Sacha: Italy win a ‘reality check’ for Boks

The star flyhalf, who slotted all 10 of his kicks, said the Springboks were 'not near where we need to be' against Italy. Flyhalf Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu said the Springbok changeroom was not entirely happy with their performance against Italy on Saturday, but the bonus-point victory served as a platform for what they could work on. The Boks scored nine tries during their 66-7 win over the Azzurri – South Africa’s fourth consecutive bonus-point victory in the Nations Championship, with fixtures against France in Paris and Ireland in Dublin remaining before the finals weekend in London. Feinberg-Mngomezulu said the back-to-back matches let the team immediately work on the areas where they saw they were struggling. Boks not 100% happy Feinberg-Mngomezulu was sublime against Italy. He scored a try, kicked a 50-22 and slotted all 10 of his kicks at goal. But the Springboks’ failure to capitalise on six first-half tries in the second half, despite several Italian injuries, left room for improvement. Still, head coach Rassie Erasmus said the players could not be faulted for only scoring 21 points against a motivated, if second-string, Italian team at home in the second half. “I think we did very well to stick to our structures in the beginning,” Mngomezulu said. “I think it was far from a perfect performance from us. We have a lot to work on for the next three big fixtures. But to tick a box at a very passionate and packed stadium was great for the boys.” He said the team would work on areas needing improvement. By the time they face France on Friday night, they will have two weeks of preparation behind them. “I think we set a good foundation, and it’s a good confidence booster for the boys. “But it’s also still a great reality check that we are not near where we need to be. It’s a very special feeling to get to a changeroom afterwards and not be 100% happy with the performance you put out there, although the scoreline looked good.”