No contest as Gatland’s rabbits are blown away by Springboks

It was billed as the battle of the champions but it could not have been less of a contest as Warren Gatland's Grand Slam side were blown away by the World Cup winners.

Shane Williams, the star turn in the Six Nations, scored one try for Wales and made another but this was strictly men against boys as Gatland suffered his first defeat as their head coach. To make him feel even worse, only five of the South Africa starting XV were in the team who beat England in Paris eight months ago.

South Africa's Conrad Jantjes goes over to score

Little wonder Gatland said he felt embarrassed by the manner of the defeat in this first of two Tests. 'We were physically dominated by a better side,' said Wales's Kiwi coach.

'There were a few opportunities we didn't take and a few soft penalties that we gave away. In the first half, we could have been in it by taking those chances. We're a little embarrassed by that performance.'

Four Butch James penalties to one from Stephen Jones gave the Springboks a hefty cushion and when Conrad Jantjes went over for the first try courtesy of an error at a Wales line-out, the writing was on the wall.

To their credit, the tourists responded with a score of their own as Jamie Roberts raced in at the corner. Jones converted but James landed a penalty on the stroke of half-time to open a 22-10 lead.

Pierre Spies, Jean de Villiers and Adrian Jacobs made breaks soon after the interval, drawing concerned looks from the 1,000-strong contingent of Wales fans, and the frowns deepened when De Villiers showed strength to escape Mark Jones and charge over - with a turnover again proving the source of the try.

The South African assault continued as scrum-half Bolla Conradie weaved his way to the line before feeding Spies for his side's third try. Williams showed his predatory instincts to finish a move started by Mark Jones, skipping past Bryan Habana in the process, to give Wales something to cheer.

But substitute Percy Montgomery raced past a tired Welsh defence with 10 minutes left to pour further misery on the visiting team. South Africa captain John Smit reckoned pre-match Welsh boasts of matching the world champions up front was all the inspiration his side had needed.

He said: 'We heard about the physical onslaught that was going to be brought at us in the media and that was probably the biggest favour they could have done us. We have got a lot of work to do. But I'm satisfied with the start - 43-17, you can't argue with that.'

The question now is whether Wales can save face or better in Pretoria next weekend. Gatland added: 'The big thing is confidence and self-belief and I learned today that even if you speak about it - well, I didn't see it.

'Some people were a bit like startled rabbits.'