Cheslin Kolbe booted 18 points to guide the Springboks to an enthralling 33-16 triumph over the All Blacks at DHL Stadium in Cape Town on Saturday.
Perfect start. Perfect game. Perfect result. Rugby’s Greatest Rival series is alive and well after the Springboks dug deep to turn the tables on the All Blacks in front of a boisterous crowd.
FIRST HALF RECAP
The Springboks started like a house on fire with Jesse Kriel breaching the defence from close range to score as early as the second minute. This after Jordie Barrett’s clearance kick from the initial kick-off not finding enough distance and from the lineout, the Boks mauled, Deon Fourie and Siya Kolisi carried powerfully, the ball was swung wide and Kriel dotted down.
One early worry from South Africa were exiting and the defence in midfield, with Damian Willemse having three bad kicks in a row and Kriel missing multiple hits, which allowed the visitors to get into promising positions on the field.
One such moment resulted in the All Blacks having a 5m attacking lineout. Luckily Eben Etzebeth disrupted the ball at the set-piece, forcing a knockout and thus a defensive scrum for the Boks, laying the foundation for an easy exit from the danger zone.
However, all that mattered little as the All Blacks eventually broke the line to score.
With the scores level and New Zealand having played little to no rugby, there would have been some nervous people in the Springbok camp. But unlike last week at Ellis Park, the Boks weren’t put off by that. A quick-fire 10 points saw them open a 10-point lead.
The All Blacks were at their wits end with the Springboks’ power and resorted to the darks arts of the game. Seatbelt tackles were flying in. Tacklers were on the wrong side of the ruck. Others were not retreating behind at the ruck and entering illegally. Holding players back off the ball.
And all this was done in clear view of the match officials, but referee Angus Gardner rarely punish these obviously deliberate indiscretions much to the dismay of Springbok captain Siya Kolisi, who brought it under his attention multiple times.
Be that as it may, the South Africans got on with the job at hand. They leaked one try and scored another to reinstate the 10-point lead at the midway mark. With five minutes to go in the half, the Springboks made a double change in the front row Ox Nche and Malcolm Marx replacing Johan Grobbelaar and Deon Fourie respectively.
But the most important action late in the half was when Willemse went down injured after getting his positioning wrong as he attempted to make a tackle. As the teams were making their way off into the tunnel, Willemse was still down in centre-field, drawing the attention of Rassie Erasmus, who hurried onto the field to check on his fullback.
SECOND HALF RECAP
Unfortunately, for Erasmus and the Springboks, Willemse didn’t return for the second half, with Manie Libbok coming on at flyhalf and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu moving to fullback. That disruption didn’t have any lasting effect on the Springboks as Libbok did well on attack and particularly in defence.
After the restart, Kolbe – who was sensational on the night – nailed a long range shot at goal, and another angled penalty, extending the lead to 16. From there, it turned into a real arm-wrestle, or clash of styles.. The All Blacks tried with all their might to make it a high-tempo game, running every time they get on the ball. The Springboks, for all their attacking evolution in recent years, stuck to their power game. Brutal carries when on the ball, equally brutal tackles in defence.
When the All Blacks eventually danced their way through to score in the left hand corner, one would have expected that’s where their comeback starts. However, a third second half penalty kept the scoreboard ticking over the Springboks.
There would be a grandstand finish as the skipper Ardie Savea burrowed through a double tackle to score and Ruben Love slotted the touchline conversion to make it a seven-point game with three minutes to go. Suddenly there was a nervousness around the stadium and that feeling only intensified when Lood de Jager was sent off in the dying moments of the game.
But, as they did throughout that second half, the Springboks’ defence held firm under immense pressure to see out the game and clinch a much-needed win.
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