Rugby World Cup 2023 – The South Africa barometer – Ireland: Caelan Doris tireless, Manie Libbock imprecise

The Tops

Bundee Aki

The meetings follow one another but among the fifteen players wearing a green jersey, one always stands out: Bundee Aki. In the first half alone, the Connacht center broke four tackles and ran 66 meters with ball in hand. His charges are often effective in the center of the field to break through the solid South African defense or create a fixation point. In defense, he was never found wanting and he made a saving scratch, in the 78th^e. He was less visible in second half though…

Caelan Doris

What activity Leinster’s third row ! Faced with a horde of South Africans arriving at the Irish defense, his 13/13 in tackling was not too much. He is quite simply the player with the most tackles to his credit… As often, in this trench war, he was very valuable in terms of intensity and physical dimension. With the ball in hand, he also covered 27 meters.

Bongi Mbonambi

It’s difficult to highlight the performance of just one Springbok! The South African hooker didn’t leave his share to others! He distributed big tackles after big tackles on the pitch at the Stade de France. In the first half, several sequences stood out: the Irish, during certain phases of possession, retreated on each ball in the face of the aggressiveness of the Springboks defense. And Bongi Mbonambi has nothing to do with it. In total, he made ten tackles.

Les flops

Ronan Kelleher

He started his match with a huge cartridge on Damian Willemse. But on the first four touches his team got, Ireland had no ball. In the end, the Leinster player missed five shots in the first half, plus another in the second half. In a game as close as this one, it’s too much to lose so many possessions. And this, even if having to manage Eben Etzebeth and Franco Mostert in the opposing lineup is obviously not easy. The hooker and his jumpers will have to coordinate better to challenge Scotland.

Garry Ringrose

Facing the very solid and athletic pair of centers Damian De Allende-Jesse Kriel, the Leinster center suffered. At the 22^e, he was shaken by the first and had to go out to undergo a concussion protocol. When he returned, he failed to put himself forward. He was caught by a framing-overflow from Damian Willemse. He missed three tackles for eight attempted. Little seen with the ball in hand, he still made a magnificent jump pass in the first half.

Man Libbock

The meetings follow one another and are similar for the South Africa opening half. Once again, he weighed down his team with a lack of success against the poles. He missed a penalty and a conversion. Uncomfortable with long distances, he left the long-distance kicks to Faf De Klerk, not a specialist, which led to two new failures. In the game, he did not weigh on the match. With eleven points not left, the scenario would have been different…