SPRINGBOKS GO NUCLEAR! IRELAND’S SCRUM BLASTED BACKWARDS TO SEAL EPIC WIN
With the game in the balance, the Springboks’ scrum came to the rescue on Saturday to all but seal a first victory over Ireland since 2016.
It was a fierce battle at Loftus Versfeld as the two best teams in the world locked horns and while South Africa’s scrum is usually a cornerstone of their game, Ireland managed to hold their own and at times get the upper hand in the set-piece.
Springboks’ scrum
That was until the 77th minute when Rassie Erasmus’ charges led 20-15.
The Springboks were awarded a scrum after replacement fly-half Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu sent his restart long following Conor Murray’s try and forced an error from James Lowe, who spilt the ball backwards and dotted down over his own try-line.
With a scrum five metres from the Ireland line, the Springboks’ replacement front-row, aka the ‘Bomb Squad’, smelt a chance and made the most of it.
Gerhard Steenekamp – earning just his second cap – Malcolm Marx and Vincent Koch went to work and completely demolished the Irish front-row, obliterating them over their own try-line and earning a penalty try for their efforts.
The try came a pivotal point as it gave the Springboks a 12-point buffer and while Ireland cut it to just seven shortly afterwards, it was enough to see the hosts over the line.
Springboks end Ireland hoodoo in Loftus epic as Andy Farrell’s men left to rue missed opportunities
Reaction
The Bomb Squad’s heroics were praised on social media, leaving onlookers blown away by what unfolded.
“Still can’t get over that final Bok scrum. Unbelievable,” Paul Williams wrote on social media platform X, formerly Twitter.
EK Rugby added: “We’re going to be seeing replays of that Springbok scrum for a long, long time. The bomb squad just went nuclear.”
Many other remarks read along the lines of “Incredible scrum from the Boks” while the Bomb Squad theme was often referenced.
“Ireland absolutely nuked through the middle and that will be that. Ireland’s set piece proved costly tonight,” another post read.
“Irelands biggest problem remains their Achilles – lack of depth across the squad,” one fan bemoaned.
“Don’t have an international level front row on the bench. Have to be able to scrum for 80 mins against the Boks. Farrell must be kicking himself for not selecting Jager.”
While one South African fan said it was “One of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen.”
2024-07-06T19:22:04Z dg43tfdfdgfd