Australia vs. South Africa: Winners and Losers from Rugby Championship

Australia got their Rugby Championship account up and running in dramatic circumstances on Saturday, earning their first win of the competition after a thrilling 24-23 victory over South Africa.

A converted Rob Horne try in the 77th minute was enough for the Perth hosts to take a one-point victory from western Australia, having trailed for the vast majority of the clash.

Heyneke Meyer and Ewen McKenzie will undoubtedly have their learning points to feed off in the wake of such tight results, and we discuss some of the biggest winners and losers from such a memorable meeting.

All statistics come courtesy of ESPN Scrum and Ruckin Good Stats.

Winner: Morne Steyn Justifies His Springbok Place

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For all the promise that Handre Pollard has shown in the past year, he simply hasn't woven the magic expected of him in the Rugby Championship, and Morne Steyn deserves to start ahead of him.

That's not to say Pollard won't come good eventually; after all, he's 20 years of age with a decade and more of potential Test rugby ahead of him.

However, just as he had done in his opening two substitute appearances, Steyn provided a more level head in the madness, and in a competition where you have only six fixtures to stake your claim, results are the top priority.

In Perth, Steyn finished with 18 points to his name, and although his defensive work in restricting Australia through his inside channel could have been better, Pollard hasn't shown a great deal of promise in that area, either.

For now at least, Steyn's more clinical and assured assets are needed for South Africa to have some sense of security in the position.

Loser: Ewen McKenzie Unearths No Definite Answer in No. 10 Dilemma

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There was a large consensus that Kurtley Beale perhaps wasn't McKenzie's optimal option at fly-half but that was more so that the Waratahs playmaker could shift into his favoured No. 12 role.

On Saturday, that wasn't the case as Bernard Foley came into the line-up at the expense of Beale altogether, who dropped on to the bench.

However, while it was his conversion that gave the hosts a one-point lead just 90 seconds from time, Foley showed that he may not be the surefire answer, either. Perhaps it was a simple case of first-half nerves, as he is still fairly new on the international scene.

However, dropped catches, misplaced kicks and iffy passes were some of the lapses in judgement that could be seen coming from Foley, so while tactically he might fit the profile, performance-wise it was far from perfect.

One more candidate McKenzie may try at fly-half is Matt Toomua. Since last featuring for the Wallabies at No. 12, he's grown in leaps and bounds, and he could allow Beale to take up his favoured inside-centre berth.

Winner: Wallabies' off-the-Cuff Play Boosted

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In Week 1 of the competition, conditions made it understandably difficult for Australia to put together any vast passages of play, and Week 2 was by all means a collapse of possession preventing them from even trying.

However, Saturday's fixture was a far-improved result on that front as the Wallabies showed their potential to string phases together, thanks mostly to their fine off-shoulder support.

Even the likes of Rob Simmons and Sam Carter were seen getting in on the action rampaging down flanks, showing quick minds and even swifter hands to ensure possession was retained to impressive attacking outcome.

The Wallabies were unfortunate not to score from a few of such instances, and it was evident from Israel Folau's second-minute opener that a much more fluid Australia had come to the fore.

Loser: Australia's Open-Play Improvements Let Down by Set Piece

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For all the offensive muster shown by Australia with ball in hand, there are still kinks to work out at the set piece as Saturday demonstrated.

Victor Matfield may not have been the most mobile of performers over the Perth pitch, but the 114-time capped Springbok was allowed to thrive at the lineout thanks to the Wallabies' indiscipline at times.

While South Africa won all 14 of their throw-ins, the Wallabies lost three of their 10, an unacceptable ratio for a team of their stature and one that poses serious questions to their pack.

The scrum wasn't nearly as disastrous, but McKenzie's men still showed that this aspect of their game can be improved.

Argentina will be an even more difficult test in this regard, and the Wallabies could be in for a rude awakening unless marked changes are made.

Winner: Bryan Habana Marks 100th Test with Standout Display, Sin Bins and All

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A harsh yellow card in the 66th minute ensured that there was a disappointing tinge to Bryan Habana's 100th Test appearance for the Springboks, but it couldn't mar the occasion entirely.

In fact, the contentious manner of his sin-binning for a high tackle on Adam Ashley-Cooper, which many would have argued was fine, only endeared him further with the crowd in a way, drawing a sense of sympathy.

Prior to the yellow, the veteran winger was ranked joint-highest with Israel Folau in clean breaks (two), beating two defenders and having racked up 69 carrying metres, the most of any player at the time.

On several occasions Habana came off his wing to run monstrous lines through the inside channels, Australia's defence struggling to restrain his progress up the pitch.

Joining the cap century club in style, Habana was evidently fired up for the occasion, unfortunate not to have steered his team to victory in Perth.