The Springbok Women went down 31-17 to Scotland in their opening WXV2 clash at the Danie Craven Stadium in Stellenbosch on Friday afternoon, 13 October.
The Bok women were in the tightly contested clash until the dying minutes, but a first-phase try in the 75th minute by Scottish centre Lisa Thomson sealed the win for the guests.
South Africa had all the momentum in the scrums, winning a total of five penalties – however scoring no tries – off their powerful set piece but faltered at their maul defence where Scotland scored four well-worked five-pointers.
The home side exhibited an expected brilliant power game but lacked finesse in crucial moments to seal off opportunities.
“I think it’s a bit of a tough pill to swallow. I thought that the girls fought with incredible heart,” Bok Women skipper Babalwa Latsha said after the clash.
“For us now, it’s [important] to keep our heads up going into this competition … We’ve got 24 hours to fix things.
“And we’ll still very much go about this game very boldly with our heads held high.
“I think the attitude and the energy is always there. I think in some stages of the game we sort of let ourselves down a bit, but picked it up very quickly.
“What’s key now for us is to just go back and review and see where we can improve again.”
Tight first half
South
…. to be continued
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