Scrappy Springboks overwhelm Georgia with nine tries
The Springboks face Australia in their Rugby Championship opener in four weeks at Ellis Park.
Debutant hooker Marnus van der Merwe scored two tries but the scoreline masked an error-strewn performance.
Prop Boan Venter, centre Canan Moodie, wings Edwill van der Merwe (two) and Kurt-Lee Arendse, fullback Damian Willemse and flyhalf Handre Pollard also crossed as they ran in nine tries.
But the Springboks served up double-digit handling errors, were poor at the lineout in the second half and could not get the upper hand at the breakdown.
It was minutes in the tank at the start of the international season for several players, including captain Siya Kolisi on his return from injury.
"Credit to the Georgians, physically they matched us most of the time. We struggled at the breakdown, where they were quite dominant," Kolisi said.
"We did not do enough positives one after the other. We would do something good and then make a mistake, which slowed us down. Hopefully, we can fix that."
The hosts had three debutants in Venter, Marnus van der Merwe and Neethling Fouche as coach Rassie Erasmus stretched the number of players he has used in three games this year to 46.
Georgia made a fast start and scored the opening try from a driving maul following a lineout, hooker Vano Karkadze powering his way over.
"This was a great match for us to grow," Georgia flanker Luka Ivanishvili said. "It was my first time playing in this kind of atmosphere and these types of game are helping us to grow to the next World Cup (in 2027)."
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