Here is why the Boks don’t need 15 men to win

African Insider | 16.11.2025 11:00
Turin – World champions South Africa beat a spirited Italy 32-14 on Saturday, coming out on top despite having to play a huge chunk of the match a man down, just as they did in last weekend’s win over France. Marco van Staden, Morne van den Berg, Grant Williams and Ethan Hooker scored the tries with Handre Pollard kicking the rest of South Africa’s points at a soaking Allianz Stadium on a wet, grey day in northern Italy. There were swathes of empty seats in the stands, with the big ticket in town being tennis stars Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz trying to set up a blockbuster final at the ATP Finals.Nonetheless those present got fully involved in a surprisingly tight match in which South Africa were a man down for nearly 70 minutes due to Franco Mostert being sent off for a dangerous tackle on Paolo Garbisi.