Boks shock All Blacks

All Black Jerry Collins on the burst away from the Springbok defence of Os du Randt and John Smit. Ross Land / Getty Images

South Africa 21 All Blacks 20

Buried mineral riches have nourished the Rustenburg region but today it was the All Black treasure the fans came to see.

Platinum mining ceased for the day, the wealth was all on the surface at the Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace Stadium and the bulk of it was supposed to be black gold.

Trouble was on an historic day when test rugby came to the area for the first time, the All Blacks could not escape the scrappy, negative, spoiling tactics from the Springboks, they were dragged down to their level for extensive chunks of the match.

All the promise of high-action, high quality rugby from the All Blacks proved to be as much hot air as that produced naturally in the rural, bushveld province.

Lineout woes which have afflicted this side for much of the season were evident again, the scrum had its moments, passes were pushed and the composure which has been one of the team strengths vanished under the heat of a strong Springbok inquisition.

And when five eighths Andre Pretorius kicked an angled penalty three minutes from time the Springboks claimed the shock 21-20 victory which ended the All Blacks run of 15 successive wins.

It was a hugely courageous return for the Springboks but a dismal end for the All Blacks after they were pampered all week in the rundown to the only match that counted.

The purpose-built stadium at Phokeng, set in a black suburb on the outskirts of Rustenburg, is hosting several soccer games in the 2010 World Cup but there is enough interest in the area for rugby to gain more than a toehold.

If word of mouth remains the strongest public relations device in this North-West province then the buzz from those 25,000 who attended the test would not have spread an evangelical message about this sporting spectacle.

King Kgosi Leruo Tshekedi Molotlegi, the 36th king of the Bafokeng, attended the match but he could not convince his constituents to fill the arena in what was the only sour note before the match.

The All Blacks, rated number one in the world, only brought glimpses of the style which has accompanied that ascent. In the opposite corner the Springboks brought more passion and endeavour.

Concerns about the safety of the playing surface evaporated when referee Chris White inspected the surface and asked for a few modifications to the carpet which covered the athletic track running through the in-goal areas.

This was the final test of the All Blacks extended Tri-Nations campaign, the last test of a nine-match mid-winter run before some recuperation and then a final four-test push in Europe in November.

Team mentor and selector Sir Brian Lochore thought the All Blacks final training session was the best he had seen this season. Often those sorts of detail are ignored as hype but Lochore brings a more grounded assessment.

However the All Blacks could not reproduce that rehearsal sharpness in the opening half.

Once again they made a lethargic start. The intentions were clear from the kickoff when the ball was spread wide to Joe Rokocoko but he was well covered by the belligerent defence.

When the Boks tried to run they made headway until the breakdowns when they were penalised consistently for going off their feet. Richie McCaw won a number as the Boks paid for their lack of an openside specialist.

But the mistakes were coming from the All Blacks too. No 8 Rodney So'oialo was a key figure. His sloppy pass intercepted by Bryan Habana for a try while the video referee ruled out a driving try to Andrew Hore when So'oialo had obstructed the defence.

It was left to Daniel Carter to kick a penalty as the halftime hooter sounded, to complete all the All Black scoring in that spell as he reached 100 points for the Tri-Nations series.

The week before similar Carter magic at the same time inspired an irresistible All Black resurgence.

This time the Springboks scored first after the break when Pedrie Wanneburg completed a series of bludgeoning forward surges down the shortside.

The All Black riposte came from the bench. Wholesale substitutions at the start of the final quarter as they chased their 16th consecutive test victory. It did not take long for the impact to come with Rokocoko chasing down a Muliaina grubber before Pretorius's mortal blow.

A fifth straight Springboks defeat at Pretoria prompted a national summit of coach Jake White, some of his predecessors and other rugby identities. If that provoked such a remarkable turnaround today, another congress should be scheduled this week.

Defeat was the first in 10 tests as captain for McCaw but he was one of the few All Blacks exempt from criticism in the All Blacks only loss this season.


Springboks 21 (B Habana, P Wannenburg,tries; A Pretorius 3 pen, con)
All Blacks 20 (D Carter, J Rokocoko, tries; Carter 2 con, 2 pen)
Halftime: 13-13