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South Africaedged past New Zealand in a dramatic encounter in the third round of the Rugby Championship to cement their place at the top of the tournament table.
In a tight first half, tries from Codie Taylor, Caleb Clarke andBongi Mbonambi were the highlights as both sides looked to gain an advantage after a yellow card to Aphelele Fassi.
The scores were locked at 11-12 to the visitors at half-time, and the second half started in perfect fashion for the All Blacks as Jordie Barrett intercepted a loose pass and raced home for five points.
From there it looked like the All Blacks were set to dominate, especially after Caleb Clarke crossed again, but New Zealand couldn’t capitalise when it mattered.
And soon after they paid the price, with Ofa Tu’ungafasi getting a late yellow card to spark an impressive Springboks turnaround.
Kwagga Smith crossed the line soon after to give South Africa life, and from there it was one-way traffic as Grant Williams completed the comeback in the 74th minute.
It could have been a vital win for the All Blacks as they looked to close the gap on the Springboks at the top of the tournament table, but instead South Africa end the day with a lead that looks difficult to relinquish – eight points over their nearest challengers, New Zealand.
Relive the action from Ellis Park Stadium as South Africa defeat New Zealand:
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South Africa spring late shock on New Zealand to claim memorable victory in Johannesburg
South Africascored two late tries to come back from a 10-point deficit and edgeNew Zealand31-27 in a bruisingRugby Championshipclash at Ellis Park on Saturday that came close to matching the intensity of last year’s World Cup final.
TheAll Blacksoutscored their hosts by four tries to three but the boot of new Springbok flyhalf Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu proved the difference as he contributed 16 points in the first meeting between the teams since October’s Paris clash which South Africa won 12-11.
Bongi Mbonambi, Kwagga Smith and Grant Williams scored the home tries while Feinberg-Mngomezulu was successful with four penalties and two conversions.
South Africa spring late shock on New Zealand to claim memorable victory
The Springboks came from behind to score two late tries and defeat the All Blacks 31-27 in the Rugby Championship
Mike Jones31 August 2024 18:45
Up next
The two sides play out a rematch next week, with South Africa still at home of course – that match kicks off at 4pm BST on Saturday, 7 September in Cape Town.
Tonight – at 11pm BST – Argentina host Australia at the Jorge Luis Hirschi Stadium in La Plata, ahead of their first match.
Chris Wilson31 August 2024 20:00
Rugby Championship fixtures
Here’s a full rundown of the remaining fixtures in the tournament.
Saturday 31 August
Argentina vs Australia, 11pm (Estadio Uno, La Plata)
Saturday 7 September
South Africa vs New Zealand, 4pm (Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town)
Argentina vs Australia, 8pm (Estadio Brigadier General Estanislao Lopez, Santa Fe)
Saturday 21 September
Australia vs New Zealand, 6.45am (Accor Stadium, Sydney)
Argentina vs South Africa, 10pm (Estadio Único Madre de Ciudades, Santiago del Estero)
Saturday 28 September
New Zealand vs Australia, 8.05am (Sky Stadium, Wellington)
South Africa vs Argentina, 4pm (Mbombela Stadium, Mbombela)
Chris Wilson31 August 2024 19:45
Rugby Championship results
So today’s result means that South Africa have three wins from three, after their mini-tour Down Under and a win in Johannesburg.
The full results are below:
Saturday, 10 August
Australia 7-33 South Africa
New Zealand 30-38 Argentina
Saturday, 17 August
New Zealand 42-10 Argentina
Australia 12-30 South Africa
Saturday, 31 August
South Africa 31-27 New Zealand
Chris Wilson31 August 2024 19:30
Erasmus speaks to the media
Rassie Erasmus say that he is “very proud, but New Zealand, they can feel sad, because it was such a great game”.
“They controlled it for most of the game, we snuck in at the end. But well done to them and well done to our guys as well.
“We will lose some matches, but as long as we have this character against a team like New Zealand, I’m happy.
“It was the players, it was the guys making the plans, the guys seeing [things]. It wasn’t really on the coaches, it was the players.”
Chris Wilson31 August 2024 19:15
Du Toit speaks to the media
Man of the match Pietr-Steph Du Toit begins by telling reporters that he wants to thank the “wonderful crowd”.
“We definitely have the most respect for them [New Zealand] and it’s an unbelievable team, and the way they play their game, they inspire us as well.
“We definitely try to build character. We’ve got a lot of young guys, so I don’t think yoy get a game with more pressure,so well done to everyone.”
Chris Wilson31 August 2024 19:00
The winning try...
Here’s that moment from Grant Williams that won the match in the end.
Chris Wilson31 August 2024 18:30
FULL-TIME! South Africa 31-27 New Zealand
All Blacks captain Scott Barrett is next to speak to the media.
“Well done to the Springboks - it showed the class team they are,” he says.
“We weren’t quite good enough. We were good for 62 minutes,and it’s an 80-minute game.
“There were two key moments after kick-offs where we couldn’t quite get out of our half and they punished us. It was a huge effort, [we’re] certainly proud - but just not quite tonight.
“We’ll regroup pretty quickly. Some guys have played here for the first time. It’s intense and we’ll have to be better next week.”
Chris Wilson31 August 2024 18:20
FULL-TIME! South Africa 31-27 New Zealand
South Africa captain Siya Kolisi is first in front of the cameras. He starts by thanking the crowd.
“On behalf of the team, we just want to say: thank you for the support, not just tonight but you’ve carried us through so many battles.
“We play for a lot but you people are our number one motivation. We appreciate you every single day. Please don’t stop. When times are tough, please keep supporting us. We cannot do it without you.
“We respect the All Blacks. No matter what people say about them, when they need to turn up, they turn up. We believe in ourselves, we didn’t panic, and we did what we wanted.
“They were catching us on the exit. After the first try in the second half, we picked it up. I’m really proud of the boys but the job is not done.
He finishes by saying: “It’s 30 years of freedom and I want to say congratulations to South Africa. But we know there are many people who are still not free. Hopefully the next celebrations celebrate women who are free from gender-based violence”.
Chris Wilson31 August 2024 18:10
FULL-TIME! South Africa 31-27 New Zealand
Well, what an exhilarating match we’ve just seen. We’ll bring you the reaction as we get it.
In terms of what that means for the Championship table, the standings are below.
1 – South Africa – P3, W3, 14pts
2 – New Zealand –P3, W1, L2, 6pts
3 – Argentina –P2, W1, L1, 4pts
4 – Australia – P2, L2, 0pts
Chris Wilson31 August 2024 18:02
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