The Wallabies produced a well-rounded performance on their way to inflicting a 42-38 defeat on a second-string Springboks lineup in Perth on Sunday.
The South African rates the performances of the Springboks.
SPRINGBOK PLAYER RATINGS:15. Aphelele Fassi – 5/10
Got caught out of position a couple of times in defence, struggled under the high ball and threw an unnecessary forward pass to Ethan Hooker when the Boks did so well to create a massive overlap. One of his mishaps under the highball resulted in a try that put the Wallabies in front for the first time in the game.
14. Edwill van der Merwe – 6.5/10
Was relatively quiet throughout the opening 30 of the game because South Africa played through the middle more often than going wide, but he finished off a brilliant strike move by the team just after the half-hour mark to draw the Boks level at 17 all.
13. Canan Moodie – 7.5/10
Really impressive in that No. 13 jumper. He was excellent in defence, shutting down space for the Wallabies ball-carriers and making spot tackles like it’s second nature to him. He was also the man the who hit a gap and drew in a couple of defenders in the lead-up to Van der Merwe’s try.
12. Andre Esterhuizen – 7/10
Did well as stand-in captain despite the controversy that accompanied him this week. Carried well over the gain-line and his reading of the Wallaby defence and subsequent flat pass to Moodie are what set up Van der Merwe’s five-pointer.
11. Ethan Hooker – 7.5/10
Was unlucky to concede a penalty – for a contentious dangerous tackle – that ultimately led to a try for Ben Donaldson that put Australia ahead at half-time. But other than that, Hooker was solid across the board. He was a standout performer in Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry against the All Blacks and did nothing to damage his standing/reputation in the No. 11 jersey.
10. Handre Pollard – 5/10
As wonderful and consistent a player as Pollard is, he was a bit MIA in this encounter. He missed two attempted touch-finders early in the first half and that set the trend for the remainder of his performance.
9. Herschel Jantjies – 5.5/10
He wasn’t bad, but he was wasn’t exceptional either and that could well be because the played behind a pack that was struggling to get a footing in the game. Overall he was solid in an erratic game.
8. Marco van Staden – 5/10
He had a slow start to the game and it didn’t get much better in the 48 minutes he was on the field. Van Staden was eventually hooked soon after the restart and replaced with the Boks’ incumbent eighthman Jasper Wiese.
7. Elrigh Louw – 6.5/10
He wasn’t at his absolute best, but he did carry strongly in contact and was defensively sound against an inspired Wallaby attack.
6. Paul de Villiers – 8.5/10
An absolute menace at the breakdown from the start to the end of the game. His first two touches of the ball were him contesting on the ground and winning turnover penalties, both within the opening two minutes. And that pattern followed into the second half. He picked his moments perfectly and with his world class timing, no breakdown was safe with him around. Superb.
5. Franco Mostert – 6/10
Made his first start since November 2025 and he’ll be first to admit it didn’t go the way he would have wanted. He played until the 48th minute and made a few crucial tackles though.
4. Eben Etzebeth – 6.5/10
As always, he was effective throughout his spell. Despite the pack’s struggles to exert dominance over the Wallabies, the most capped Springbok of all time did well to run the lineouts, put in his tackles and impose his carries.
3. Zachary Porthen – 6.5/10
Porthen did great work around the field. He was lively around the park,
2. Johan Grobbelaar – 6.5/10
The hooker had a mixed performance. His lineouts throw-ins weren’t accurate, but he did score a crucial try from the back of a driving maul.
1. Jan-Hendrik Wessels – 6.5/10
Also had a mixed bag on the day. Along with his fellow front rowers, they failed to dominate the scrums, but made a few telling carries and tackles.
SPRINGBOK REPLACEMENTS:
Bok Bomb Squad – 8/10
While they didn’t change the outcome of the game, this replacement unit came on and completely changed the complexion of the contest. With the Wallabies leading by 25 points at some stage, the Springboks were well on their way to a hiding. But when the visitors brought on the cavalry, they outmuscled and outplayed the Wallabies in every facets of the game.
Towards the end, they were playing against the clock instead of the Wallabies and unfortunately for them, their bid to complete a remarkable comeback fell just short as the time ran out.