MAKE no mistake, South Africa mean business at this Rugby World Cup.

Their opening-game defeat by Japan will remain an indelible mark on their history, but they hit back in style yesterday to overwhelm Samoa with a six-try triumph that takes them to the top of Pool B.

Scotland can go back ahead of the Springboks today with either a draw or any sort of win against the United States. But, with bonus points looking more important than ever in such a tight group, they will aim for the four tries or more that would take them on to 10 points in the table. The South Africans, who picked up two points from their defeat by Japan, now have seven.

“It’s been a tough week,” the Springboks coach, Heyneke Meyer, said after the victory. “It’s not good enough to do one performance like that. The players put their bodies on the line and you have to do that week after week.”

After two starkly differing displays it would be easy to accuse the South Africans of inconsistency. The nature of yesterday’s win, however, in which there was no sign of any lingering hangover from the Japan game, suggests they are likely to be close to their best again when they meet Scotland in Newcastle on Saturday.

“We’re already focused on the next one,” Meyer added. “There’s no time to enjoy this one, although the players probably will.

“We scored six tries, but I’m proud of our defence, not to concede. To not give away tries – for me, that’s World Cup rugby.”

Victor Matfield, the veteran lock, called on his team to keep up the improvement in the game at St James’ Park. “We’ll probably need to be better against Scotland, who are a very good team,” he said.

The difference between this Springboks team and the sorry bunch that lost a week earlier was laid bare within the opening 30 seconds. Against Japan the South Africans were sluggish, and complacent enough to run kickable penalties: here they exploded into action from kick-off, and when the Samoan defence infringed Handre Pollard took the three points.

Samoa drew ahead through two Michael Stanley penalties, but then a needlessly risky move up the left saw a floated Stanley pass picked off by JP Pietersen, the winger, who raced 80 metres to claim the first try of the game. Pollard missed the conversion, but was soon on target with two more penalties to stretch his team’s lead to 14-6.

The islanders continued to play adventurously, but they went further behind to another three points from Pollard to make it 17-6 at the break. Pietersen got the first score of the second half when, after sustained pressure, he dotted down in the right corner for a try that Pollard converted. Before the hour was up, a similar offensive bore fruit in a more central position, with Du Preez providing the pass from which Schalk Burger barged his way over from the five-metre line.

With three tries on the board, the race was on for the fourth that would produce the bonus point, though with 20 minutes still to play South Africa had no need to speed things up. They still had 10 minutes to spare when they made the breakthrough, with Schalk Brits getting the credit for the pushover score barely a minute after coming off the bench.

Pietersen completed his hat-trick with a few minutes to go, again scoring in the right corner. The match was then held up briefly when a supporter in a Springboks jersey made his way on to the pitch and tried to join in a ruck, only to be thrown out of danger by Duane Vermeulen.

In stoppage time, Bryan Habana made it six by racing down the left past the shredded remnants of the Samoan defence. Patrick Lambie added the conversion to complete a thoroughly convincing recovery by his team.

The Samoans, having beaten the US last Sunday, still have a chance of qualifying from the pool, although they know they will need to show better form than this.

“At the moment our pool’s still wide open,” coach Stephen Betham, insisted.

SOUTH AFRICA: Tries: Pietersen 3, Burger, Brits, Habana. Cons: Pollard, Lambie. Pens: Pollard 4.

SAMOA: Pens: Stanley 2.

South Africa: W le Roux; JP Pietersen, J de Villiers (P Lambie 72), D de Allende (J Kriel 49), B Habana; H Pollard, F du Preez (R Pienaar 74); T Mtawarira (T Nyakane 62), A Strauss (S Brits 68), J du Plessis (F Malherbe 54), E Etzebeth, V Matfield (L de Jager 55), F Louw, S Burger (S Kolisi 68), D Vermeulen.

Samoa: T Nanai-Williams; K Pisi, P Perez, R Lee-Lo, A Tuilagi (G Pisi 66); M Stanley (T Pisi 54), K Fotuali’i (V Afemai 74); S Taulafo (V Afatia 63), M Matu’u (O Avei 52), C Johnston ( A Perenise 52), F Paulo, J Tekori (F Levave 47), TJ Ioane, J Lam, O Treviranus (V Tuilagi 62).

Referee: W Barnes (England). Attendance: 39,526.