South Africa 13 Samoa 5:SAMOA CAPTAIN Mahonri Schwalger blamed inconsistent refereeing after they suffered the first red card of the World Cup and exited the tournament following a brave loss to South Africa.
The holders defended defiantly to record a 13-5 win at the North Harbour Stadium yesterday to reach the quarter-finals of the World Cup even though Samoa dominated possession and territory for long spells.
The Springboks had started brightly and bossed the breakdown and controlled the set-pieces in the opening 30 minutes to run up a 13-0 lead before Samoa adapted and took the game to their opponents.
“Pretty disappointed, I’m proud of the boys, they gave it all they had. The ref was pretty hard on us, if a few calls had gone the other way, we could have scored more points against the South Africans,” said a dejected Schwalger.
South African flanker Schalk Burger was named man-of-the-match for his nuisance work at the breakdown where the Springboks claimed eight turnovers.
Schwalger believed, however, the Springboks had been allowed too much freedom by Welsh referee Nigel Owens.
“They were slowing our ball down and you have to be fair on us as well and he (Owens) has to make sure he gives us a chance as well to compete. I felt it was all one way.”
Owens irked the Samoans further with his decision to send off fullback Paul Williams with 11 minutes remaining after he struck Springbok flanker Heinrich Brussow.
In a physical match with bone-crunching collisions, Schwalger was unhappy with the way the flanker appeared to make the most of the incident.
“There was a little bit of acting there, there was nothing in that, the red card was a little bit harsh,” the hooker said.
However, it was not just the Samoans who were unhappy with the refereeing. Springbok replacement John Smit was shown a yellow card moments after Williams had departed for a deliberate knock-on when attempting an intercept pass.
The hooker didn’t help his case by then kicking the ball away to prevent the Samoans from restarting the game quickly.
“It was a stupid decision to get him off the field, I don’t think he deserved the yellow card,” said Springbok coach Peter de Villiers.
The two cards came after a number of scuffles between the two sides, with Schwalger involved in some pushing and shoving with Burger and Jannie du Plessis in the first half.
Springbok captain Victor Matfield said he was disappointed the incidents were not picked up by the officials and praised his players for keeping their cool.
“Very happy with our discipline that we didn’t get involved, that we stayed out of it and that’s a big positive we can take out of it. I’m very proud of our boys that they kept their heads.”
A Bryan Habana try helped the South Africans put 13 points on the board in a dominant first half an hour but they were then forced to tackle for their lives as the Pacific Islanders threw everything at them.
“We will never find a more physical game in the rest of the tournament so we’re happy to get through it,” said de Villiers.
The South African line was breached for only the second time in the tournament when number eight George Stowers inched over soon after the break. Despite producing a massive effort in the final quarter, Samoa just couldn’t get over again.
SOUTH AFRICA: Lambie; Pietersen, Fourie, F Steyn, Habana; M Steyn, F du Preez, Mtawarira, B du Plessis, J du Plessis, Rossouw, Matfield, Brussow, Burger, Spies. Replacements: Hougaard for Habana (47), Steenkamp for Mtawarira (62), Smit for B. du Plessis (69), Alberts for Spies (61). Sin Bin: Smit (70).
SAMOA: Williams; Lemi, Mapusua, Fuimaono-Sapolu, Tuilagi; T Pisi, Fotuali’i; Taulafo, Schwalger, Johnston, Leo, Thompson, Tuifua, Fa’asavalu, Stowers. Replacements: Mulipola for Taulafo (77), Avei for Schwalger (77), Perenise for Johnston (60), Tekori for Leo (60), Treviranus for Tuifua (73). Sent Off: Williams (70).
Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales).
