Boks claim hard fought victory in Bloemfontein to seal 3 Test series

It was another tough start for the Boks as the English against raced out to an early lead, much in the same fashion as the first Test in Johannesburg.

Springbok captain Siya Xolisi sings the national anthem ahead of their second test against England in Bloemfontein on 16 June 2018. Picture: Supplied

Philasande Sixaba | 244 days ago

BLOEMFONTEIN – The Springboks registered a hard fought 23-12 over England in the second Test match in Bloemfontein to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three match series.

It was another tough start for the Boks as the English against raced out to an early lead, much in the same fashion as the first Test in Johannesburg.

Mike Brown opened the scoring again in the left hand wing, before his back three partner Jonny May scored on the opposite wing, taking a 12-0 lead inside the opening 15 minutes.

The Boks then clawed their way back into the match when Duane Vermeulen showed a neat piece of skill to step and power his way over the line for the opening score. Handre Pollard who kicked 11 points on the night, narrowed the gap to two points with a monster long range penalty.

Pollard was back on the kicking tee again, this time edging the Boks ahead by a single point, with the Boks taking a 13-12 lead at half time.

The Springbok bench provided the perfect impact, with the new front row combination of Steven Kitshoff, Akker van der Merwe and Thomas du Toit produced a powerful scrum that left French referee Romain Poite no option but to award a scrum penalty try.

Pollard kicked another penalty to further stretch the Boks lead to 23-12 and survived a late English onslaught to hold on for victory.

The win condemns England to their sixth consecutive defeat, while the win ensures that the Boks will jump from 7th to 3rd in the latest World Rugby rankings and seal the series with match to go.

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Boks claim hard fought victory in Bloemfontein to seal 3 Test series

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