They are the World Cup holders and finally, after a decade of despairing deficiency, the Springboks were able to claim a victory against the All Blacks in New Zealand.
They deserved the victory and would have left yesterday for their next Tri-Nations task against the Wallabies in Perth, feeling extremely relieved they did not blow this Carisbrook test. It was close though and it required a moment of inspiration from halfback Ricky Januarie to dust off the demons.
The smallest player on the park nearly inspired the Boks to win at the same venue three years ago when test rugby was last hosted in Dunedin. That time the Boks succumbed when All Blacks hooker Keven Mealamu scored four minutes from time.
On Saturday, as 29,136 spectators watched test rugby return to the same venue, Januarie reversed the fortunes with his snipe, chip and regather routine for a superb late solo try, converted by Francois Steyn.
It was a superb piece of individual brilliance from the Springbok halfback to counter the sinbinning of his captain Victor Matfield a few minutes earlier.
That decision by the erratic referee Matt Goddard, looked to have consigned the Boks to the beaten ranks in New Zealand like every other Bok side which has visited since 1998.
With an extra man the All Blacks led 28-23 and appeared to have survived the onslaught.
Then, from a ruck, Januarie speared past replacement forwards Mealamu and Neemia Tialata, chipped another replacement Leon MacDonald, regathered and flung himself across the line in an exultant swandive.
The Boks were the better team in this test but made extra hard work of their surge to victory.
They outscored their hosts two tries to one but conceded 23 points to Daniel Carter's boot as referee Goddard discovered all sorts of misdemeanours, especially in the staccato first half, until he calmed down a shade.
When Goddard blew time, new Bok supremo Peter de Villiers bashed his coaching bench to show the relief the Springboks felt in finally erasing their shabby record in New Zealand in the last decade. It had been close, the Boks had almost handed the match to the All Blacks before Januarie retrieved the result.
This was an All Black side ready for the taking, shorn of so much experience that when senior lock Ali Williams wandered off with blurred vision to be replaced on debut by Kevin O'Neill, five members of the pack totalled 19 caps among them.
They coped fairly well, the scrum was still more potent than the visitors', they had twice the ruck possession and forced the Boks into double the All Black tackle count.
But the Boks dominated the lineouts where they nicked a third of the All Black throws, had a better scrambling defence, mauled strongly and made more of their attacking chances.
In my opinion. If the all blacks had been to the breakdown of each maul or ruck fast and drove over then there wouldnt have been a problem with our game play but our forwards wernt fast enough and the south african team dominated. we couldve made it easier for ourselves by doing the hard yards before the end of the game but it showed on the score board that we had not been at the top of our game. maybe the absence of some of our top players was the result of our loss also
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