South Africa may have gone down to a seventh successive defeat against England when losing 23-21 at Twickenham but one consolation was the performance of teenage fullback Francois Steyn.
Not since Andre Joubert retired have the Springboks boasted a fullback who combines ferocious defense with such an audacious flair for attack.
But Steyn, making only his second Test appearance and his first in the No. 15 jersey after a debut on the wing the week before in the 32-15 defeat against Ireland looked, albeit on limited evidence, to be a worthy successor to Joubert -- once dubbed the Rolls-Royce of fullbacks.
Last year Steyn's greatest claim to fame was spending time at All Black great Murray Mexted's academy in New Zealand and then the Natal Sharks' Academy in Durban.
This season, though, the 19-year-old was ushered into the senior Sharks side and sprung to prominence after converting a 55m penalty in a tropical deluge against Western Province at Kings Park.
Steyn did enough in his first season of provincial rugby to win a call-up to Jake White's squad.
He repaid that faith by playing a vital role as the Springboks came within a whisker of winning their first match against England at Twickenham since 1997.
At Lansdowne Road, Steyn grabbed a try and was one of the few Springbok successes in a dire defeat by Ireland.
In London he was in a more familiar role at fullback and showed his intent early on, by attempting a huge 60m drop goal which fell short and wide.
Undeterred by the heckles of the 80,000 crowd, he slotted a breathtaking 55m drop minutes later to level the scores at 6-6 and set the tone for a period of sustained South African domination.
In cruising to an 18-6 lead, Steyn continually harried England and had his moments in defense when the world champions hit back in the final quarter.
"We have a rising star in Steyn," coach Jake White said. "You know Jonny Wilkinson was discovered before the last World Cup and look what an impact he had. Steyn is having the tour of his life. I reckon that even if I put him on the bench he would still come on and win the man of the match award."
However, not even his biggest fan would suggest Steyn turned in a faultless performance. In common with his teammates, he made a few mistakes as the 'Boks surrendered a seemingly impregnable 12-point advantage.
But he did show enough to suggest, after a long interval where the likes of the wayward Gaffie du Toit and the suspect Percy Montgomery have struggled to convince as Test-class fullbacks, that South Africa may have unearthed a gem of a No. 15.
Bologna on Thursday advanced past Empoli to reach their first Coppa Italia final in more than half a century. Thijs Dallinga’s 87th-minute header earned Bologna a 2-1 win and his side advanced 5-1 on aggregate. Giovanni Fabbian opened the scoring for Bologna with a header seven minutes in. Then Viktor Kovalenko equalized for Empoli in the 30th minute by turning in a rebound to finish off a counterattack. Bologna won the first leg 3-0. In the May 14 final in Rome, Bologna are to face AC Milan, who eliminated city rivals Inter 4-1 on aggregate following a 3-0 win on Wednesday. Bologna last reached the
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
From a commemorative jersey to a stadium in his name, Argentine soccer organizers are planning a slew of tributes to their late “Captain” Pope Francis, eulogized as the ultimate team player. Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with soccer metaphors in his homeland. “Francisco. What a player,” the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) said, describing the first pope from Latin America and the southern hemisphere as a generational talent who “never hogged the ball” and who showed the world “the importance of having an Argentine captain,
Noelvi Marte on Sunday had seven RBIs and hit his first career grand slam with a drive off infielder Jorge Mateo, while Austin Wynn had a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds scored their most runs in 26 years in a 24-2 rout of the Baltimore Orioles. Marte finished with five hits, including his eighth-inning homer off Mateo. Wynn hit a three-run homer in the ninth off catcher Gary Sanchez. Cincinnati scored its most runs since a 24-12 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 19, 1999, and finished with 25 hits. Baltimore allowed its most runs since a 30-3 loss to