Scotland produced a spirited display but lacked the guile to get over the line as they succumbed to a ninth consecutive defeat at the hands of world champions South Africa at Murrayfield on Sunday.
The Scots got to within four points of the Springboks at a packed Murrayfield in the second half, but Rassie Erasmus’ men proved too savvy and strong in Edinburgh and left with a 32-15 triumph.
Three first-half tries - two from flying winger Makazole Mapimpe and one from second-row Thomas du Toit - laid the foundations for this South African win, with Jasper Wiese landing a late score and Handre Pollard adding ten points from the boot.
Finn Russell was flawless with his own goal kicking, landing 15 points, but the wind was taken out of Scotland’s sails when a Ben White try was disallowed after the conversion due to a knock-on earlier in the move from Huw Jones.
Scotland are next in action against Portugal at Murrayfield on Saturday, while the Springboks move back up to being the world No 1 team with this win.
We give each Scotland starter a mark out of ten for their performance against South Africa.
9. Ben White
Thought he'd scored a try in the first half, only to be denied by a knock-on earlier in the move. Kept things tidy at the base of scrum and breakdown. Replaced by Jamie Dobie as Scotland tried to unpick a stubborn South African defence. 6 | SNS Group / SRU
10. Finn Russell
Was flawless from the boot, landing 15 points, but wasn't quite at his creative best in open play, unable to find a moment of magic when it really mattered. Marshalled well by the South Africans. 6 | SNS Group / SRU
11. Duhan van der Merwe
Had a couple of pops at the South African backline but was never able to punch a hole through them. 6 | SNS Group
12. Sione Tuipulotu
Lovely flat pass to Jordan to set up what appeared to be Scotland's opening try. Like Finn Russell, the Boks kept a very close eye on the captain, limiting his space to spark anything meaningful. 6 | SNS Group / SRU