Springboks Reign Supreme After Epic Win Over All Blacks in Baltimore

The Springboks were crowned champions of Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry after producing a sensational second-half display to overcome the All Blacks 43-28 in a thrilling showdown in Baltimore. newsindata.org

The Boks dominated for much of the game and finally put daylight between themselves and a brave but ultimately outgunned All Blacks team with an emphatic 26-14 second half performance in front of a heavily green-tinged 68,173 crowd – a record for a rugby match in the USA.

It was a fitting result and performance in Bok coach Rassie Erasmus’s 100th Test guiding the playing affairs of the men in green and gold – an eighth win in the last 10 tests against the All Blacks – and concluded an intense series with a statement performance.

The Boks outscored the All Blacks in tries (six to four) for the first time in the series with heroic performances across the field, with scrumhalf Morne van den Berg being one in a man of the match performance, which also included a conversion.

Damian de Allende, Malcolm Marx, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Kurt-Lee Arendse and Cameron Hanekom also crossed while Codie Taylor, Will Jordan, Ethan Blackadder, and Beauden Barrett, in the final minute, scoring for New Zealand.

It was a very different outcome to the first Test four weeks ago, when New Zealand took a 33-16 win in Johannesburg. Since then, the Springboks have waxed ever stronger with victories in Cape Town (33-26) and Soweto (29-24) and this 43-28 epic performance.

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The Springboks’ intent was obvious from the moment they received the kick off, opting to run the ball from their own 22 – rather than choosing the clearing kick. They made good ground and a couple of phases later as they drove upfield took the first points from a penalty goal by Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu after he himself was victim of a high tackle as he surged into contact.

It was short-lived however. The All Blacks punched back with a try by hooker Codie Talyor from a period of sustained pressure. Quick hands, tapped penalties and slick offloads stretched the Boks defence left and right and back again until the dam burst with Taylor running on to a triple-cut-out pass from Cam Roigard to surge through a chink in the defensive wall.

They claimed a second from wing Will Jordan just before halftime in similar fashion. The Boks had held out for an astonishing 32 phases within 10 metres of their own goal-line in only the second period of All Black pressure in the match.

But they were finally breached when the peerless Jordan surged onto the ball to score his fourth try of the series, angling in from his right wing, to cross just to the left of the poles to finally breach the defiant green wall.

The score had broken what had been a Bok siege on All Black territory through much of the half; the problem was they were only able to take seven points from it. They kept the All Blacks penned in their own half for a long period but only had a try by Damian de Allende to show for it; the powerful centre picked up at a goal-line ruck and levered himself through a tackle to score his 13th test try.

Van den Berg’s five-pointer a few minutes later gave the Boks a 17-7 lead before that was cut to just three points with Jordan’s try moments before the break.

The Boks went straight back onto the attack after the restart, rolling on two new props, Lood de Jager and Andre Esterhuizen in place of the workhorses Ruan Nortje and Siya Kolisi.

The fresh legs had an impact as an All Black knock-on in their own 22 led to a scrum penalty; which led to a five-metre lineout which led to a maul; which led to a 29th Test try for Marx – and his eighth against New Zealand. It felt pretty inevitable.

Four minutes later a fourth try gave the Springboks a two score lead but the idea that the game was put to bed was more proved to be an illusion. The try was claimed by Pieter-Steph du Toit, converted by Van den Berg in place of Feinberg-Mngomezulu, who limped on for ten more minutes before being replaced.

The All Blacks had barely seen the Springbok half, never mind the 22, but it took only one entry to close the gap once again as the tireless Ethan Blackadder to cut the lead to eight points with 15 minutes remaining.

But it was not to be for the All Blacks. Arendse picked up a loose ball and weaved his way 60 metres to the tryline after Hanekom dislodged the ball from Jordan in a tackle.

Hanekom then pounced on a loose ball as the All Blacks tried to run from their own half before Barrett had the final word. Too little, too late. Game, set and match, Springboks.

Scorers:

Springboks 43 (17) – Tries: Damian De Allende, Morne van den Berg, Malcolm Marx, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Kurt-Lee Arendse, Cameron Hanekom. Conversions: Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (2), Morne van den Berg, Manie Libbok (2). Penalty goal: Feinberg-Mngomezulu.

New Zealand 28 (14) – Tries: Cody Taylor, Will Jordan, Ethan Blackadder, Beauden Barrett. Conversions: Damian McKenzie (4).

Issued by SA Rugby Communications

Image Credit: Springboks/X

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Deon Fourie will celebrate his 40th birthday in Australia on 25 September after a Springbok recall that even he admits he never saw coming. CLINTON VAN DER BERG reports.

Speaking to the media from Baltimore, Fourie confirmed his birthday falls on the Boks’ off day in Perth ahead of their one-off Test against the Wallabies.

“I’ll be in Australia, I think it’s on the Friday. Luckily it’s an off day for us as well, because we’re only playing on the Sunday,” he said. “I’ve got a few friends in Sydney; they’re probably going to fly over to Perth and maybe they can make it special for me.”

His wife, he joked, had other ideas.

