Smit: 'I missed that tackle'
Sat, 21 Aug 2010 21:49
The missed tackle... (c) Gallo
South African captain John Smit was left ruing a missed tackle which saw New Zealand grab a last-minute victory in their Tri-Nations encounter in Soweto on Saturday.
The All Blacks scored two tries in the final two minutes to snatch a 29-22 victory over the Springboks at Soccer City Saturday and clinch the Tri-Nations title.
Captain and flank Richie McCaw dived over in one corner and replacement back Israel Dagg in the other as the Springboks slumped to a fourth consecutive loss in the southern hemisphere championship - after looking like winning their first game for 78 minutes.
All South Africa had to show for a much improved performance after three heavy losses in New Zealand and Australia was a bonus point for finishing within seven points of the victors in the first Test staged in Soweto.
The Bok captain, Smit, became only the second Springbok after Percy Montgomery to make 100 appearances and received a standing ovation from the sell-out 88,791 crowd as he ran on to the pitch well ahead of his team.
However, the 32-year-old - who made his Test debut against Canada 10 years ago - cut a dejected, bloodied figure when it was all over, with the heartbreaking loss severely diluting any personal satisfaction from the milestone.
"It was terribly disappointing as I thought we had done enough to win," Smit said in his post-match reaction.
He admitted that he missed the missed tackle which resulted in Dagg's try - the match-winning scored.
In his 100th Test for South Africa, Smit slipped off a tackle on Ma'a Nonu, allowing the New Zealand centre to burst clear and set-up the winning try in the final minute.
"I Really enjoyed the Test," Smit said, adding: "But in the last minute I missed a tackle and we lost the game... it is nothing to be remembered by.
"At 22-all we wanted to get into a good field position so that Morné Steyn can have a go at a drop-goal, but we turned over possession, I missed a crucial tackle and it was game over.
"I can't think of anything worse than losing your 100th Test by missing a tackle at the death. I'll be disappointed for a very long time."
He also felt that some "silly mistakes" in their own half helped the All Blacks stay in touch, when the Boks could have wrapped up the game.
"We gave them too many three-pointers. We had the game for the winning and we let it go ourselves [let it slip through our fingers]."
Although there was some joy in having played his 100th Test against the All Blacks in Soweto, he felt that a win would have been "the cherry on top".
"I could have asked for anything more - 90,000 people to support us was an amazing thing," Smit said, adding: "The emotions running through me was spectacular.
Springbok coach Peter de Villiers had plenty of praise for the new and returning faces to his much-changed team.
"We showed some heart out there," he said. "We didn't lie down and give it away."
He also spoke of the bounce of the ball going against his team, two bad touch-kicks and some shoddy defence.
"Our defence, even though we didn't do too bad, in the end it cost us," he said of Smit's missed tackle.
"I counted seven times that the ball bounced and seven times it bounced back to the All Blacks," De Villiers said.
"We never got the bounce of the ball once, so when it doesn't go your way t doesn't go your way."
He said in the first half they looked after their ball more carefully and put the All Blacks under pressure.
"In the second half we lost a bit of that directness we wanted and depended more on our kicking game and that didn't come off.
"Our decision-making wasn't spot on today. We made a few bad decisions that brought them back into the game," he said.
He was full of praise for some of the younger players.
"The youngsters stepped up today and we can draw a lot of confidence from how they played," said De Villiers.
"It's very painful, but we can take some heart from how we performed today. You need luck too, and today it went their way, as it did in the rest of the Tri-Nations.
"Winning becomes a habit, but so can losing and we're aware of that."
De Villiers congratulated the All Blacks for winning the Tri-Nations.
"Well done to the All Blacks - we saw last year what a great thing it is to win the Tri-Nations," he said.
"They deserved it this year and played entertaining rugby. It's a huge disappointment for us - the dressing room felt like a funeral afterwards."
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