Springboks leave it late to down All Blacks in epic Ellis Park showdown
Springboks utility forward Pieter-Steph du Toit wins lineout possession against the All Blacks.
The Springboks launched a stunning second half fightback to clinch a thrilling 31-27 victory over the All Blacks in Saturday’s Rugby Championship clash in Johannesburg.
As expected, this encounter was a real humdinger characterised by numerous brutal collisions throughout but in the end the hosts got the rub of the green although New Zealand outscored them by four tries to three.
For South Africa, Bongi Mbonambi, Grant Williams and Kwagga Smith scored tries while Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu finished with a 16-point contribution after slotting four penalties and two conversions.
Caleb Clarke led the way with a brace of tries for New Zealand while Jordie Barrett and Codie Taylor also crossed for five-pointers and Damian McKenzie added two conversions and a penalty.
Click here for scorers
The All Blacks dominated the early exchanges and spent most of the opening 10 minutes camped inside the Springboks’ half. In the sixth minute, the home side were reduced to 14 men when Aphelele Fassi was yellow carded for a cynical defensive foul deep inside his 22.
The visitors put the resulting penalty into touch on the Boks’ five-metre line and launched a lineout drive from which Taylor crashed over for the opening try.
Despite their numerical disadvantage, the Boks were slowly getting into the game and in the 16th minute Mbonambi opened their account when he broke away from a maul close to New Zealand’s try-line before barging over for his five-pointer.
Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s goal-kick was disallowed after the shot clock had expired and the next 10 minutes was an arm wrestle as the sides went at each other hammer and tongs in a bid to gain the ascendancy.
On the half hour-mark, Feinberg-Mngomezulu showed his class when he stepped up and coolly slotted a monster penalty from 61 metres out and that kick gave South Africa the lead for the first time.
Despite that score, the All Blacks did not panic and three minutes later they struck back courtesy of Clarke’s first five-pointer after the Boks conceded a turnover in the build-up. The visitors launched a brilliant counter attack and the ball was shifted wide to Clarke whose searing pace took him past Damian de Allende on his way over the try-line.
McKenzie was off target with his shot at goal before Feinberg-Mngomezulu slotted his second penalty in the latter stages of the half which meant the match was evenly poised at the interval with New Zealand holding a slender 12-11 lead.
A nail-biter, but the Boks have done it 🥳#Springboks #ForeverGreenForeverGold #RSAvNZL pic.twitter.com/osGoEyGKMI
— Springboks (@Springboks) August 31, 2024
Just like the opening half, the All Blacks were fastest out of the blocks in the second stanza and soon after the restart Jordie Barrett intercepted a wayward pass from De Allende close to the halfway line and and showed great composure to outsprint the cover defence before crossing the whitewash.
The hosts responded by sending on their much-vaunted ‘Bomb Squad’ and although Feinberg-Mngomezulu narrowed the gap with another three-pointer off the kicking tee soon after, that effort was canceled out by a McKenzie penalty which meant the visitors were holding a deserved 22-14 lead by the 49th minute.
Shortly afterwards Feinberg-Mngomezulu succeeded with his third penalty before the All Blacks struck back in style when Clarke found himself in space out wide and he showed the defence a clean pair of heels before dotting down again.
That meant New Zealand held a 10-point lead which meant South Africa needed a response if they wanted to win the game. They emptied their bench while the All Blacks suffered a setback in the 67th minute when Ofa Tu’ungafasi received a yellow card after entering a ruck illegally deep inside his own territory.
The Boks did not take long to make their numerical advantage count as Smith crashed over from close quarters in the 69th minute and when Feinberg-Mngomezulu added the extras, we were set for a thrilling finish.
Momentum was now with the home side as they spent long periods inside New Zealand’s half and in the 74th minute Williams made a sniping break from a ruck before diving over for his five-pointer which was converted by Feinberg-Mngomezulu.
That gave the Boks the lead for only the second time in the game and although Feinberg-Mngomezulu missed a late penalty they held on to clinch a deserved victory.
Siya Kolisi dedicates Springboks’ win over the All Blacks to ‘South Africans who are still not free’
The teams
Springboks: 15 Aphelele Fassi, 14 Cheslin Kolbe, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 9 Cobus Reinach, 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Ben-Jason Dixon, 6 Siya Kolisi (c), 5 Ruan Nortje, 4 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Bongi Mbonambi, 1 Ox Nche
Replacements: 16 Malcolm Marx, 17 Gerhard Steenekamp, 18 Vincent Koch, 19 Eben Etzebeth, 20 Elrigh Louw, 21 Kwagga Smith, 22 Grant Williams, 23 Handre Pollard
All Blacks: 15 Beauden Barrett, 14 Will Jordan, 13 Rieko Ioane, 12 Jordie Barrett, 11 Caleb Clarke, 10 Damian McKenzie, 9 TJ Perenara, 8 Ardie Savea, 7 Sam Cane, 6 Ethan Blackadder, 5 Tupou Vaa’i, 4 Scott Barrett (c), 3 Tyrel Lomax, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Tamaiti Williams
Replacements: 16 Asafo Aumua, 17 Ofa Tu’ungafasi, 18 Fletcher Newell, 19 Sam Darry, 20 Samipeni Finau, 21 Cortez Ratima, 22 Anton Lienert-Brown, 23 Mark Tele’a
Referee: Andrew Brace (Ireland)
Assistant Referees: Matthew Carley (England), Jordan Way (Australia)
TMO: Brian MacNeice (Ireland)