely brought much needed points.
The American line-out worked well. One throw to the front gained a lot of territory, and much of the game now occupied South African territory. A fine break by Ortiz gave Kate Zackary, on home soil, the chance to feed Kathryn Treder for a second try. 14-0
The Springboks came straight back, won a 5-metre line-out then a penalty, but couldn’t convert either chance.
Half-time: USA 14 South Africa 0
The USA consolidated their lead with a fine breakaway try by GPR of a kind very familiar to all Sale Sharks fans. 21-0
It was a blessing for the Boks – and a relief for the spectator – when a line-out catch-and-drive worked to perfection, try Lindelwa Gwala. 21-5. The game was speeding up, supported by shouts from the two sections of the crowd.
As so often happens, the Eagles extended their lead all too soon. A quick tap from Ortiz, a chip by McKenzie Hawkins and the ball bobbled about on the far right for Emily Henrich to touch down. 26-5
Next we saw a cross-kick from Hawkins land perfectly for Lotte Clapp to make her mark. The desert of isolation she was in will teach the Boks a sharp lesson in defensive alignments. 33-5.
The last quarter saw plenty of action. It’s to the Boks’ huge credit that they scored two more tries as they found more cohesion. First the full-back Byrhandrè Dolf scored on the end of a fine move. Mary Zulu converted. Then at last they earned their reward for their strength up front. Aseza Hele tore away from the base of the pack to score.
The only trouble was that between these two efforts they allowed GPR to complete a well-earned hat-trick.
Result: USA 38 South Africa 17
Afterthoughts
It was a pleasure to see two visiting teams meet in London. Though the Eagles came away with a convincing win, the game was precisely what Louis Koen had wanted for his Boks team.
Out behind there were plenty of dancing feet, but many movements proved lateral; the pacy wingers, Asiphe Mayaba and Jakkie Cilliers, weren’t given that extra margin of space to exploit their talents.
Koen was pleased with the overall performance, but regretted the ‘soft’ moments that gifted the USA relatively easy tries. They return home for a tour of Madagascar; then the Premier Division will pick up at the end of April.
It’s difficult to assess the Eagles’ current standing. Certainly they are profiting from the presence of so many in the English PWR; they were capable of delightful combined attacks. But we still can’t be sure they will repeat them when they come up against old rivals like the Maple Leafs, the Wallaroos and the Black Ferns.
Olivia Ortiz was a sharp tack at the base of the scrum, and the skipper Kate Zackary, now placed unusually at No 6, was a prominent figure in attack and defence. Hope Rogers, still finding her feet after a lengthy lay-off, had her good moments, but the Bok defences did well to hold her out.
Teams
USA
15 Tess Feury 14 Emily Henrich 13 Bulou Mataitoga 12 Gabby Cantorna 11 Lotte Clapp 10 McKenzie Hawkins 9 Olivia Ortiz 1 Hope Rogers 2 Kathryn Treder 3 Keia Mae Sagapolu 4 Erica Jarrell 5 Jenny Kronish 6 Kate Zackary (captain) 7 Georgie Perris-Redding 8 Rachel Johnson
16 Paige Stathopoulos 17 Catie Benson 18 Charli Jacoby 19 Rachel Ehrecke 20 Tahlia Brody 21 Cassidy Bargell 22 Katana Howard 23 Amanda Berta
South Africa
15 Byrhandrè Dolf 14 Asiphe Mayaba 13 Veroeshka Grain 12 Piwokuhle Nyanda 11 Jakkie Cilliers 10 Mary Zulu 9 Tayla Kinsey 8 Aseza Hele 7 Sinazo Mcatshulwa 6 Sinelitha Noxeke 5 Vainah Ubisi 4 Nolusindiso Booi (captain) 3 Babalwa Latsha 2 Lindelwa Gwala 1 Xoliswa Khuzwayo
16 Roseline Botes 17 Sanelisiwe Charlie 18 Aliyah Tchogna-Njamen 19 Danelle Lochner 20 Nomsa Mokwai 21 Rumandi Potgieter 22 Aphiwe Ngwevu 23 Chuma Qawe
Officials
Referee: Holly Wood (RFU)
ARs: Hamish Grant (RFU) and Simon Park (RFU)
