JOHANNESBURG – The Springboks beat the All Blacks 29–22 at the FNB Stadium following their best second half of the series, and take an important 2–1 lead in Rugby's Greatest Rivalry.
After a first half in which the two teams were locked at 12–12, South Africa opened the taps after halftime.
The opening half was anything but easy. Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu was sent to the sin bin early for a deliberate infringement and Ardie Savea immediately capitalised to score the opening try while the Boks were down to 14 men. Cheslin Kolbe also left the field for a head injury assessment and did not return.
Springboks beat All Blacks with forward dominance
The Boks' starting pack was kept on the field longer and the decision bore fruit, with the forwards increasingly beginning to dominate the physical battle.
Particularly the Springboks' set pieces placed the All Blacks under enormous pressure. South Africa won the tight forward battle, began controlling the tempo of the match and for long periods gave the visitors virtually no space to get their attacking play going.
The Boks' scrum and maul played a key role, with Malcolm Marx scoring from a powerful maul, while a penalty try earlier also underlined the Springboks' forward dominance.
Replacements maintain the pressure
When the replacements made their appearance, the momentum did not dip.
Cameron Hanekom and Morné van den Berg were among the players who immediately made a positive impact and helped maintain the pressure on New Zealand.
For most of the second half there was really only one team controlling the match. The Springboks drove the All Blacks back, won the collisions and built enough pressure to effectively seal the match well before the final whistle.
Kurt-Lee Arendse, a penalty try, Jesse Kriel and Marx scored the Boks' four tries, while Feinberg-Mngomezulu contributed two conversions and a penalty goal.
Samisoni Taukei'aho scored another try for New Zealand in the closing stages to make the final score more respectable, but by then the match was already beyond the visitors' reach.
First victory over New Zealand at the FNB Stadium
The 29–22 victory is also significant because it is the Springboks' first win over the All Blacks at the FNB Stadium. They lost their previous two matches against New Zealand at that stadium – 22–29 in 2010 and 16–32 in 2012.
More importantly, South Africa finished the South African leg of the four-test series with a 2–1 lead and cannot lose the series now.
Fourth test in Baltimore
The two giants of world rugby meet next Saturday, 12 September, at the M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore in the United States for the fourth and final test of the series.
The Springboks depart for America with the series in their hands – and with a second half in Johannesburg that showed how dangerous they can be when their forwards gain momentum.
Also read: Springboks and All Blacks 12–12 locked at halftime at FNB Stadium and Springboks versus All Blacks: all eyes on FNB Stadium today.
This article is an automatic English translation of a Nuusflits article originally published in Afrikaans. Read the Afrikaans original.
