15 November 2026
Springbok lock Ruan Nortjé says South Africa only have themselves to blame following their 21–19 Nations Championship defeat to France in Paris. Speaking after Friday night's match at the Stade de France, Nortjé pointed to unforced errors and missed opportunities in the opposition 22 as the main reasons for the narrow loss.
Despite trailing 21–7, the Springboks used second-half scrum dominance to fight back within two points, though they could not find a winning score. Nortjé praised the hosts for their fast start while expressing disappointment over the final result.
“First of all, credit to France. They came out firing, and it was a great occasion to be part of,” Nortjé said. “There were too many errors from us. And the biggest thing for us is not converting opportunities into points when we get into the opposition 22.”
South Africa played a portion of the match a man down following a yellow card and a 20-minute red card for Jasper Wiese. However, Nortjé noted that France also spent 30 minutes with 14 men and said the Springboks could not use discipline decisions as an excuse.
While frustrated by the outcome, Nortjé praised the squad's late effort and acknowledged the expectations of supporters back home.
“But always proud of the effort from the boys, never backing off, fighting till the end,” he said. “We know South African people love to win, so it’s definitely a tough one for us to take. In the end, it was only two points, but still very disappointing.”
The result complicates South Africa's path to the Nations Championship final, leaving qualification partially dependent on other fixtures. Attention now shifts to Dublin, where the Springboks face Ireland next Saturday.
“We know a massive challenge awaits us next week in Ireland,” Nortjé said after the France defeat. “We know it’s a rivalry that’s been building up over the last few years.
“It’s always a massive game there. I think we have our work cut out for us. We’re going to have to put massive focus on ourselves this week. Make sure we fix a lot of areas of our game.”