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Springboks crush England
South Africa opened the inaugural Nations Championship with a 45-21 victory over England at Ellis Park in Johannesburg on Saturday, running in seven tries after a 17-0 lead inside 12 minutes.
“a thunderous way to kick off the new-look Nations Championship”
The Guardian described the match as a “thunderous way to kick off the new-look Nations Championship,” with England reduced to 13 men late on as the Springboks pulled away.
AP in WRAL said the Springboks tore apart England 45-21 after a “stunning three-try blastoff” that gave them a cushion they rode to their biggest win over England in 18 years.
England fought back to trail by only three at halftime, but South Africa’s second-half surge included tries from Grant Williams and Jesse Kriel within 16 minutes of the restart, before Malcolm Marx and Ben-Jason Dixon completed the rout.
Sky Sports reported that South Africa, without Siya Kolisi and Eben Etzebeth, outscored England seven tries to three as Steve Borthwick’s side were “suffocated at altitude in Johannesburg.”
Injuries, cards, and quotes
The match was shaped by last-minute withdrawals, with Siya Kolisi ruled out by a hamstring issue and Eben Etzebeth by a head knock, while England also had to reshuffle when George Furbank was sidelined by appendicitis.
WRAL said Pieter-Steph du Toit moved into the captain role and quoted him: “If you buy into the system and understand the system, the system will take care of the player.”
Sky Sports said England were reduced to 13 men after Tommy Freeman and Guy Pepper were shown yellow cards, and it noted that Freeman’s shoulder-to-head contact on Damian Willemse and Pepper’s repeated penalty infringements undid England’s hard work.
The Telegraph’s match report highlighted the fallout from those moments, stating that Tommy Freeman received a “Costly yellow card for high tackle on Damian Willemse.”
Sky Sports also captured England captain Jamie George’s reaction, quoting him: “we showed a lot of fight and character to stay in the game, and then we let it slip at times.”
Next fixtures and pressure
With South Africa’s win at Ellis Park, the sources framed the result as the start of a longer Nations Championship structure, with the tournament’s opening day followed by additional rounds played later in the year.
“Next Saturday, England returns home to play Fiji while South Africa hosts Scotland”
AFP reported that the opening day featured other results including New Zealand beating France 34-32 and Ireland defeating Australia 33-31, while Wales beat Fiji 39-24 and Japan surprised Italy 27-10.
WRAL said England’s next assignment is to return home to play Fiji next Saturday while South Africa hosts Scotland, placing immediate stakes on how quickly both sides respond after the 45-21 scoreline.
The Guardian added that England’s run now stands at “five successive defeats for Borthwick’s England,” and it described South Africa’s depth as a key advantage even when influential forwards were missing.
Sky Sports closed with Jamie George’s assessment that “we will be a better team off the back of this experience,” as the Nations Championship continues through July and into November.
