Tenacious All Blacks surprise Springboks for 35-23 win in Johannesburg

At Ellis Park, Johannesburg: All Blacks 35 (Sam Cane tries 27min, Samisoni Taukei’aho tries 33min, David Havili tries 74min, Scott Barrett 79min; Richie Mo’unga 3 con, 3 pen). Springbok 23 (Lukhanyo Am try 37min, Makazoli Mapimpi try 57min; Handre Pollard 2 con, 3 pen). HT: 15-10

Yellow card: Damian Willemse (Spring boxing) 9min, Beauden Barrett (All Blacks) 67min.

Late attempts by Scott Barrett and David Havili propelled the All Blacks to a pulse-pounding 35-23 win over the Springboks in Johannesburg on Sunday morning.

As underdogs, and having lost to the Springboks in Mbombela a week earlier, the All Blacks weren’t expected to have the firepower to win at the grand fortress of Ellis Park, but they produced a combination of tenacity, willpower and skill for a monumental win to keep their Rugby Championship title hopes alive.

What this means for All Blacks coach Ian Foster, who started the game under extreme pressure after five defeats in his last six tests, remains unclear.

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If this were Foster’s last game, he won’t forget how his team said goodbye to him in such a way.

An attempt to close Barrett seconds before the full-time horn added the icing on the cake. But it was the five-pointer secured in the 74th minute by midfielder Havili that proved crucial.

Havili’s effort pushed the All Blacks into the lead after Springboks sharpshooter Handre Pollard kicked a penalty following Referee Luke Pearce’s decision to replace Beaden Barrett with a yellow card for obstruction.

The performance was far from perfect – to be expected against the Springboks on the high field – but the All Blacks’ bravery could not be faulted during a much-improved effort from the 26-10 loss in Mbombela.

For 67 minutes, the All Blacks held onto their lead, mixing various magic touches with frustrating mistakes, and after surrendering, they recaptured it with a final swing.

Richie Mo'unga was outstanding at number 10 for the All Blacks.

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Richie Mo’unga was outstanding at number 10 for the All Blacks.

Flanker Ardie Savea saved the All Blacks with a crucial turnover midway through the second half to embody his value in the clutch moments, although the Springboks fired a warning shot minutes later when an attempt at Makazole Mapimpi was disallowed as it was ruled by Sam Whitelock earlier in the game. movement was hindered.

There was no denying the men in green, however, as Mapimpi immediately struck back after Richie Mo’unga had kicked a penalty.

That made for a frenetic last quarter as the desperate Springboks, supported by their 62,000 fans, burst onto the field and eventually took the lead after Beauden Barrett was ousted by sin.

Pollard pushed in the regulation penalty and the All Blacks trailed 23-21 with 13 minutes remaining.

For the first time this season, the All Blacks dictated terms in the early exchanges and, crucially, scored first.

It took 24 minutes for the visitors to be attacked against the walls of the Springboks defense system to finally be rewarded for their toil, with Mo’unga taking a penalty.

The reality, however, was that, with a bit more luck, the All Blacks could have scored sooner when a cross from Havili found Ardie Savea and he was cut a few yards from the try-line.

Damian Willemse, the Springbok fullback, was shown a yellow card for illegally preventing a quick recycle when Savea was cut just short of the line, but the hosts emerged from the close-up unscathed when the All Blacks allowed a free kick in an offensive scrum.

Flanker Pieter du Toit caused all-powerful terror as he intercepted a pass to turn the momentum back in favor of the Springboks minutes later, but on this occasion it was the turn of the All Blacks to get rid of the hooker by using their keep opponents over the line.

Captain Sam Cane scored the first try and completed a spectacular breakout that started deep in the All Blacks half when Caleb Clarke made an excellent break; instead of rushing their execution, the All Blacks kept their cool and shifted the ball between the hands of Will Jordan and Jordie Barrett to corner Cane.

Scott Barrett tackles Siya Kolisi during the match at Ellis Park.

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Scott Barrett tackles Siya Kolisi during the match at Ellis Park.

Another attempt, this time on hooker Samisoni Taukei’aho, sparked excitement among the touring team’s supporters and when Mo’unga made the conversion, the All Blacks were leading 15-0 with five minutes left until halftime.

Finally, however, the Springboks shifted up a gear; Clarke missed a regulation tackle on Lukhanyo Am, who pulled in the five-pointer, Pollard nailed the conversion and then kicked a penalty to close the gap to five points.

But it was the All Blacks who got the job done. Now we have to wait and see what awaits Foster.

The big moment

The belated attempt at Havili. It set the All Blacks up for the upset win.

Match rating

9/10 – how could an All Blacks supporter disagree? An upset win, against the world champions, at Ellis Park.

The big picture

What does this mean for All Blacks coach Ian Foster? He said he had ‘no idea’ about Sky Sport after the game.

MVP

Mo’unga was excellent at number 10. He controlled the backline and kept calm.