Winger Aphiwe Dyantyi scored two tries as the Springboks upset the All Blacks 36‑34 in their Rugby Championship clash at Wellington Regional Stadium last night.
It was the first loss by the All Blacks to the Springboks in New Zealand since 2009 and kept the southern hemisphere championship alive until at least the fifth round of games in two weeks' time.
South Africa’s Coach Rassie Eramus says at the start of their Rugby Championship campaign the plan was to beat the All Blacks in New Zealand.
Willie Le Roux, Malcolm Marx and Cheslin Kolbe also crossed for South Africa who had lost their previous two matches and been under immense pressure heading into the game.
Rieko Ioane scored twice for the All Blacks, while Jordie Barrett, Aaron Smith, Codie Taylor and Ardie Savea also crossed for the All Blacks while Beauden Barrett had a poor game with the boot, slotting just two of his six shots at goal.
The Springboks started poorly, going 12‑0 down inside the first 20 minutes as Jordie Barrett and Smith were put over as the All Blacks showcased their superb ability to offload under pressure.
The problem with wanting to do everything at speed, however, resulted in poor decision making with the Springboks pouncing on errors deep inside All Blacks territory to score three unanswered tries within 11 minutes to earn a 21‑12 lead.
From then on, the All Blacks were chasing the game.
Speaking after the game, All Blacks coach Hansen says it hurts to lose to South Africa.
Meanwhile, the Wallabies have slumped to a new low, with Michael Cheika’s men set to drop to a worst ever No 7 in the World Rugby rankings after losing 23‑19 to Argentina last night.
Argentina’s victory was their first win on Australian soil in 35 years.
[Source: RNZ/ FoxSports]
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