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08/22 12:40 CDT All Blacks stun South Africa 33-16 at Ellis Park and snap
Springboks' 12-test win streak
All Blacks stun South Africa 33-16 at Ellis Park and snap Springboks' 12-test
win streak
JOHANNESBURG (AP) --- New Zealand stunned South Africa 33-16 at Ellis Park on
Saturday and drew first blood in their historic four-test series.
After surviving a ferocious first half to trail only 13-12, the All Blacks'
deep belief and ability to produce something from nothing turned a tense
contest into a rout by five tries to South Africa's one.
A scrum that was blown away in the first half eventually held firm in the
second half and was the platform for New Zealand's last two tries in the last
quarter.
South Africa paid for failing to take its many chances when it had New Zealand
on the ropes in the first half, and to a crashing halt came South Africa's
12-test winning streak that began by handing New Zealand its heaviest ever
defeat, 43-10, in Wellington 11 months ago.
The Springboks scrum was better than advertised until props Ox Nch and Wilco
Louw were substituted. An overconfidence in the set-piece made South Africa
waive off numerous kickable penalties at altitude to try and bury the All
Blacks with tries. But a backline that struggled to string any passes was
easily corralled, putting too much on the likes of forwards Jasper Wiese,
Malcolm Marx and Paul de Villiers to produce something.
When New Zealand returned the pressure in the second half, South Africa gave
away two yellow cards in the span of a minute and finished with 13 men. The
tension in a packed Ellis Park deflated in the last 10 minutes as Springbok
supporters realized a comeback wasn't possible.
The series moves to sea level in Cape Town next Saturday and New Zealand is the
surprising front-runner in the first full series between the teams in 30 years.
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See AP's full rugby coverage here
