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VAN DER MERWE DELIGHT: Nine-try Boks romp home in Mbombela

football19 July 2025 17:57
By:Brenden Nel
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Springboks © Gallo Images

On a night where the name Van der Merwe featured four times on the Springbok scoresheet, Rassie Erasmus’ warriors capped the first phase of their international season with a comprehensive 55-10 win over Georgia in Mbombela on Saturday.

The Boks scored nine tries to one in a one-sided affair, but while the scoreline was comprehensive, the home side will feel there is still a lot to work on before the Castle Lager Rugby Championship starts next month.

Debutant Marnus van der Merwe scored two tries on debut and was matched by his namesake, winger Edwill, as their surname dominated the scoreboard, and while there was never any question the Boks would dominate this fixture, there was a lot of food for thought after the match.

The Springboks have never been one to measure success by a scoreline alone, but rather by their own internal team goals, and in this respect, there are a lot of work-ons.

It feels strange to find any criticism against a side that has won by such a large margin, but the reality of bigger challenges coming up will keep the Boks grounded.

Georgia, while 11th in the world, are no slouches, and their physicality and passion they play with make them a tough opponent in how they can make you look bad at moments when the opposite should be true.

And the Boks were not perfect. The breakdown was a mess at times, their handling of the overwhelming gluttony of possession they had wasn’t always perfect and their execution could be a lot better.

Against tougher opposition, they won’t get the freedom to attack from everywhere, and they know it. So while the victory was another box ticked and the entertainment factor of nine tries was something to celebrate, they won’t get ahead of themselves in any way.

There were definitely players that put their hands up ahead of the expected squad cut this weekend - and many of them have made it tough to drop them in any form.

NORTJIE IMPRESSES

Bulls captain Ruan Nortje - the man of the match - was everywhere. Often unassuming and simply the player that does his job, his ability on attack as a link man and support runner, coupled with a work rate on defence that was unmatched on the day, made him an easy choice. Nortje wasn’t alone in his heroics, but he stood out simply because you couldn’t miss him.

Ditto for Grant Williams, whose speed around the ruck made him a nightmare for the opposition and contributed more than assists to two of the tries on the night. If Williams isn’t streets ahead as the Boks No 1 scrumhalf at the moment, then there is something seriously wrong with the argument.

There were others that stood out as well. Pieter Steph du Toit put in a massive workload around the field, Cobus Wiese was as physical as the Boks wanted him to be, while Canan Moodie continues to grow as an attacking threat in the midfield.

There were tries on debut for Van der Merwe - both of them off the back of rolling mauls - and for fellow debutant Boan Venter, who opened the scoring for the Boks.

And the bomb squad - a few lineout throws excepted - added the spice they needed to in the second half.

This was far from perfect, but it was impressive when it was executed correctly. The amount of passion and commitment from all 23 players could not be underestimated, and given their history of games against the Lelos, this was their biggest win of the three thus far, and unsurprisingly was possibly their most effective.

The stats tell the same story - double on everything on attack - double the passes, carries and post-tackle metres - it is a story of dominance by the Green and Gold that they won’t get very often in test rugby. A one-way highway where they could afford to be sloppy at times, because when they weren’t they struck gold.

Georgia did stun the home crowd by scoring first and getting themselves off to the perfect start, but it would be their only foray across the tryline for the evening when Vano Karkadze burrowed over at the back of their first lineout maul to put them 7-0 up.

KICKING WOES

Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s fitness worries before the game may have contributed - he needed to pass a fitness test after he injured his hip in the team warm-ups - but his kicking from the tee was below par and if he was on song, the scoreline would have been bigger.

Feinberg-Mngomezulu is still learning and at times tries too hard on his own, and while he had a satisfactory performance on the field, the kicking woes may count against him in the long run.

The Boks got themselves on the board when Venter dived over the top of a heap of players after Kwagga Smith - on for Siya Kolisi who headed off field for an HIA - made it to a few centimetres from the line.

He was followed a few minutes later by hometown hero Marnus van der Merwe, pealing off the back of a ruck to put the Boks in front - a situation they never looked back from.

Moodie was next on the board - a try started by a blistering break from Williams, in a satisfying team support move that included Kurt-Lee Arendse, Aphelele Fassi and Nortje before he carried three Georgian defenders on his back over the line.

That try would have been the try of the evening, but he had competition later in the game.

Van der Merwe’s second rolling maul try made it 22-10 at halftime, with the Boks doing all the play but feeling they should have been further ahead.

The other Van der Merwe - Edwill - added his fourth try in three tests after a five-metre scrum sent Du Toit close to the line, and Williams, sensing the opening, floated a long pass to the winger to run in unopposed.

The appearance of Damian Willemse and the bomb squad then upped the ante, with another five-metre scrum going left and Handre Pollard delaying the pass just enough that Willemse could slip between two defenders to score.

Winger Van der Merwe rounded off another good Bok pressure attack before Williams again set the stage alight after a beautiful half break and offload by RG Snyman. Williams’ pace and Arense cutting in on the scissors produced a moment of beauty as the winger went over behind the line.

Pollard ended the game on a high for the Boks as they finished a turnover fest with a 70-metre try where a half-dozen players handled the ball, and gave the team the scoreline that topped the half-century mark.

Mbombela continues to dazzle as a Springbok destination, but the Boks will know there are bigger tests waiting.

This, though, was nine tries of entertainment, and a whole lot of game practice in between.

Scorers

Springboks - Tries: Marnus van der Merwe (2), Edwill van der Merwe (2), Boan Venter, Canan Moodie, Kurt-Lee Arendse, Damian Willemse, Handre Pollard. Conversions: Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Handre Pollard (4).

Georgia - Try: Vano Karkadze. Conversion: Luka Matkava. Penalty: Matkava.

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