Springboks weather second-half storm to see off spirited Italy at Loftus

It was a bit of a nervy start from the Boks, but they seemed to get the lift they needed when they drove the Italians back on their own scrum to steal the ball.

Their opening try followed shortly after, as some good work took them into Italy's 22 where a little kick-through from Damian de Allende for Jesse Kriel saw the Bok captain crash over and score.

The South African forwards were putting the Italians under immense pressure via a series of sniping runs but the visitors' defence was just about standing up to the onslaught, while they were also doing a good job of counter-rucking and slowing the ball down at the breakdown.

The pressure was relentless, however, and some desperate goal-line defence eventually led to a yellow card to Italy No. 8 Lorenzo Cannone for a cynical infringement. The Boks opted for a scrum rather than kick for the corner, and the decision paid off handsomely as they drove the Italian pack back before Morne van den Berg touched down behind the charging pack for their second try.

With just under half an hour gone, the Italians got their first points on the board via the penalty spot and the boot of flyhalf Giacomo De Re, but the Boks hit back within minutes as a quick pass from Malcolm Marx saw Kurt-Lee Arendse step his way straight through the Italian midfield to score a scintillating solo try.

Just before half-time, Van Den Berg was in for his second try of the evening after selling a dummy from behind a five-metre Bok scrum and crashing over the line, with the Italian defenders happy to welcome the half-time whistle shortly after.

The second half started with what looked like a peach of a try from Vincent Tshituka, started by a superb line-break from Damian Willemse, but the score was ultimately ruled out after a TMO check spotted some obstruction in the build-up.  

When the Italians got a rare opportunity to attack inside the South African 22 not long after, they made it count, as Manual Zuliani crashed over from close range following several phases of attack to score against the run of play.

Rassie Erasmus used that opportunity to empty his entire bench of forwards, bringing on an all-new tight five for Italy to contend with.

Faf de Klerk also joined the party not long after and seemed to give the Boks some much-needed zip behind the ruck, with Vincent Koch crashing over for their fifth try of the night shortly after his arrival.

Credit to the Italians, however, who kept on fighting and looked to be in for their second try following arguably their best passage of play of the night before it was ultimately chalked off by the TMO. But a few minutes later, they won a penalty and kicked for the corner, where a superb lineout drive saw Pablo Dimcheff crash over for a well-deserved score.

Italy weren't done yet, either, taking full advantage of a Springbok error inside their own 22 to snatch a third try from seemingly nowhere, captain Niccolo Cannone getting the score under the posts as they suddenly found themselves just 11 points behind, having trailed by 25 at the start of the half.

Any hopes of an Italian fightback were quickly snuffed out, however, as Marko van Staden found his way over the line after a Springbok assault, but the visitors could be proud of their efforts on the night.

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