A South African side stitched together with fresh faces and forced reshuffles produced one of their grittiest performances in recent memory, powering to a 32–14 victory over Italy in Turin despite surviving almost the entire match with a numerical disadvantage, Cape {town} Etc reports.
Their uphill climb began early. Franco Mostert, sent off in the 12th minute for a dangerous tackle on Paolo Garbisi, left the Springboks scrambling to rebuild their structure on the fly. It was the second consecutive week the Boks lost their No 5 lock to a head-contact ruling, and this time the setback arrived before the match had found any rhythm. Suddenly, an already experimental outfit was asked to withstand nearly 70 minutes of pressure against an Italian team buzzing from a landmark win over Australia.
But what unfolded over the next hour was an exhibition of resilience and tactical daring. Even as Italy clawed their way back within one point midway through the second half, Garbisi slotting his third penalty just moments before Marco van Staden was yellow-carded—the Boks refused to bend. Down to 13 men, they absorbed the storm and then delivered a devastating counterpunch.
Morné van den Berg, Grant Williams and Ethan Hooker all crossed in the closing stages, adding to Van Staden’s first-half finish and sealing a result that grew more improbable by the minute. The scoreboard didn’t reflect the turmoil behind the scenes, especially after Mostert’s departure forced Rassie Erasmus into a carousel of substitutions in an attempt to steady a creaking scrum.
Within half an hour, Ben-Jason Dixon made way for Ruan Nortje, Zachary Porthen was replaced by Wilco Louw, Boan Venter was swapped for Gerhard Steenekamp, and Andre Esterhuizen entered in a hybrid role at the expense of Kurt-Lee Arendse. Italy, sensing vulnerability, hammered the Boks at scrum time and earned repeated penalties, but somehow South Africa clung to a 10–3 halftime lead.
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It took one meaningful visit to Italian territory for the Boks to strike first: Handré Pollard edged them ahead with a penalty after a ruled-out drop goal, and in the dying moments of the half, a string of short, patient drives ended with Van Staden forcing his way over.
Italy tightened the contest early in the second period thanks to Garbisi’s accurate boot, but momentum shifted again when Lorenzo Cannone was binned for a clash of heads with Kwagga Smith, allowing Pollard to push the lead back out. Those temporary imbalances opened the door for van den Berg, who spotted space off a wheeled scrum and lunged through the chaos to ground the ball.
Italy’s lone moment of magic came from Ange Capuozzo, slicing past a disjointed defensive fold to score after 65 minutes. But the Boks’ response was ruthless. Damian Willemse launched a counterattack, Canan Moodie carved wide, and Williams arrived on the inside to streak in under the posts, leaving Italy chasing shadows.
The final blow came when Manie Libbok’s crosskick drifted perfectly into Hooker’s path on the right touchline, the replacement diving over for his first Test try. His conversion attempt was waved off as time expired, a final bit of chaos in a match defined by it.
But none of it mattered. After an hour of turmoil, reshuffling and playing short-handed, the Springboks walked off with a victory forged in stubbornness, skill and sheer refusal to break.
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Picture: Alessandro Sabattini / Gallo Images
