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- In episode four of Chasing the Sun, Springbok mainstay Tendai Mtawarira reviewed his yellow card in the 2019 World Cup quarterfinal against Japan.
- The Boks ran out of comfortable winners in the end, but the yellow card saw them having to dig deep into defense.
- Mtawarira was a dominant force in the scrums after he returned to the field.
Tendai ‘Beast’ Mtawarira says the yellow card you picked up at the Rugby World Cup 2019 the quarterfinals against Japan resulted in the longest 10 minutes of his life.
In episode four of Chasing the Sun, the documentary produced by SA Rugby and SuperSport examining the Springbok triumph last year, Mtawarira recalls the moment that threatened to derail his team’s efforts to progress in the tournament.
In the first half of the match, Mtawarira was sent to the sin bin for a tip tackle on Keita Inagaki of Japan that some believed could have been a red card.
It resulted in a sustained period of Japanese attack that threatened more than once to penetrate the Bok defense, but the eventual champions held out with 14 men and emerged as winners 26-3 having led only 5-3 at the break.
“He literally just wanted to smash the guy … not do it illegally, but make a statement to say ‘we’re here on business,'” Mtawarira said.
“It was a difficult 10 minutes … the longest 10 minutes of my life.”
Springbok No. 8 Duane Vermeulen and fullback Willie le Roux then gave their thoughts on how challenging those 10 minutes had been for the Boks.
“You can prepare as much as you can, but whatever happens on the field, that’s the way the game is played. You have to adapt,” Vermeulen said.
“During those 10 minutes, we had to defend and we had to fight.”
Le Roux added: “Defending with 14 guys with our kind of defense against an offensive brand like Japan, it’s very difficult. One guy makes a big difference in your line of defense.”
When Mtawarira returned to the field, he gave an inspired performance and played a massive role in the Boks gaining advantage in the scrums and Handre Pollard extending his lead from the kicking tee.
“Every time I pushed the other boy back, he gave me a lot of energy and it rubbed off on the other boys,” Mtawarira said.
“It’s pure passion. It’s how I feel about the jersey and what I feel about the Springboks.”
The fifth episode of Chasing the Sun will air on Sunday night at 6:00 p.m.
