Player ratings: Destructive Retshegofaditswe ‘Ox’ Nche guides Springboks to final

The Springboks booked their place in the final of the 2023 Rugby World Cup with a riveting 16-15 win over England in the semi-finals in Paris on Saturday. 

LIVE SCORING | Springboks v England: Rugby World Cup

Below, we rank the Springbok FORWARDS.

THIS IS HOW THE STARTING FORWARDS FARED

8. Duane Vermeulen 6/10

Had an uncharacteristically quiet game. Didn’t do much wrong, but wasn’t the imposing figure the Springboks needed him to be.

7. Pieter-Steph du Toit 6/10

Conceded two costly penalties in the first half and didn’t do much in the way of making up for his mistakes.

6. Siya Kolisi (captain) 6/10

The skipper had a disappointing evening in terms of leadership and communication with the referee. Lost his composure and patients early in the match when he got into a verbal tiff and then a ph

5. Franco Mostert 7/10

No great, but the best of out of a bad bunch of forwards who started the game. He worked hard in the trenches and it might go unnoticed after the team’s collective horror show, but it should’t.

4. Eben Etzebeth 5/10

After his gladiatorial display against France, you’d could have expected a drop of quality from Eben Etzebeth, but it has to be said that performance in this semi-final was one of his poorest yet in a Springbok jersey, so much so that he was subbed off after just 45 minutes.

3. Frans Malherbe 7/10

One of the few consistent performers throughout his time off the field. Malherbe put in a 56-minute shift and did his reputation no damage.

2. Bongi Mbonambi 6/10

His skew throw-ins at the lineout early in the first half set the tone for the rest of the match, with the Springboks under pressure at that specific set-piece for the whole game. He also made a few wrong decisions after the lineout was secured by attacking down the short side without much in the way of support play.

1. Steven Kitshoff 6/10

The Springboks conceded one scrum penalty and Steven Kitshoff was at fault for that error. He did make a couple dominant tackles, but those were few and far between. Subbed off before the 50-minute mark.

DESTRUCTIVE SUBSTITUTES WIN IT FOR THE SPRINGBOKS

16. Deon Fourie 7/10

Replaced Kolisi in the 50th minute and was a breathe of fresh air throughout his cameo. And he proved to be the man that finally sparked the Springbok attack to live with a strong run which led to the opening try of the match for South Africa.

17. Ox Nche 10/10

Destructive. Phenomenal. When he came on, the Springboks scrum went up three years and walked the England pack back more often than not. Ox Nche won that stunning last penalty for the Springboks, which Handre Pollard converted into the match-winning penalty. He has shot at being the Springboks’ player of the tournament. He

18. Vincent Koch 7/10

Was brought on as an impact player and did just that. Carried well and there was one moment when he dragged a couple of English defenders with him.

19. RG Snyman 7/10

Scorer of the Springboks’ only, but oh so important try. Also brought stability to the lineout and added a different dimension to the Springbok attack with his superb offloading game.

20. Kwagga Smith 7/10

The Springboks’ super-sub, who always delivers. As usual, busy all around the field. His disturbance of Freddie Steward when attempting to secure the ball in the air gave the Springboks some much-needed possession late in the game.