“She had a few plans a few months ago for my 40th, but that changed a bit.”

Fourie’s return to the green and gold, just before turning 40, has taken him by surprise as much as anyone.

“After the World Cup I thought maybe just play one or two more years,” he said ahead of playing off the bench in Baltimore.

But an invitation to an alignment camp in Cape Town last year “sparked a bit of fire in me again to wear the green and gold”.

A broken ankle soon followed.

“To be honest, I don’t think I’ll wear the green and gold again,” he admitted at the time, before a string of strong performances changed that trajectory.

Selected to start against New Zealand in the second match of the Greatest Rivalry series, Fourie became the oldest Springbok in history and says he still can’t quite process it.

“It wasn’t a goal of mine to do that,” he said. “It was just a goal to get used to this incredible environment, my country and the people around me.”

He remains visibly emotional whenever the national anthem plays.

“It’s always special to celebrate my country and sing the national anthem,” he said. “I remember every time after the World Cup, it was always emotional. It’s such a big, proud thing.”

On motivation, Fourie pointed to two years wrestling with injury as his driving force.

“My motivation was just to get back onto the field and to showcase that I’ve still got some rugby in myself,” he said. “All the criticism I get from people out there just puts fuel to the fire for me, to prove them wrong.”

For now, Fourie insists he is taking nothing beyond the next 80 minutes for granted.

“I don’t look so far ahead at the moment,” he said. “I’m playing game by game, waiting for the moment to get on the field.”

Photo: Floris van Schouwenburg/Gallo Images

The post Fourie’s fire still burns at 40 appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.

Rate the performance of English referee Karl Dickson in Baltimore.

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Siya Kolisi believes coach Rassie Erasmus transformed the Springboks by reminding them that the team is bigger than any individual.

The Springbok captain opened up about Erasmus’ influence after the Boks claimed a 3-1 series victory over the All Blacks following a 43-28 triumph in Baltimore.

Kolisi says the foundation of the Boks’ success under Erasmus has been a fundamental change in mentality.

“I would say we changed when Coach came and he had a plan on how to change things going forward. I think our mentality at the time wasn’t in a good place,” said Kolisi.

“He reminded us how important this team is and how powerful this team has been in the past. And also that the team is more important than the individual, but the individuals make the team work.”

FIRST TAKE: Golden Boks add to legacy

Erasmus, according to Kolisi, succeeded in bringing players from varied backgrounds together behind a single objective.

“He made a group of South Africans from different parts of life all focus on one [goal]. We all came in with our different goals, we all wanted to achieve different things, and we speak 11 languages in our team.

“But our main focus was to make the Springbok proud and make the people of South Africa proud.”

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Kolisi also explained why Erasmus has commanded such loyalty within the Bok camp.

“He was honest and upfront, with his coaching staff, on what was the way going forward and how we were going to do it,” he said.

“He backed us, believed in us, fought for us. We just want to play for him and play for the country.”

RASSIE: This is why we play rugby

Kolisi also said the rivalry and friendship with the All Blacks run deep. After the final whistle, the teams shared a heartfelt moment.

“We just came together to thank each other for the series. We go at each other all the time, but we get along off the field. There’s no hiding that we’re good friends but we’re tough when we’re on the field.

“We said a prayer afterwards and it was a really special moment.”

Photo: Lefty Shivambu/Gallo Images

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The Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry tour surpassed expectations, but its success should not disguise lessons around ticket pricing and scheduling, writes MARK KEOHANE.

Writing for the Sunday Times, Keohane believes the All Blacks’ month-long visit proved the appetite for traditional tours remains enormous, with South Africa consumed by the rivalry and New Zealand equally invested in events on and off the field.

“This was no contrived marketing sell,” he writes. “You cannot manufacture 105 years of history, 114 Tests, including Baltimore, and the emotional pull of the two most successful rugby nations in the sport.”

Keohane says the contrasting rugby identities added to the spectacle. The All Blacks produced breathtaking backline play, while the Springboks responded with the scrum, lineout and maul that have underpinned their recent dominance of Test rugby.

Off the field, the warmth between the teams and supporters was equally significant, with captains Siya Kolisi and Ardie Savea exemplifying how fierce sporting rivalry can coexist with genuine mutual respect.

MORE: Siya, Ardie showing ‘best of rugby’

But Keohane believes organisers must learn from mistakes, particularly ticket prices that put matches beyond the reach of too many ordinary supporters.

“A national rugby occasion cannot be celebrated as inclusive when the price excludes those who give the Springbok identity its voice, colour, soul and meaning,” he writes.

The scheduling of the four tour matches also came under scrutiny, with South Africa’s URC teams still in pre-season and the Sharks and Lions both hosting the All Blacks on Tuesday nights.

ALSO: Greatest Rivalry can get even better

Those flaws, however, did not diminish Keohane’s belief that the concept succeeded and should have a permanent place on the international calendar, with the Boks set to tour New Zealand in 2030 before the All Blacks return in 2034.

“The tour was a triumph. Next time, it must be a triumph for everyone,” he concludes.

FULL COLUMN

Photo: Lefty Shivambu/Gallo Images

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