The Springboks' mauling of Romania on Sunday was not only a showing of their quality in depth, but also their versatility of depth, writes Lloyd Burnard.
They say in sport that the biggest disrespect you can ever show to a clearly weaker opponent is to start 'taking it easy' against them.
FT | Springboks 76-0 Romania: As it happened
Well, nobody can accuse the Springboks of that in their 76-0 hammering of minnows Romania in Bordeaux on Sunday that, at times, was difficult to watch.
If it was a boxing match, it would have been called off after just 12 minutes when the world champions had already bagged four bonus-point tries.
By the time they were done, the Boks had run in 12 scores that could have been more had the heavens not opened the way they did, making handling incredibly difficult.
In many ways, it was a statement performance. In others, it is a result that must be received in a sober-minded context.
But another sporting cliche is that you can only ever play what is in front of you, and that, the Boks did.
They made 14 changes to their starting line-up from the side that beat Scotland in their tournament opener a week ago in another firm showing of their unfathomable depth in this squad.
And when you give players of this quality an opportunity to make a Rugby World Cup play and seize their moment, when they find themselves outside of the first-choice team, then it is always going to be a tough day out for their opponents.
Cobus Reinach had his hat-trick in the 24th minute - just three minutes longer than it took him to achieve that record feat against Canada in Japan four years earlier - and at half-time, the Boks had opened up a 33-0 lead.
Throughout their dominance, it was noticeable that the Boks didn't deviate from their systems and structures in the face of an opportunity to get away with attacking from everywhere.
They kicked contestables, backed their set-piece and rolling maul and allowed their forwards to run over a game but hapless Romanian defence before taking it out wide.
The few questions that were asked of the Bok defence, too, were answered with interest, and they remain the only side in the competition yet to concede a try.
The second half saw Deon Fourie replace Bongi Mbonambi, captain on the day and now one of the most important players in this side after Malcolm Marx's injury, and the 36-year-old started by enforcing an immediate turnover penalty and hitting his jumper at the resulting lineout.
Then, inside three minutes of his arrival and after hitting his second successful lineout, Fourie scored off the back of a rolling maul.
In Fourie's first scrum at hooker, the Boks then came away with a penalty try, which would also have been hugely encouraging given his potential role as back-up to Mbonambi for the remainder of the tournament.
There was even time for Marco van Staden to land a couple of lineouts in his new role as third-choice hooker in the current group.
And that was really the main takeaway for the Boks.
Whatever they tried, worked.
Fourie's shift to hooker must be deemed a success while there were also stern reminders from Makazole Mapimpi, who enjoyed a hat-trick of his own, and Andre Esterhuizen of their obvious and abundant ability. Damian Willemse, too, was comfortable in the No 10 jersey, though there were some shaky moments off the tee.
Grant Williams, meanwhile, was lively on the wing and got his reward, too, with a beautifully finished try down the right flank on 55 minutes followed by a second just six minutes later.
After that, Faf de Klerk replaced Willemse to enter that fray at flyhalf, and that experiment also landed with the perennial box-kicker revelling in an entirely different role.
It was the ultimate showing of Springbok depth, and while the performances by some individuals might give Jacques Nienaber and Rassie Erasmus something to think about ahead of next weekend's all-important potential pool decider against Ireland, there will also be a comfort in knowing that they have a squad of capable, world-class options.
On this day, there was also a flex in showing that the strength of that depth not only lies in its quality, but its versatility.
