Forgotten Springbok Derick Hougaard, despite a below par performance, produced a match-winning drop-goal as Saracens heaped more pressure on the South African touring team with a 24-23 win at Wembley Stadium, London, on Tuesday night.

Hougaard - despite missing a conversion, two penalties and four drop-goal attempts - found his range at the right time as it went from bad to worse for the Boks.

South Africa are still looking for their first win on tour - having now lost to Leicester Tigers, France and Saracens - and face their first winless trip to the Northern Hemisphere since the 1960s.

The 2009 dream for the Springboks has now become an uncomfortable, ongoing nightmare, and this one need not have been so.

They scored three tries to two and lost. They led 18-6 at half-time and lost.

After a rickety start the Springboks played the first half like winners. They were well on top but it was all change in the second half. They looked good on one occasion and scored, for the rest they battled.

In the first half the penalty count was 5-4 to the Saracens. In the second half it was 7-1 to the Saracens and that had a huge effect. There was the perception, which was not unfounded, that the sauce the goose got was not the sauce the gander got, especially at the tackle.

It was not the only problem the Springboks had. Their scrum creaked and some of their errors belonged in the prep school. Trying to play against the turn of the scrum is an elementary error. A gross forward pass is another. It was as if their confidence had gone and with it their energy. The Saracens on the other hand got the momentum and relished it.

In the end it was the boot of Derick Hougaard - not the Liefling he used to be at Loftus - now Whoguard or Whohard at Wembley - but still kicking the kicks that mattered. His game was patchy. He failed to kick two penalties out and he missed four drop attempts and two penalties, but practice makes perfect and he had enough practice to get it right as the Sarries dominated the second half.

The Saracens kicked off and the Springboks, wearing green jerseys this time, tried to run the ball from deep but Jean Deysel was penalised at a tackle - the first of nine penalties against the Springboks at the tackle. Hougaard goaled the easy kick. 3-0 after a minute. But the Springboks were almost immediately on level terms when several Sarries were offside at failed kick by Neil de Kock and Pienaar goaled. 3-3 after two minutes.

The Saracens attacked but gradually the Springboks started to get on top, going through phases and when Wikus van Heerden tackled Heini Adams high Pienaar made it 6-3 after 16 minutes.

The Springboks were on top but if truth be told there was little rhythm or organisation in their play. But their best moment followed from the kick-off. Earl Rose threw a wonderful long pass to Andries Bekker in an outside centre position. The tall man sprinted away, drew his man and gave to Jongi Nokwe. Challenged, Nokwe passed inside to Bekker who raced for the corner as Noah Cato tackled him. The television match official confirmed that Bekker's foot, a long way down his body, had touched the touch-line. The Saracens lost the subsequent line-out but survived. The Springboks then kicked a kickable penalty into touch but it was then their turn to lose a crucial line-out.

Adams had a good break which Nokwe carried on and then Nokwe chipped and chased but De Kock swept across and kicked the ball into touch. It was a great line-out position for the Springboks who mauled and bashed till they went wide and Juan de Jongh cut inside Cato and forced his way through two tacklers and stretched to score the try. 11-3 after 29 minutes.

Rose kicked high and Ashley Johnson chased. He and Michael Horak jumped for the ball which bounced back to wards the Saracens' line where Nokwe gathered for an easy run at the posts. 18-3 after 37 minutes.

Many in the 46 000 crowd booed, feeling that Johnson had knocked the ball back. It was not an easy decision.

Hougaard missed a penalty kick when Wian du Preez, who had come on for CJ van der Linde after just ten minutes, was penalised at a scrum, but then when Potgieter was penalised at a tackle, Hougaard made the score 18-6 at the break.

In the second half the Springbok scrum got worse and worse and on a couple of occasions it was destroyed entirely. They were penalised twice at scrums and free-kicked three times. It was a scrum turning the wrong way that got them into trouble as Francois Hougaard, on for Adams though he has been playing wing most of the year, tried to kick against the wheel and noble Ernst Joubert charged the kick down. The No.8 raced after the ball, gathered it off the ground perfectly and scored in the corner. 18-11 after 45 minutes.

Saracens twice counterattacked to good effect and deserved a second try. The Springboks won a line-out inside their own 22 and Adriaan Strauss ran round to take the ball from Alistair Hargreaves and then passed it forward to Deysel. The Saracens shoved the Springboks back a long way and then strong Brad Barritt forced his way past Francois Hougaard to score. Derick Hougaard converted. 18-18.

The Saracens stayed attacking. Hougaard missed his third drop attempt and then an easy penalty and the Springboks scored.

For a change they got possession and Pienaar put them on the attack with a diagonal. Hargreaves then won the Saracens' line-out and the Springboks went left and two great passes, inside from Rose to Odwa Ndungane who gave outside to Nokwe who scored his second try. the Springboks, deserving no such thing, led 23-18 with 17 minutes to play.

Five minutes later Derick Hougaard goaled a straight penalty and then, as the Springboks sent on all their bench players to no good effect, Derick Hougaard, on advantage, kicked a drop to make the score 24-23 to the Saracens with six minutes to play. The home side had no difficulty in controlling those six minutes - to their obvious delight.

Man of the Match: Wikus van Heerden and Hugh Vyvyan were magnificent, but our choice is Brad Barritt the strong inside centre who tackled with determination, ran with determination and handled well.

Moment of the Match: There was an amazing moment at half-time. A spectator was offered a reward if he could kick the ball from 30 metres out and land it on the crossbar. He did that. His reward? #250 000. It does not matter if he never does it again! But the playing moment was probably the move that took Andries Bekker from Earl Rose's perfect pass to being tackled just out at the corner by Noah Cato. That was the most thrilling moment of the match.

Villain of the Match: None of the players did anything that could be even vaguely construed as ungentlemanly conduct.

The scorers:

For Saracens:
Tries: Joubert, Barritt
Con: Hougaard
Pens: Hougaard 3
DG: Hougaard

For South Africa:
Tries: De Jongh, Nokwe 2
Con: Pienaar
Pens: Pienaar 2

Teams:

Saracens: 15 Michael Horak, 14 Noah Cato, 13 Kameli Ratuvou, 12 Brad Barritt, 11 Michael Tagicakibau, 10 Derick Hougaard, 9 Neil de Kock, 8 Ernst Joubert, 7 Justin Melck, 6 Wikus van Heerden (captain), 5 Hugh Vyvyan, 4 Mouritz Botha, 3 Richard Skuse, 2 Ethienne Reynecke, 1 Rhys Gill
Replacements: 16 Schalk Brits, 17 Carlos Nieto, 18 George Kruis, 19 Andy Saull, 20 Kevin Barrett, 21 Alex Goode, 22 Rodd Penney

South Africa: 15 Earl Rose, 14 Odwa Ndungane, 13 Juan de Jongh, 12 Wynand Olivier, 11 Jongi Nokwe, 10 Ruan Pienaar, 9 Heini Adams, 8 Ashley Johnson, 7 Dewald Potgieter (captain), 6 Jean Deysel, 5 Andries Bekker, 4 Alistair Hargreaves, 3 CJ van der Linde, 2 Adriaan Strauss, 1 Heinke van der Merwe.
Replacements: 16 Bandise Maku, 17 Wian du Preez, 18 Danie Rossouw, 19 Davon Raubenheimer, 20 Francois Hougaard, 21 Meyer Bosman, 22 Riaan Viljoen.

Referee: James Jones (Wales)
Assistant referees: Rob Debney (England), Paul Dix (England)
TMO: Brian Abrahams (England)