Springbok ratings: Malcolm Marx, Pieter-Steph du Toit shine in Bok win over Ireland in Dublin

The Springboks were excellent in dominating Ireland on Saturday night, ending their drought in Dublin with a 24-13 win that flattered the hosts.

Here’s how we rated the Springboks.

STARTING XV

15 Damian Willemse (7) — He finished superbly in the corner for the Boks’ opening try. He was good in the air.

14 Canan Moodie (7.5) — He reminds me of the great American Olympian Carl Lewis with his gliding runs. He was good with the chances he had.

13 Jesse Kriel (6) — He was influential in running the defence and had some striking runs.

12 Damian de Allende (7) — Did little of significance on attack but was huge on defence.

11 Cheslin Kolbe (6) — The ball did not go his way. He was good with his covering defence.

10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (8) — He brilliantly took his try just after half time. He wrong-footed the defence and handed off a tackler to romp home.

9 Cobus Reinach (8) — At 35 years old, the scrumhalf once more demonstrates that he rivals Grant Williams as the Boks’ best No 9. He was superb in nailing a try after great work by the Bok set scrum.

8 Jasper Wiese (8) — He was the epitome of industry. One of the hardest workers in the team, as always.

7 Pieter-Steph du Toit (8.5) — Mr Reliable keeps on turning up week after week, playing most of the match. He was a tower of strength.

6 Siya Kolisi (7) — The captain had a solid game. His breakdown work was excellent.

5 Ruan Nortjé (8) — He is probably the Springboks’ success story of the season. His hunger and commitment are an example for youngsters who aspire to play for their country.

4 Eben Etzebeth (7) — Strong close-quarter defence from the giant and telling impact in the loose. Eben was immense.

3 Thomas du Toit (8) — Scrummed powerfully and earned his team an early scrum penalty. More would come as The Tank killed Andrew Porter.

2 Malcolm Marx (9) — The hooker delivered a world-class performance that underlined why he surely will convert his nomination for World Rugby Player of the Year into the treasured award.

1 Boan Venter (7.5) — The loosehead played his part in the Boks earning a succession of penalties in the first half. He was perfect …

REPLACEMENTS

Johan Grobbelaar (6) — He had a tough act to follow in replacing the exceptional Malcolm Marx with 15 minutes to go, but performed solidly.

Gerhard Steenekamp (7.5) — Came on for Boan Venter and scrummed superbly. He put in some big hits on defence.

Wilco Louw (8.5) — He took over from Thomas du Toit at halftime, and his immediate contribution was to manufacture a penalty try. There is surely no stronger prop in world rugby than Louw.

RG Snyman (8) — He was energy personified in playing the last 40 minutes of the game (replacing Eben Etzebeth). His offloads were excellent.

Kwagga Smith (7) — He was a handful with ball in hand after replacing Jasper Wiese. As usual, he scurried about the part making a nuisance of himself.

Andre Esterhuizen (7) — Came on for Siya Kolisi. While he did not get many opportunities with ball in hand, he made a big contribution on defence.

Grant Williams (6) — He was quick in everything he did but received a yellow card for a deliberate offside.

Manie Libbok (6) — Replacing Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu is no easy task but Libbok dictated play well without being exceptional.