WALES
No.Name
1Gethin Jenkins, P
5Alun Wyn Jones, L
9Rhys Webb, SH
6Dan Lydiate, FL
2Scott Baldwin, H
7Sam Warburton, FL
8Taulupe Faletau, -
3Samson Lee, P
4Jake Ball, L
15Leigh Halfpenny, FB
4
14Alex Cuthbert, W
13Jonathan Davies, C
12Jamie Roberts, C
11Liam Williams, W
10Dan Biggar, FH
Replacements
16Emyr Phillips, -
17Aaron Jarvis, -
18Rhodri Jones, -
19Luke Charteris, -
20James King, -
21Mike Phillips, -
22Rhys Priestland, -
23Scott Williams, -

*Players currently on the pitch are shown in bold

Game Info

Venue: Principality Stadium
7:30 PM, November 28, 2014
Attendance: 58,235
All CommentaryKey Events

Match Commentary

81'12-6 End of half
81'12-6 End of half
81'12-6 End of second half
80'And they've finally done it! Not a game of great style but Gatland and the Wales fans will surely not care one jot. Ending with a defeat today would have been a bad omen for next year's world cup and the way the players celebrate show what a relief this victory is.
79'Dan Biggar deservedly made man of the match.
78'All the good luck has gone Wales' way this half: now Willie le Roux knocks on under no immediate pressure in his own half.
77'South Africa win a scrum on the Wales 5m line as Scott Williams fluffs a catch he needn't have gone for. Nervous times but the scrum holds firm and you can feel the relief in the Millennium Stadium as Wales win the turnover.
75'Substitute on - Aaron Jarvis , Wales
75'Player substituted - Gethin Jenkins , Wales
73'The crowd noise is rising and Wales are growing in confidence but this is the period in which they have failed so many times before against South Africa and the other southern hemisphere nations. Can they hold on?
71'Wales miss out on what looked like a golden opportunity as the scrum fails to press the advantage. They are turned right around and lose possession.
70'Player substituted - Coenie Oosthuizen , South Africa
70'Substitute on - Julian Redelinghuys , South Africa
69'Things are really going Wales' way now. South Africa have lost their captain to injury and seen a player sent to the sin bin. Now Willie le Roux, under no immediate pressure, knocks forward within five metres of his own line after Dan Biggar's drop-kick .
69'Substitute on - Lood de Jager , South Africa
69'Player substituted - Eben Etzebeth , South Africa
67'Substitute on - Scott Williams , Wales
67'Player substituted - Leigh Halfpenny , Wales
66'Halfpenny's day is over. He's been firm in defence and poised with penalties but probably lacked confidence carrying the ball. Can't say he hasn't put in a shift though.
65'Wales approach the try line as Jonathan Davies' wing play and the combination with Jamie Roberts looks promising but they eventually lose the ball in a turnover after Rhys Webb and Scott Baldwin try and fail to break through the South Africa defence.
63'Yellow card - Cornal Hendricks , South Africa
62'Oh oh, South Africa's Cornal Hendricks could be in trouble. He goes takes out Leigh Halfpenny while both go for a high ball and referee Lacey rules it was dangerous and sends him to the sin bin for 10 minutes. Could this be a pivotal moment?
62'Player substituted - Cobus Reinach , South Africa
62'Substitute on - Francois Hougaard , South Africa
61'It's all getting a bit chaotic and disjointed now but Gethin Jenkins' consistency continues and he makes another big hit on Eben Etzebeth before Wales kick the penalty into touch.
58'Confirmation that the South Africa captain has dislocated his knee but he gives a thumbs up as he is carried off to sympathetic applause. Victor Matfield takes over the duties of the skipper.
58'Player substituted - Jean de Villiers , South Africa
58'Substitute on - Damian de Allende , South Africa
57'As the substitutations suggest a change of approach from South Africa, who look like they might try to carry the ball more now, the visitors suffer a brutal blow. Jean De Villiers screams in pain and requires extended treatment and carrying off by a stretcher. The challenge from Taulupe Faletau looks like it twists his knee as De Villiers spins to the ground.
57'Substitute on - Handre Pollard , South Africa
57'Player substituted - Patrick Lambie , South Africa
57'12-6 Penalty goal - Leigh Halfpenny , Wales
57'Substitute on - Adriaan Strauss , South Africa
57'Player substituted - Bismarck du Plessis , South Africa
56'Halfpenny shoots, Halfpenny scores! It's not exactly free-flowing rugby here but no-one really expected that. Wales have started to get on top and they are captialising now.
54'Wales' defence rush Lambie and force a fumble to earn a scrum near the half-way line that earns them another shot at the posts.
54'Substitute on - Nizaam Carr , South Africa
54'Player substituted - Oupa Mohoje , South Africa
54'Player substituted - Tendai Mtawarira , South Africa
54'Substitute on - Trevor Nyakane , South Africa
53'9-6 Penalty goal - Leigh Halfpenny , Wales
52'Halfpenny has three out of four now in this game and gives Wales momentum again.
51'Coenie Oosthuizen is penalised for coming in from the side and brings Halfpenny back into the game. Defences and penalties the story of the game still.
51'6-6 Penalty goal - Patrick Lambie , South Africa
50'Whatever you can do ... Lambie matches Halfpenny for distance kicking and converts from the halfway line. It's even Stevens again.
49'Wales collapse a scrum that South Africa won from the restart on the half-way line to bring immediate danger.
48'6-3 Penalty goal - Leigh Halfpenny , Wales
47'Halfpenny kicks from 43m and has the benefit of a central position as his low kick has the right trajectory to edge Wales ahead.
46'Wales win a penalty thanks to Warburton as Bismarck du Plessis ruled to have committed the offence of failing to release.
