Small mercies and big lessons: Springboks face reality after Wallabies shock

Thank goodness for small mercies.

Like finding a well-placed chair after a day of walking, your feet beating in time with your heart, or that first slurp of cold tap water when your mouth feels like a gravel trap. Or, perhaps, like the blessing of a wedding scheduled on the same day the Springboks lost to the Wallabies at Ellis Park for the first time in more than 60 years.

The ceremony unfolded against a waterfall backdrop, and after a short trek up to the reception, the customary speeches regaled us with tales of the bride and groom for much of the match. By the time the formalities had drawn to a close, the Boks had already stumbled to a 38-22 defeat — leaving those of us at the wedding to catch up on the shock, rather than live through the collapse in real time.

In that little microcosm of South African life, there was indignation at the defeat while the dance floor was officially opened up. Questions of what, how, where and when were asked with a degree of polite rage. 

I still have not watched the match in complete; just thinking of it boils the blood … small mercies, indeed.

South African rugby fans are not accustomed to losing, and losing to the Wallabies arguably hurts all the more. Yet, with that said, a reality check is sometimes necessary — and perhaps it stings most when it comes from the Australians.

Such is the ebb and flow of Test rugby, and of sport in general.

Nevertheless, it will take more than beating the visitors on Saturday in Cape Town (kick-off 5pm) to cleanse the palate after last week’s disaster. Coach Rassie Erasmus and Co have, in truth, had it relatively easy from the South African public in recent years. Their response over the coming weeks will provide a far sterner examination — not only of their rugby but of the team’s collective resolve.

Moreover, what the last week also proved is the tenuous grasp any team has on victory and defeat. It was not all that long ago that the Wallabies were decried as a side in decline, one that would never again reach the heights of their Rugby World Cup triumphs in 1991 and 1999.

This past week, they were rightly heralded as heroes.

Equally, the Boks had seemed unbeatable, especially in their own backyard — but this past weekend’s loss will have been noted by adversaries abroad. Recall how the sheen of the All Blacks’ invincibility dulled after 2015, when every error and loss was seized upon as another chink in their armour, another crack to exploit.

You can expect that is exactly how the New Zealanders, Argentineans, French, English, Irish, Scots and others now look at the Boks.

The Springboks, however, do not have the luxury of wallowing in their shortcomings. The coming days and weeks will shape how they approach the road to Rugby World Cup 2027.

Tests against the Wallabies, All Blacks, Pumas, Japan, France, Italy, Ireland and Wales will all carry weight in deciding whether South Africa remain the benchmark, ands their Pool placing in 2027; or whether they drift towards being merely another contender when the Webb Ellis Cup goes up for grabs in Australia.

If there is a small mercy in last week’s collapse, it is that the Boks have been reminded early that invincibility is a myth. How they respond will decide whether they march to Australia in 2027 as champions in spirit, or simply in memory.

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