The mistakes made by South Africa in this exhibition match kept the score below 100, an act of surprisingly well-disguised generosity by the world champions towards their southern African neighbours. South Africa do not generally like to reveal a soft spot, but neither did it seem they wanted to humiliate Jacques Burger and his outclassed team.
It was a day of high numbers: 12 tries, one by Bryan Habana, his 39th, to take him clear of Joost van der Westhuizen as the leading South African try-scorer. Each try was converted, the dozen neatly split between Morne Steyn, who also scored a try, and Ruan Pienaar.
Namibia had to settle for the low number of zero on the scoreboard. They had their moments – a period of total domination in the first two minutes when they kept the ball away from their larger opponents. For the whole of one-fortieth of the encounter South Africa were exclusively on defensive duty. Ominously, they ended it by blasting Namibia at the first scrum, to kick a penalty – almost against the run of play, it might be said – and then ran in their first try.
The scorer was Gio Aplon, a small, nifty wing outside the herd of South Africa's giants. He had a busy night, the congestion of the World Cup norm giving way to the fun – or at least the space – of the seven-a-side circuit.
Tinus du Plessis, a burly, barrelling flanker in blue, did his best to bring some bruising dignity to the Namibian performance. He ran hard and left a small heap of green shirts flailing. Burger, as ever, was all heart. Nobody will leave New Zealand more exhausted than Namibia's talisman.
His work is not yet done because Namibia have three days – minus one hour when the clocks go forward – to scrape up the pieces of themselves and put them into some sort of shape to face Wales. They are probably too worn out to say that they have been cut a rough deal by World Cup schedulers. As the second-least densely populated country on the planet, behind Mongolia – with 2.1 million citizens spread over 316,000 square miles – Namibia are probably used to being told that they do not contribute much to the television viewing figures.
As soon as Aplon had opened the try-scoring, South Africa entered a strange phase of clumsiness. They dropped the ball, slung it forward and generally messed around, trying to accustom themselves to combining relaxation and accuracy. This is the period that made sure the scoreboard stayed in two, not three, figures.
It lasted almost into the second quarter, but the team began to find a collective rhythm, too upbeat for Namibia. Habana sprinted away, into the record books, followed by the prosaic addition of seven points from a penalty try. The Namibian scrum was not a pretty sight.
Frans Steyn made a try for Jaque Fourie, then scored one himself at the start of the second half. On came the replacements, which might have disturbed the beat of the performance, but only served to send fresh legs over for more tries. Each and every player looked a world-beater, which they may well be by the end of October, but tested more rigorously between now and then. This was a gentle romp to be enjoyed, once the staple diet of the World Cup pool stages, but which now make everybody squirm a little.
Francois Hougaard did look very promising as a runner and since he scored the try that beat Wales in round one he has presented himself in New Zealand as a discovery. Juan de Jongh came on and quickly scored a brace, and did not do himself any harm either.
Up front, the Springboks collectively gave Namibia a kindly going-over, the sort of beating that ends with a hand of assistance being offered to the poor victim after he collapses to the canvas. John Smit gave a delicious – an outrageous – cut-out pass to Hougaard, a flash of skill by the captain. On the other hand, the ability of a hooker to float a pass 20 metres may not be such a consideration in games ahead. This was fun; from now on we shall see the more familiar and altogether sterner side of the Springboks.
South Africa: Lambie; Aplon, Fourie, F Steyn (Pienaar, 61), Habana (De Jongh, 64); M Steyn (Du Preez, 64), Hougaard; Steenkamp (Mtawarira, 60), Smit (capt), Van der Linde (Ralepelle, 49), B Botha (Louw, 49), Rossouw, Alberts, S Burger, Spies (Brussow, 78).
Tries: Aplon 2, Habana, pen try, Fourie, F Steyn, M Steyn, De Jongh 2, Hougaard 2, Rossouw. Cons: M Steyn 6, Pienaar 6 Pen: M Steyn.
Namibia: C Botha; Dames (De la Harpe, 66), Van Wyk, Van Zyl, Bock (Marais, 45); Kotze, Jantjies; Redelinghuys, O'Callaghan (Horn, 43), Visser (Du Toit 39), Koll (Van Lill, 54), Esterhuyse, Du Plessis, J Burger (capt), Nieuwenhuis (Kitshoff, 55).
Referee G Clancy (Ireland).
