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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
World
Jack de Menezes

South Africa vs England LIVE: Springboks win 10-try Ellis Park thriller to stretch English losing streak

England begin their summer tour against South Africa on Saturday in the first Test at Ellis Park, a stadium where the red rose has not emerged triumphant in 46 years.

Eddie Jones sends his side into the match looking to end their four-game losing streak, having suffered three straight losses in the Six Nations and losing to the Barbarians a fortnight ago. They are also without their captain, Dylan Hartley, due to concussion as Owen Farrell takes over the leadership duties. Mike Brown starts on the wing with Elliot Daly at full-back, while New Zealand-born flanker Brad Shields is among the replacements and could make his international debut.

South Africa meanwhile will make history as Stormers flanker Siya Kolisi becomes the first black player to captain the Springboks, and does so wearing the No 6 shirt that became so famous when Nelson Mandela wore it during the 1995 Rugby World Cup.

Follow the live action below...

Live Updates

17:55
FULL-TIME: SOUTH AFRICA BEAT ENGLAND 42-39 TO WIN THE FIRST TEST!
17:55
80 mins: England win a penalty and Daly sends it deep into touch, but they lose the lineout! This should be it...
17:54
78 mins: What a try that is. England start deep with Slade and Farrell, and the long pass to Daly allows the full-back to release Jonny May. The wing pins his ears, gasses past Dyanti and then arcs round Le Roux to score a fine try. Farrell adds the quick conversion and England have one last chance! 42-39
17:52
78 mins: TRY FOR ENGLAND!
17:50
76 mins: Pollard's kick at goal sails through and that might just seal the win for the Springboks. 42-32
17:49
74 mins: South Africa force the knock-on and counter and it's Nkosi once again who flies through into the 22. Van Zyl recycles the ball, but Brown does excellently to take man and ball before he passes and he emerges in possession to stop the attack. England are out on their feet here though and eventually South Africa get the penalty when Robshaw holds on.
17:47
73 mins: Vunipola will not return as Joe Marler comes on, while De Klerk gets a standing ovation as he departs with Ivan van Zyl on at scrum-half.
17:45
69 mins: After Hughes goes close, Maro Itoje picks the ball from the base and reaches over the ruck to dot the ball down on the line. The TMO wants to check it but there's nothing wrong, yet the delay gets to Farrell as he misses the conversion to leave the gap at seven points. 39-32
17:42
69 mins: Both Hughes and Cowan-Dickie make good runs and England have another penalty advantage. Ford tries to wriggle past Nkosi but the covering defence stops him...TRY FOR ENGLAND!
17:41
68 mins: England win a penalty in front of the posts, but Farrell goes straight to touch and finds the 5m line. Can England find a way back into the game? It's been more than 50 minutes since their last try...
17:40
64 mins: Down to 14 men, England are stretched and the space opens up wide as Aphiwe Dyantyi is over in the left corner juggling the ball over the line before touching down. Pollard adds another impressive conversion and the lead is out to 39-27.
17:37
64 mins: TRY FOR SOUTH AFRICA!
17:37
62 mins: England finally get some good go-forward as Curry and Brown break the line, but De Klerk gets around the fringe and forces a knock-on from Slade. From the ensuing kick, Mako Vunipola is pinged for a fairly soft late tackle on De Klerk and he's sent to the sin-bin!
17:29
58 mins: That's it for Sinckler as he's replaced after a solid shift by Harry Williams of Exeter.
17:28
57 mins: More points spurned for South Africa! They win an emphatic penalty as they smash England's scrum, but Pollard canons the kick at goal off the upright and England are able to clear.
17:24
53 mins: This is turning into an error-strewn performance as Ford kicks the ball straight into a teammate in front of him, resulting in an accidental offside and a scrum to South Africa in the England half.
17:22
52 mins: Pollard's effort just slides inside the right upright and he stretches the lead. 32-27
17:21
51 mins: Yet another penalty against England as Itoje is singled out once again for a high tackle on Du Klerk. That's the second in two minutes an a third against him of the match. Pollard to have another shot at goal.
17:19
49 mins: Itoje gives away a penalty when he's trapped at the base in tackling Vermuelen and pinged for not rolling, and Pollard will kick for goal from 52m out. His effort has the legs...but it flashes past the uprights and England breathe a sigh of relief. Du Preez now leaves the field and Pieter-Steph du Toit is on.

Please allow a moment for the blog to load...

What time does it start?

South Africa vs England kicks off at 16:05 BST.

Where can I watch it?

The match will be shown live on Sky Sports Action and Sky Sports Main Event from 15:00 BST.

Teams:

South Africa: Willie Le Roux; S’busiso Nkosi, Lukhanyo Am, Damian De Allende, Aphiwe Dyantyi; Handre Pollard, Faf De Klerk; Tendai Mtawarira, Bongi Mbonambi, Trevor Nyakane; RG Snyman, Franco Mostert; Siya Kolisi, Jean-Luc Du Preez, Duane Vermeulen.

Replacements: Akker van der Merwe, Steven Kitshoff, Wilco Louw, Pieter-Steph du Toit,Sikhumbuzo Notshe, Ivan van Zyl, Elton Jantjies, Warrick Gelant.

England: Elliot Daly; Jonny May, Henry Slade, Owen Farrell, Mike Brown; George Ford, Ben Youngs; Joe Marler, Jamie George, Kyle Sinckler; Maro Itoje, Nick Isiekwe; Chris Robshaw, Tom Curry, Billy Vunipola.

Replacements: Luke Cowan-Dickie, Joe Marler, Harry Williams, Brad Shields, Nathan Hughes, Ben Spencer, Piers Francis, Denny Solomona.

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