It’s back to the drawing board for the Springboks as they turn their attention to Tonga in their last Pool B game of the Rugby World Cup in France.

On the weekend the Boks lost their first game of the tournament when they went down 13-8 to Ireland at Stade de France in what one could describe as a proper Test.

While the defeat was disappointing, it’s far from the end of the road for the Springboks, and in all fairness, very little was wrong with their game and the Irish were just a little better.

There remains a major concern about reliable kicking off the tee and this came to haunt the Boks as they left enough points on the field to have won the Test.

Manie Libbok and Faf de Klerk both missed kicks on goal, however, against Tonga, Handré Pollard, is set to make his return to the green-and-gold.

The Springbok captain, Siya Kolisi, said they let themselves down in quite a few departments, but there were positives.

“We would have loved to win but it was a great game, an intense game. Congrats to them. They played really well. They were able to hold the pressure in the first half and they got the try.

“I am proud of the way we played. I think we left a little bit of opportunities out there and they also did. It was a great test for us in the group.”

The defeat doesn’t make a lot of difference to the Springboks with regards to the quality of opponents that they are set to face in the quarter-finals.

The reality of the matter is that they would have to contend with either France or the All Blacks in the quarter-finals. The defeat means that they are now expected to face the French in the knockout rounds.

The French will however be without their influential captain and World Player of the Year, Antoine Dupont, who is officially out of the World Cup with a fractured jaw.

Mack Hansen and Manie Libbok - RWC

The Springbok coach, Jacques Nienaber, said they still have to face Tonga before they think about the quarter-finals.

“Hats off to Ireland, they were better than us on the day. We missed a couple of points off the tee,” said Nienaber.

“I won’t say that’s the sole reason for not getting across the line. In the first half alone we lost two balls close to the try line and had another two opportunities later on, so that’s four opportunities, plus those points off the tee. But I won’t say it is only goal-kicking.”

Sunday’s match between the Springboks and Tonga in Marseille kicks off at 21:00.

Meanwhile, the week's action kicks off on Wednesday afternoon in Lyon when the Los Teros of Uruguay face the Welwitschias of Namibia.

Morgan Piek OFM Sport