The Springboks secured a 42-28 victory over Scotland in their Nations Championship match at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday, though the visitors made them work for every point.

South Africa raced to an early 14-0 lead before Scotland fought back to level the scores at 14-14 by half-time. The same pattern emerged in the second half, with the Springboks pulling ahead only to see Scotland close the gap before Jesse Kriel’s 77th-minute try sealed the win.

The match highlighted areas of concern for the Springboks, particularly their defence and discipline, though the replacements proved crucial in securing the result.

Both teams started cautiously with handling errors and tactical kicking dominating the opening exchanges.

The Springbok scrum gained the upper hand early, leading to Embrose Papier being held up over the line. Minutes later in the 16th minute, Papier made no mistake, beating several defenders close to a ruck before using his pace to cross for a 7-0 lead.

From the restart, Cobus Wiese broke forward and found Paul de Villiers, who advanced into the Scottish 22-metre area. The Springboks maintained pressure on the Scotland line, with Evan Roos forcing his way over for a converted try just two minutes later to extend the lead to 14-0.

Scotland responded strongly for the remainder of the first half, with tries from Matt Fagerson and Kyle Rowe bringing the scores level at 14-14 by the break. The Springboks’ discipline problems allowed Scotland to maintain attacking pressure.

The second half began poorly for South Africa when Ben-Jason Dixon received a yellow card for head contact in a ruck clean-out in the 48th minute.

The Springboks held firm during Dixon’s absence despite sustained Scottish pressure.

With Dixon back on the field, South Africa regained possession and spent several phases in the Scotland 22-metre area. Replacement Elrigh Louw crossed in the 58th minute to put South Africa ahead 21-14.

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Two minutes later, Damian Willemse scored a converted try to extend the lead to 28-14.

Zach Porthen’s try gave South Africa a 35-14 advantage before Scotland responded immediately from the kick-off through Josh Bayliss.

Ben White’s try two minutes later reduced the deficit to 35-28 with 11 minutes remaining, putting Scotland back in contention.

Kriel’s late try ended Scotland’s comeback hopes and secured South Africa’s winning start to the Nations Championship.

Scorers

South Africa 42 (14)

Tries: Embrose Papier, Evan Roos, Elrigh Louw, Damian Willemse, Zach Porthen, Jesse Kriel

Conversions: Handré Pollard (5), Quan Horn

Scotland 28 (14)

Tries: Matt Fagerson, Kyle Rowe, Josh Bayliss, Ben White

Conversions: Finn Russell (4)

• Source: KickOff