14-Man Springboks stun France 32-17 in Paris comeback
.jpg "Andre Esterhuizen scored the opening try for South Africa")
Andre Esterhuizen scored the opening try for South Africa
©Steve Haag
France 17-32 South Africa, Paris
South Africa delivered a performance of grit, precision, and sheer defiance to defeat France 32-17 in Paris, despite playing more than half the match with 14 men after lock Lood de Jager was sent off in the 38th minute.
Guided by a masterclass from young fly-half Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, the Springboks overturned a nine-point deficit to outscore the hosts 19-0 in the final quarter, silencing the Stade de France crowd.
The night began brightly for France, whose fluid attacking shape immediately tested the Springbok defence.
In the 3rd minute, Damian Penaud crossed in trademark style — finishing off a flowing passage started by Antoine Dupont’s snappy offload and Matthieu Jalibert’s looping pass to the right wing. Thomas Ramos added the conversion for a 7-0 lead.
South Africa responded through the boot of Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, who calmly slotted penalties in the 9th and 12th minutes to narrow the gap to 7-6, showing poise beyond his years.
The Springboks’ forwards then began to exert pressure at the set piece, but France struck again through Penaud in the 26th minute. The Clermont winger latched onto Gaël Fickou’s perfectly timed decoy run to slice through the defence for his second try. Ramos converted, extending the lead to 14-6.
South Africa’s reply came swiftly. Scrum-half Cobus Reinach capitalised on slow French line speed, sniping from the base of a ruck in the 32nd minute to score under the posts.
Mngomezulu converted, closing the gap to 14-13 and restoring belief in the Bok ranks. However, momentum seemed to swing back toward France just before the break when Lood de Jager was shown a straight red card for a dangerous high tackle on French skipper Grégory Alldritt in the 38th minute.
Despite being reduced to 14 men, the Springboks refused to fold. France opened the second half with a Thomas Ramos penalty in the 58th minute to lead 17-13, seemingly setting the stage for a controlled finish. But indiscipline soon crept into their play — and it proved costly.
In the 62nd minute, Louis Bielle-Biarrey was yellow-carded for a deliberate knock-on while defending a wide overlap, evening the numbers temporarily.
The Springboks seized their opportunity. Three minutes later, André Esterhuizen bulldozed his way over from close range after a relentless maul drive. Mngomezulu’s conversion drifted wide, but the visitors had edged ahead 18-17, and the momentum had decisively shifted.
France began to unravel under pressure. In the 70th minute, Grant Williams produced a moment of brilliance, sprinting from halfway and chipping over Ramos before regathering to score under the posts. Mngomezulu converted, extending the lead to 25-17.
Then, to cap off his outstanding night, the young fly-half read France’s desperation perfectly, intercepting a loose pass in the 76th minute and racing 40 metres to score his own try. He converted it himself to seal an improbable 32-17 victory.
