A season that began with high hopes of creating history can now not finish soon enough for England.
This fifth successive Test defeat, equally the losing streak of Stuart Lancaster’s England side in 2014, saw any lingering hopes of salvaging the Test series against South Africa extinguished in the thin air of Bloemfontein.
But more alarmingly, having gone into the season with the ambition of becoming the first side to win three successive Six Nations titles, England instead find themselves in a state of freefall, with questions mounting about how can they arrest it.
The series defeat, on the back of their fifth-place finish in the Six Nations, has stripped Eddie Jones’s side of the status of genuine contenders for next year’s World Cup that they had worked so hard to establish after winning the first 17 Tests under the Australian.
Certainly on the evidence of the first two Tests, England, against a completely new-look and inexperienced Springbok side, appear to be nowhere near where they should be just a year out from the tournament in Japan.
A third defeat against the Springboks in Cape Town next Saturday, with autumn Tests against the Springboks and New Zealand to come at Twickenham, would see Jones’s position come under fierce scrutiny.
It would also leave the Rugby Football Union, currently in the middle of a cost-cutting exercise that will lead to 75 redundancies, with the difficult decision of either backing Jones a year out from the World Cup with the hope that there is still time to turn the side’s fortunes around or make a change in the same year that they extended his contract to 2021.
In contrast the Springboks look a side reborn under new head coach Rassie Eramus. The appointment of the first black player, Siya Kolisi, to captain the Springboks in their 127-year history in the first Test victory at Ellis Park was described by one senior South Africa figure as the most momentous day since they came out of isolation in 1992.
Yesterday, Eramus’s side backed up that statement with another firecracker of a display, full of ferocious intent, power and great passion to mark Tendai Mtawarira’s 100th Springbok cap.
By the end England looked a distant second in the contest, despite once again, as they had done at Ellis Park, delivering a highly-promising start that yielded tries for Mike Brown and Jonny May after just 13 minutes. Remarkably they would not score again.
Instead the narrative once again followed a depressingly similar twist for England’s supporters as it had in Johannesburg. From a position of strength, England’s game management, numerous handling errors, and, most strikingly their discipline, let the Springboks back into the game all too easily and with it any hopes of keeping the series alive.
England’s profligacy ignited such a ferocious response by the Springboks that by half-time, just as they had done in Ellis Park, had taken the lead and control of the game by half-time with a try by the totemic No 8 Duane Vermeulen and two penalties by Handre Pollard, the second a monster effort from 58-metres,
By then Billy Vunipola, who had been at the centre of England’s high-tempo start, had been forced out of the action with an arm injury, and there would be no way back.
Apart from a dropped ball over the line by Brad Shields on his first start for England, they didn’t come close to scoring again in the second half and it was only their rearguard defence that prevented South Africa from adding more to their total than a penalty try and a third penalty kick by Pollard.
The Springboks on home soil are a different beast, and you have to be in the stadium to get a true sense of the intensity they bring to their game when the home support find their voice. It is as compelling as it is fearsome and England ultimately found the challenge overwhelming.
And in Faf De Klerk, the Sale Sharks scrum-half, the Springboks had their perfect conductor, backing up his livewire display at Ellis Park with a breathtakingly fast game. His tempo at the base of the breakdown was critical in giving his big forwards the front-foot possession to hammer England’s defensive line while the Damian de Allende also gave South Africa a productive midfield target.
Vermeulen, flanker Pieter-Steph du Toit and hooker Bongi Mbonambi gave the Springboks the edge up front with their hard carrying, an appropriately it was a 30-metre dash by Mtawarira that created the momentum for Vermeulen’s try.
England’s indiscipline and the inability to cope with the intensity and power of the Springboks revival saw the contest at times boil over into brawls during a fractious first half, and Maro Itoje and Mako Vunipola both came close to a yellow cards.
Their lack of structure was a marked contrast to the ease at which they had been able to carve open the Springbok defence in the first quarter, showing no ill effects of being woken up by a fire alarm going off at their Bloemfontein hotel at 6am on Saturday morning.
First Billy Vunipola forced the Springbok defence onto the back foot with a strong carry and after swift passing by Young and Farrell, May came off his wing to create the overlap on the left and he drew Willie Le Roux to put Brown over for his second try in as many matches.
South Africa’s indifferent start continued when a penalty for obstruction allowed Farrell to set up an attacking line-out and from it England were able to strike from first phase, with George Ford looping around Farrell and a clever flick by Brown to Elliot Daly this time putting May away who finished strongly in the right-hand corner.
Yet having surrendered the lead and momentum by half-time, there would be no way back. The yellow card for Nathan Hughes, on for Vunipola, was indicative of England’s disciplinary problems that have plagued them all season.
A powerhouse scrum by the Springboks culminated in a penalty try and such was their superiority in the closing stages they should really have scored more than Pollard’s final penalty. A tough, tough night for England and even tougher times lie ahead.
