The Springboks are on the verge of qualifying for the World Cup playoffs after cruising to a bonus-point victory against Tonga in Marseille on Sunday night.
A scrappy performance against a tenacious Tonga saw the Boks score seven tries – four in the second half – to earn a 49-18 win and temporarily go top of Pool B.
Having played all four of their pool matches, the Springboks will now wait to see what happens between Scotland and Ireland next Saturday.
A win for Ireland will see the Boks advance as runners-up in Pool B, while Scotland require a bonus-point victory to match South Africa on 15 log points, and a margin of victory in excess of 20 points to win a potential three-way tiebreaker (if Ireland lose with a bonus point).
It was by no means a vintage performance from the world champions as they had to scrap on defence for long periods against a Tonga side that produced their best showing of the tournament.
However, there were still plenty of positives to take out of the match, as Handre Pollard completed 50 minutes on his return from a calf injury. The flyhalf slotted all four of his conversion attempts, two from the touchline, before he was replaced by Manie Libbok, who responded to his critics by splitting the uprights on the angle with his first conversion of the evening.
Deon Fourie also enjoyed a solid outing at hooker, completing a perfect night throwing in at the lineout, while grabbing a first-half try from a massive maul. Marco van Staden took over the lineout responsibilities in the second half when he replaced captain Siya Kolisi and also scored a try.
A masterclass in Marseille
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The Springboks will, however, be waiting on the status of Makazole Mapimpi after the veteran winger went off in the first half after being on the end of the head-on-head tackle and did not return after failing his HIA.
A brutal battle saw South Africa having to make 147 tackles, but for the most part, the defence stood up well to Tonga’s physical threat, winning eight turnovers in total.
Even though they weren’t at their cohesive best, the Boks grabbed three tries in the first half, with Cobus Reinach scoring a try from a quick-tap, before Canan Moodie grabbed an opportunistic score after the ball rebounded off Vincent Koch’s shoulder.
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The Springboks wasted little time in sealing the bonus point in the second half, after being denied late in the first half, as Jesse Kriel powered over in the 48th minute. While Tonga did grab a couple of scores of their own, tries from Willie le Roux and Van Staden settled the nerves, before Kwagga Smith went over in the final play to give the Boks a vital 31-point winning margin.
Photo: CHRISTOPHE SIMON / AFP