45'South Africa have already had a scrummaging opportunity in the Wales half but Halfpenny's defence is still looking good.
43'Wales have started the second-half in the same vein as the first. They are showing good line speed but can they keep this pace up? And will it lead to mistakes that prove costly?
41'3-3 End of first half
40'And they're off again. No changes to either side.
40'Scores level at half-time as Wales withstand the pressure and the defences go in on top. They are grateful for the gift of a put-in and Rhys Webb finds touch to bring the interval. Wales were level against New Zealand and Australia at the break, too, so is their glass half-full or half-empty?
40'3-3 Start of second half
37'South Africa are keeping the pressure on Wales in the home half, mauling well and performing in the lineout and the momentum Wales started with is seeping away.
34'Crash! Gethin Jenkins makes a huge tackle on Bismarck du Plessis, with his head against the hip, and then goes one-on-one with his opposite number in the front row of the scrum. It's brave - and probably inspirational - stuff for Wales. They're under pressure at the moment and need a lift.
33'You can almost feel the tension among the Wales fans rising as Gatland's team head towards half-time with no advantage to show for their positive play and possession. A beautiful break from Eben Etzebeth cranks it up another notch but Halfpenny comes to the rescue with a great tackle inside their own 22-yard line that leads to a South Africa knock-on and a release of the pressure.
31'Lambie chooses to kick from distance and goes very close but his kick penalty falls just short and it is still all-square.
30'Wales are penalised after a failed lineout and Biggar, a key figure today, is ruled not to have released the ball from the bottom of the ruck.
26'Wales are using their lineouts to go for driving mauls deep in South African territory but there is no way through even though it is all hands to the pumps. Even the diminutive Halfpenny is getting involved in the maul. Wales need to make the pressure pay.
23'Gethin Jenkins misses a tackle at the lineout and South Africa break and kick deep into Wales' half. Halfpenny stays calm, though, collects and works the channels to snuff out the opportunity.
21'Taulupe Faletau emerges from midfield in what looks like a promising move but Wales lose possession. The potential and pace is there for Wales but not the accuracy.
19'Halfpenny and Liam Williams force South Africa to run the ball into touch and win a line out but Wales don't captialise. Gatland's team are having a lot of possession but the weight of pass is not quite right and the contact from the South African's is ferocious. Defences looking solid.
16'Biggar's in the wars today. He looks like he is taken out while in the air by an Ebden Etzebeth charge but referee Lacey rules it was "a genuine attempt to play the ball".
15'Halfpenny's usual dependable accuracy is missing - just. He kicks for goal but misses, hitting the outside of the post.
14'South Africa penalised in the tackle and the crowd get their wish - albeit a little later than they had hoped and for a different offence!
13'Biggar looks like he was tackled late and the crowd want a penalty but are denied.
10'3-3 Penalty goal - Patrick Lambie , South Africa
9'Lambie earned 16 points for his team when they beat England and never looked like making a mistake with this one. It sailed over.
8'South Africa win a lineout, which will be no surprise to Wales fans with their team's record and from the maul Biggar is penalised for not releasing. Pat Lambie indicates he will kick the penalty.
7'A frenzied opening has led to a few frayed tempers and Irish referee John Lacey speaks to the South Africans about some choice language before telling Sam Warburton his input is not required at such times.
6'Alex Cuthbert makes a good catch as Wales look poised under pressure but Jamie Roberts loses his for a moment the ball goes to South Africa.
4'3-0 Penalty goal - Leigh Halfpenny , Wales
3'Halfpenny goes through his familiar routine and calmly converts through the middle of the posts from the right of the uprights.
2'Another great take from Biggar and, as looking for offloads, it leads to a penalty for Leigh Halfpenny to take.
1'Dan Biggar gets the game under way and soon after takes a great catch. It's a lively start from Wales.
1' Pressure has been a controversial word in the Wales camp this week but there is certainly a weight of statistics stacked against Warren Gatland's side. They will be depressingly familiar to the nation's fans, but in case you don't know them, here they are: Wales have lost their last 16 games against South Africa and beaten them only once in 29 meetings; they have also lost two of their last seven by just one point and have developed a reputation for choking against southern hemisphere sides. Wales' stats against South Africa, New Zealand and Australia combined, under Gatland, are also painfully poor: they have won only one in 27. The last three games have supplied ammunition for those keen to give brand Wales 'chokers', too, because they led in all of them heading into the final 13 minutes and still lost. Yet, there is hope. Both sides have had to make changes for this one and, with the South Africa players out on the pitch in front of what looks like a reasonable crowd (even if it is a far from full stadium), there are some who think they will be there for the taking today. The Wales team kept the expectant crowd waiting but as they come out to a rousing reception amid the flame throwers and fireworks they look in determined mood. A perfectly-observed minute's silence for Australian cricketer Phillip Hughes leads into the anthems and kick-off is now only moments away.
1'0-0 Start of first half