Schalk Burger says the Springboks dominated the All Blacks in several areas in Wellington, but winning the aerial battle proved crucial.
The Boks rebounded from a 24-17 defeat in Auckland with a record 43-10 victory at the Cake Tin last Saturday. Siya Kolisi’s men trailed 10-7 at the break despite having 75% territory, before scoring 36 unanswered points in the second half.
“We laid the foundation in the first 40,” said Burger on The Verdict podcast. “Maybe if we got a bit more reward out of scrums, maybe if we were a bit more accurate, the dam would have broken earlier, but the fact of the matter is we dominated so many areas.
“The ball was in the air, behind the All Blacks and they were forced to turn around and run back. Every collision went South Africa’s way, in the set piece our scrum dominated, our lineout was sorted out, but the aerial game was what really bullied them.
“They were running backwards, they were hanging by a thread by the end of that first half. In the second half they capitulated and it was when we got scoreboard pressure.
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“The biggest moment for me was that scrum right after half-time,” he added. “Our sub timing was perfect. Wilco Louw comes on, penalty advantage and the try off the back of that.
“As soon as scoreboard pressure happened – we had 70% territory at that time – they hung themselves. There were too many failings in their game plan, too many soak tacklers.”
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The former Springbok flank said the world champions were more effective with ball in hand in Wellington due to a slight tweak in style.
“What enhanced our physicality is the way that we went from the one-pass ruck in the last two games – Cape Town and then Eden Park – to playing the link-up game,” he explained.
“Stay on top of the breakdown and you see that from the scoot from Siya Kolisi, you see it through a lot of pick and go’s.
“Last week we were nervous when they announced the team [with seven changes and a new-look backline], just because of the fear factor. We all said that if they get it right, we can beat the All Blacks. I thought it would be by 10, I didn’t see 43 coming.
“We needed one man to step up and that was Damian Willemse, and my word how good was he?”
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Meanwhile, former Bok hooker Hanyani Shimange said the way Rassie Erasmus named his team early in the week set the tone for a famous win.
“I’ve been on many of these tours and commentated – we’ve all been around the Springboks – and this has got to be, outside the two World Cups wins, performance No 3.
“That second half, I was even shocked afterwards. I spoke to some of the New Zealand commentators and there was no feeling at half-time that this was going to happen.
“You’ve got to say, when Rassie named the team on Monday, I think he controlled the narrative from day one. The whole chatter was that it’s a young backline.
“You’ve also got to mention a guy like Damian Willemse, he was on another planet at the weekend, he was properly in the zone.”
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Photo: Joe Allison/Getty Images
