Ewen McKenzie hailed Springbok scrumhalf Morné van den Berg’s performance in the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series decider, providing depth at halfback for Rassie Erasmus.
Van den Berg played the full 80 minutes, scored his first try against the All Blacks after darting over from a lineout maul, kept his flyhalves supplied with sharp service, helped the Boks dominate the air with accurate box kicking and made 10 tackles.
Speaking on the Rugby Unity podcast, McKenzie praised Erasmus’ decision to start Van den Berg for the clash, which South Africa won 43-28 at Baltimore’s M&T Bank Stadium to seal the series 3-1.
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“I just want to give Rassie a rap. He made one change to the team – he put Van den Berg in at halfback and he got Man of the Match,” the former Wallabies coach said.
“I enjoyed the way he played because he didn’t just aim up. He wasn’t just the link man in attack. He was physical in defence, he was in the rucks, he was over the ball.
“Credit to Rassie: he’s got a little guy there we hadn’t even thought about, and suddenly he’s out there winning Man of the Match in a big game.
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“He’s got some good depth there and he deployed it well in this Test.”
SARugbymag.co.za readers agreed, handing Van den Berg 39% of the vote in the post-match MVP poll, well clear of wing Kurt-Lee Arendse in second.
It capped a remarkable turnaround for the 28-year-old, who told SuperSport afterwards that “it looked impossible” he would even play in this series following a three-month layoff due to bicep surgery.
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Photo: Caean Couto/Getty Images
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Ewen McKenzie hailed Springbok scrumhalf Morné van den Berg’s performance in the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series decider, providing depth at halfback for Rassie Erasmus.
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