Allister Coetzee: Ireland deserved the win

South Africa offered no excuses for their disappointing defeat against Ireland on Saturday with coach Allister Coetzee ordering his players to go and “fix it”.

An embarrassed-looking Coetzee praised the opposition and admitted his side’s shortcomings after South Africa were beaten 26-20 by Ireland at Newlands in an error-ridden performance in the first of their three-test series.

Not only was it Ireland’s first victory in South Africa, after more than half a century of trying, they also achieved it with a virtual 14-man team following CJ Stander’s sending off after 20 minutes.