FULL-TIME: South Africa 23-12 England
Pick-and-gos and pop passes from the Boks, tight to the ruck. Just winding down the clock. They're more than deserved winners, the biggest shock is that the margin hasn't been bigger.
It's over! The Boks clinch the series and in convincing fashion. Too powerful, and far more composed than England despite their lack of caps in key positions. England lose five Tests in a row.
43 mins - South Africa 13-12 England
That was very good from Shields, an interception and break getting England into the Boks' half before he's turned over on his own.
Break from Vermeulen! Passes out to Dyantyi who then cuts infield. De Allende goes to ground in the England 22.
Desperate defence gets England a turnover with a scrum. But Vermeulen is running this whole show at the moment.
HALF-TIME: South Africa 13-12 England
Ford swamped in the tackle, the ball's not coming out of there. Am gets the pats on the back and it's South Africa who lead at half-time despite having been 12-0 down.
England need to snap out of this slump. It's repetitive and tedious. Time for some leaders to front up and get some control back in this contest.
40 mins - South Africa 13-12 England
Vital turnover from Brown on Snyman, winning a penalty, after Billy gets carted out of the way by Mbonambi. Kicked to touch.
Same old story really: England take the lead, cough up penalties and the Springboks fight back to lead.
Ignore the hooter, Billy's gone off for Hughes but England still have time for the lineout.
27 mins - South Africa 7-12 England
Springboks with about two thirds of the territory at the moment. Billy takes one under the high ball as England try to get going. High kick again towards May but Am is there to help out Le Roux.
More territory kicking ends with a touchfinder by De Klerk near England's 22.
TRY VERMEULEN! CONVERSION POLLARD! South Africa 7-12 England
Lots of time with the ball for the Springboks but little to show for it. England defending 40 metres out, slowish ball. Beast through the middle of the ruck! That caught England out.
Vermeulen then picks up and goes trucking! They can't stop the big No 8, tacklers falling off him as he powers his way over. The Boks are on the board.
TRY MAY! South Africa 0-12 England
Proper déjà vu as England quickly make it two. Great quarterback-style pass from Brown gives Daly and then May enough space to work with on the right, May stepping on the gas and rounding Kolisi before stepping inside a covering Nkosi to score. Farrell can't convert from out wide to the right.
TRY BROWN! CONVERSION FARRELL! South Africa 0-7 England
Won by Shields, Slade with a brief carry. Billy gives them what they've been missing up the middle, sucking in tacklers. Wide then through Farrell to May and finally Brown who goes over untouched. Sharp backline play from the visitors who take the lead. Farrell converts.
Containing Faf
De Klerk was a huge pain in England's side at Ellis Park. Here's how they limit his impact a week on, according to Charlie Morgan.
Another bespoke plan England seemed to deploy specifically to counter De Klerk was asking Youngs to sweep from a shallow position.
Five areas for England to address
Here's Maggie Alphonsi on where England need to improve following last weekend's defeat in Johannesburg.
Jones often talks about “dominant collisions” but I didn’t see much evidence of English dominance last weekend - and I haven’t for quite some time.
“It's not just about me, it's bigger than me."
Tendai ‘The Beast’ Mtawarira has been a special Springbok, even if he's downplaying today's achievement of reaching a century of caps.
Penalties
They've bugged England all year long, especially in recent defeats to Scotland, France, Ireland and South Africa. Here's Maro Itoje on how England keep that penalty count in single figures.
One drought broken already today
After Ireland's win over the Wallabies, their first in Australia since 1979. Here's how it happened.
Welcome!
Afternoon everybody, well done for tearing yourself away from the World Cup coverage to see if England can level the series in South Africa.
England are back at the scene of their last victory in the Republic, all the way back in 2000 when Jonny Wilkinson kicked eight penalties and a drop goal.
Then as is the case now they had lost the first Test, at Ellis Park last week rather than at Loftus, and while England might not be outwardly displaying any sense of panic a few alarm bells will be ringing if they lost a fifth successive Test match.
Teams news
South Africa have recalled Pieter-Steph du Toit to their starting XV in the back row in place of Jean-Luc du Preez, while Frans Malherbe is back in tighthead prop.
On the bench Thomas du Toit and Jesse Kriel come in, with no specialist fly-half available among the replacements.
It's a very special day for Tendai 'Beast' Mtawarira, as he becomes the sixth Springbok to win 100 caps and the first black South African to reach that milestone.
England meanwhile have given Brad Shields a first Test start (thankfully not at lock) as he comes in for Chris Robshaw.
Joe Launchbury also returns at lock after overcoming injury, replacing Nick Isiekwe of Saracens.
England are otherwise unchanged, with Newcastle's Mark Wilson coming onto the bench along with Danny Cipriani, who could win a first Test cap for England since 2015.