France No 8 Emeline Gross scored two tries as Les Bleues pummeled the Springbok Women 46-3 at Stade de la Rabine on Saturday, reports MARIETTE ADAMS from Vannes.
Buoyed by the 5,000-strong home crowd, France – ranked fourth in the world – made a boisterous start as they shredded the South African defence at will to run in two tries in the opening 20 minutes.
Gros bulldozed the tryline for the first two scores, followed by tries from scrumhalf Laure Sansus and lock Safi N’Diaye.
France went into the change room with a commanding 27-point advantage and, while the two sets of players took a break, the French crowd saw the interval as their opportunity to take centre stage. They topped their in-play clapping efforts with a rousing Mexican wave and some brilliantly synchronised stomping until the resumption of the match.
The dedication to the cause was well rewarded as France started the second half like they ended the first: with the ball dotted down behind the tryline by N’Diaye to extend their lead. And they bagged two more touchdowns before the final whistle sounded to complete a seven-try haul.
For all their determination, the Bok Women were haunted by ill-discipline, as they conceded 12 consecutive penalties before winning one of their own. The team will also be disappointed with the high count of basic errors, which contributed to their downfall.
France had the lion’s share of the possession and territory, and when South Africa did manage to get hold of the ball, their handling skills and decision-making let them down badly.
Coach Stanley Raubenheimer will be left pondering how his team could have made so many unforced errors without any improvement throughout the game.
South Africa’s first visit into the opposition 22 came with three minutes remaining and, after the hosts were twice penalised for exceeding the limits of the offside line, the Bok Women opted for a kick at goal, much to the dismay of the crowd and the French contingent in the press box.
Replacement flyhalf Jacomiena Cilliers lined up the kick and converted the attempt into three points to escape a scoreless outing, though it was little consolation.
While South Africa’s four-game tour of Europe got off to a bad start in terms of results, the margin of defeat doesn’t reflect the vast improvement in performance when compared to previous outings against top-five ranked nations.
The Bok Women next face Wales in Cardiff, followed by matches against England U20 and the Barbarians, with both fixtures scheduled to take place at Twickenham.
SA Rugby magazine’s Mariette Adams is in France – courtesy of Air France and Explore France – home of the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
