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PARIS — South Africa believed its fresh set of seven reserve forwards would come off the bench and finish grinding down Ireland in the second half of their monster pool match at the Rugby World Cup in Paris. It worked, initially. An overpowering scrum in the new half set up South Africa's only try by Cheslin Kolbe to regain the lead at 8-7. But Ireland's scrum adapted, just as its lineout did in the first half when it malfunctioned at the start. The Irish hung on to win just enough moments and edge an epic contest 13-8.Asked about his 7-1 choice of forwards-backs on the bench, South Africa coach Jacques Nienaber said, "We thought that gave us the best opportunity to be competitive tonight. We didn't get the result but we were competitive."
