England came up short against South Africa this evening, despite an impressive effort against the back-to-back World Champions. England’s search for a win extends to five matches in a row, with Steve Borthwick’s side yet to secure a victory in the 2024 Autumn Nations Series.
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We were just 90 seats away from the full 82,000 capacity at the Allianz Stadium, with an army of green and gold shirts supporting their Springboks every step of the way. It was certainly a thrilling Test match at the home of English rugby, and here are five things that you might have missed, if you were unable to get a ticket to the third round of the Autumn Internationals.
1. Rassie defuses the ‘bomb squad’ with a traditional replacements bench
A significant area of discussion came to the forefront before the ball was even kicked, as South Africa head coach Rassie Erasmus decided to ditch his revered 7-1 split on the bench, for a more conventional 5-3 split of replacement forwards and backs. Erasmus made 12 changes to his team that beat Scotland up at Murrayfield, including a totally fresh back-line that were selected after the six day turnaround.
Erasmus named scrum half Cobus Reinach, fly half Handre Pollard and midfield powerhouse Lukhanyo Am as his replacement backs, in what was a move back to tradition for the South African squad. Erasmus took a step away from his trend-setting forward-heavy subs bench, with options available to cover his back-line showcasing the phenomenal squad depth of the Boks.
The first of the heavy hitting replacement ‘Boks were introduced early, as Ox Nche was withdrawn with a nasty cut on his leg. The replacement loose-head was Gerhard Steenekamp, and the Vodacom Bulls man did not last the duration as he was sent to the sin bin in the latter stages of the second half. Malcolm Marx and Vincent Koch were deployed in the second half, albeit five minutes either side of one another’s introduction.
2. South Africa enjoy their second home at the Allianz Stadium
Before this afternoon’s battle with Steve Borthwick’s side, the Springboks had recently established a second home of sorts in South West London’s stadium, with the heat turned up on more than the pre-match ‘braai’. There was an incredible presence of South African supporters, with an ex-pat army of green and gold fans generating quite the ‘lekker’ atmosphere in the home of English Rugby.
The significant population of Springboks fans rang out cries of ‘Bokke, Bokke!’, with the trains rolling into Twickenham Station jam-packed with the iconic colours and logos of the rainbow nation. Such an incredible Springbok support in London was also witnessed this past Summer, and ahead of the 2023 Rugby World Cup. The Boks had the home-field support for their heavy win against Wales, and their record-setting triumph over the All Blacks at the Allianz Stadium.
The South African national anthem was a thing of beauty to behold, as the Allianz Stadium had a special guest singer for the visiting side’s song. Britian’s Got Talent finalist Innocent Masuka performed the National Anthem of South Africa, in what was first for the Autumn Series. For the first two Tests it had only been ‘God Save the King’ which had a mic’d up lead singer, with singer and songwriter Kuill getting the honours to lead the capacity crowd ahead of kick-off.
3. The Lights show ignites the cold November evening
Granted, if you attended the Allianz Stadium today there is no way you would have missed this one. The 82,000 amphitheater was lit up with an incredible pre-match light show, that dazzled the capacity crowd in attendance. The pomp and circumstance was out in full force, as the iconic English rose was projected onto the pitch through a series of eye catching strobe lights. Spare a thought to Bryan Habanna and Courtney Lawes, as the TNT Sports pundits had the task of previewing the match with the fireworks and lights on in the background.
A mash-up of Seal’s ‘Kiss from a Rose’ meeting Fatboy Slim’s ‘Right Here, Right Now’, set the stadium alive in a frenzy of techno music. The flame-flowers were set alight around the pitch, which preluded the scorching wingers that were set to explode along the touchlines. There was a nice homage to England’s finest hour, with the commentary of Jonny Wilkinson’s 2003 Rugby World Cup winning drop goal echoing around the Allianz, as his heroics were re-enacted in light show form.
“This is England” was repeatedly pumped out over the loud-speakers, to remind those in attendance of the home side, despite the incredible support from the Springboks fans. The two sides erupted shortly thereafter, with the emergence of the two sets of fans generating an immense ovation, akin to any of the explosive fireworks that rose high above the outer edge of the Allianz.
4. 20 Minute red cards explained to the early bird fans in attendance
In what has become on of the most dividing law changes in recent years, the 20-minute red card was in full effect, for the physical clash between England and South Africa. The law sees unintentional red card offences punished at a different severity to deliberate foul play, with the penalised side allowed to have a substitute replace their sent-off player after a quarter of the match has elapsed.
Prior to kick off at the Allianz Stadium, there was a big screen public service announcement, with the attention directed towards the new laws in place. However, only a small portion of the fans were in the stadium to witness the announcement, as the bars around the stadium were packed out with England and Springboks supporters. There were plenty of Twickenham’s green seats visible whilst the announcement took place, with the majority of the fans missing the law change visual explanation.
5. No George Ford as Borthwick hands the keys to Marcus Smith for the full 80 minutes
Putting a swift double entendre on the word ‘missed’, George Ford certainly missed out on the action at the Allianz Stadium. The Sale Sharks man spent the entire match on the side-lines, with Marcus Smith deemed irreplaceable by his head coach Steve Borthwick. This was the first match of the Autumn Series that did not feature Ford, after his replacement appearances against New Zealand and Australia were sub-par by his high standards.
A fortnight ago, Borthwick released Ford off the bench in a direct change for Smith, for the closing stages of the battle with the All Blacks. What followed infamously included his missed penalty and drop goal attempts, with Ford instead replacing George Furbank in last week’s defeat to Australia. Smith moved back to fullback in the last-ditch loss to the Wallabies, with the game-plan shaken up in the closing stages of the match.
This week saw no replacing for England’s fly half or fullback, as both Smith and Freddie Steward stayed on the pitch for the duration of the fight. Whilst Steward had a first half to forget with two missed tackles on Grant Williams and Cheslin Kolbe leading to tries, the Leicester Tigers man was invaluable under the high ball, with the tactic being a focal point of the match.
Editors picks:
- Sir Clive Woodward slams England players behaviour after fifth straight loss
- Springboks Employ Controversial Tactic England Faced Criticism For Using
- RFU have already made Final Call on Sacking England Boss Steve Borthwick
- Bookies Favourites to Replace Under-Fire Steve Borthwick – Including Two Former England Bosses
- Fans turn on captain George after interview following latest defeat
