# Springboks run riot in Turin as nine-try blitz buries Italy 66-7 Source: SportsBriefly (https://sportsbriefly.com) Canonical URL: https://sportsbriefly.com/en/rugby/springboks-run-riot-in-turin-as-nine-try-blitz-buries-italy-66-7-2026-11-11-morn Language: en Published: 2026-11-11T03:14:29.156+00:00 Updated: 2026-11-11T03:14:29.215048+00:00 > South Africa thrashed Italy 66-7 in Turin, scoring nine tries in a Nations Championship rout on 7 November. ## TL;DR - South Africa thrashed Italy 66-7 in Turin, scoring nine tries in a Nations Championship rout on 7 November. - Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu scored 26 points, landing all ten kicks at goal. - Malcolm Marx crossed twice from the maul for his 30th and 31st Test tries. - The Springboks stay perfect on 20 points and now face France in Paris on Friday. ## Key points - South Africa thrashed Italy 66-7 in Turin, scoring nine tries in a Nations Championship rout on 7 November. - Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu scored 26 points, landing all ten kicks at goal. - Malcolm Marx crossed twice from the maul for his 30th and 31st Test tries. - The Springboks stay perfect on 20 points and now face France in Paris on Friday. ## A first half for the record books South Africa delivered a statement of intent to open the second phase of their Nations Championship campaign, running in nine tries to demolish an injury-hit Italy 66-7 at the Allianz Stadium in Turin on Saturday, 7 November 2026. The world champions led 45-0 at half-time after six unanswered tries, five of them inside the first 25 minutes, and the contest was effectively over long before the break. Flyhalf Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu opened the scoring with an early penalty before slicing through the Italian defence from 40 metres for the first try, a solo effort finished acrobatically in the corner that set the tone for everything that followed. Scrumhalf Morne van den Berg burrowed over from close range, and hooker Malcolm Marx crossed twice from the back of South Africa's rolling maul to take his Test try tally to 30 and then 31. Captain Siya Kolisi dotted down from another unstoppable drive after Feinberg-Mngomezulu had produced a booming 50:22, and fullback Damian Willemse finished off a break by Jasper Wiese beneath the posts for the fifth try. Italy's problems deepened when Muhamed Hasa was shown a yellow card for a deliberate knock-on, and Marx capitalised with his second maul try to send the Springboks into the interval 45-0 ahead. In that opening 40 minutes South Africa carried 37 times for 252 metres to Italy's 13 carries for 60, and the Azzurri did not manage a single dominant carry until after the break. ![South Africa captain Siya Kolisi playing against Italy in Genoa in November 2022.](https://api.sportsbriefly.com/storage/v1/object/public/media/api/1794366851787-46c3es-rugby-inside1-2026-11-11-morning.jpg) ## Feinberg-Mngomezulu runs the show The standout performance belonged to the 24-year-old flyhalf. Feinberg-Mngomezulu finished with a personal haul of 26 points — a try, nine conversions and a penalty — and was perfect off the tee, landing all ten of his kicks at goal. It was his third-best points haul in a Test, and it underlined how quickly he has become the Springboks' first-choice conductor. Behind a dominant pack, he dictated terms with sharp distribution and a kicking game that repeatedly turned Italy around. His 50:22 set up Kolisi's try, his dummy and acceleration opened the scoring, and his goal-kicking never gave the hosts a foothold. Van den Berg, named player of the match, was outstanding alongside him, and his sniping around the fringes kept Italy's defence guessing all afternoon. The Springboks had brushed off the pre-game loss of lock Salmaan Moerat, and the depth of Rassie Erasmus's squad was on full display. The visitors' starting XV carried around 1,000 Test caps between them, and the Bomb Squad arrived early in the second half to keep the pressure on. ## Italy find pride after the break The second half was a different story, and Italy deserve credit for it. The visitors' intensity dipped as Erasmus made six replacements in one go and a series of blood replacements and head-injury assessments disrupted their rhythm, and the Azzurri won the second period's pride battle even as they lost it 21-7 on the scoreboard. Wilco Louw powered through three tackles shortly after the restart for South Africa's seventh try, but Italy finally got off the mark just past the hour when lock Federico Ruzza finished a well-worked attack in the corner, with Tommaso Allan adding the conversion. It was the hosts' only score of the afternoon, but it was greeted with the biggest roar of the day from the Turin crowd. South Africa eventually reasserted themselves. Replacement flanker Paul de Villiers crashed over from another maul in the 73rd minute, and winger Ethan Hooker delivered the final blow in the last play of the match, cutting through off a crisp set-piece move for the ninth try, with Feinberg-Mngomezulu adding the conversion to complete the 66-7 scoreline. ![Springbok hooker Malcolm Marx playing for Kubota Spears in Japan in 2021.](https://api.sportsbriefly.com/storage/v1/object/public/media/api/1794366866345-m52g6r-rugby-inside2-2026-11-11-morning.jpg) ## What it means, and France next The victory leaves South Africa with a maximum 20 points from four consecutive bonus-point wins in the Nations Championship's southern-hemisphere table, and a points difference of +140 that could prove crucial in deciding the final standings. The Springboks now hold an 89-point advantage over New Zealand on points difference, and they remain firmly on course for the final. Italy, by contrast, dropped to 0-4, with Argentina and Fiji still to come. The Azzurri were depleted and outgunned, but their second-half response at least gave them something to build on. For South Africa, attention now turns immediately to Paris, where they face Six Nations champions France on Friday. Erasmus will not be entirely happy — the second-half errors and the dip in intensity after the break are exactly the kind of lapses France will punish — but a record away win over Italy, nine tries and a perfect day off the tee is a formidable way to arrive. The Springboks are top of their group, unbeaten, and playing like champions. France will have noticed. Mentions: Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Malcolm Marx, Siya Kolisi, Damian Willemse, Morne van den Berg, Ethan Hooker, Wilco Louw, Paul de Villiers, Federico Ruzza, Tommaso Allan, Rassie Erasmus, Jasper Wiese, Salmaan Moerat, Muhamed Hasa, Italy, South Africa, Springboks, Allianz Stadium, Nations Championship, France, New Zealand, Turin ## Sources - [dailymaverick.co.za](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-11-07-nine-try-springboks-blitz-italy-in-turin-to-set-nations-championship-pace/?dm_source=blocks-list-item&dm_medium=card-link&dm_campaign=inform&dm_position=5) - [rugbypass.com](https://www.rugbypass.com/news/springboks-blow-italy-away-to-take-control-of-nations-championship-group-south-africa/?c=1) - [channelnewsasia.com](https://www.channelnewsasia.com/sport/south-africa-thump-italy-stay-perfect-in-nations-championship-6533146) - [nbcsports.com](https://www.nbcsports.com/rugby/news/springboks-thrash-depleted-italy-66-7-with-9-tries-in-nations-championship-rugby)