All Blacks turn the screws when it matters most while Bryan Habana has afternoon to forget.
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The handling skills from both sides was such that even in the face of ferociously aggressive defending - the All Blacks finished the first half with a 100 per cent tackle completion - we had to wait 25 minutes for the first scrum. The absence of errors was helped in part by the benign conditions - the heavy rain did not fall until the second half - but the ability of both sets of players to retain their accuracy despite the intensity of the pressure was a stark reminder to the northern hemisphere sides of the skill set required to be regarded as serious contenders.
The All Blacks' discipline was surprisingly poor, conceding six penalties in the first quarter alone, three of which were converted by Handre Pollard to give the Springboks an early 9-7 lead despite waves of pressure from the All Blacks.
The high concession was in part due to the excellence of Francois Louw and Schalk Burger at the breakdown but it was also self-inflicted. One kickable penalty was reversed when Joe Moody spotted illegally clearing out Duane Vermeulen with a neck roll. Then just before half-time, Jerome Kaino was shown a yellow card for kicking the ball in an offside position from a lazy run and Pollard kicked his fourth penalty for a five-point lead at the break, with the All Blacks conceding nine penalties in the first half alone, normally the par figure for the whole match.
South Africa's aerial game was more effective than their opponents. Springboks full-back Willie Le Roux had been braced for a high-ball barrage and it duly came, with Aaron Smith and Dan Carter targeting him. But the 26-year-old was simply superb in the contest for the ball in the air. In contrast it was South Africa who profited more from the tactic, with Bryan Habana twice claiming high balls from Nehe Milner-Skudder. The Springboks, however, were undone at times by poor execution of their exit strategy, with le Roux guilty of some misplaced clearance kicks which allowed the All Blacks to run the ball back to maintain the pressure even though the South African forwards were able to effect at least four turn-overs at the breakdown.
New Zealand once again showed their ability to raise their game and maintain their composure just when their opponents should have been able to go in for the kill by actually reducing their deficit while Kano was in the sin bin. In fact it was the All Blacks who dominated those 10 minutes, with Dan Carter landing a sweetly-struck dropped goal to cut the deficit to two points. The psychological edge it gave the All Blacks inflicted serious damage to the Springboks, and it was little surprise that New Zealand were able to take the lead moments after Kaino's return when Beauden Barrett crossed for a try. Dan Carter's conversion ensured there had been a critical 10-point swing in a contest of such small margins.
Image 1 of 17: Jerome Kaino dives in the corner to score against South Africa. Photo / Brett Phibbs
Habana has afternoon to forget
It was a sad end to the World Cup career of South Africa's top try-scorer Bryan Habana. The 2007 World Cup winner had gone into the game hoping to become the all-time leading try scorer in the tournament having scored against Samoa, Scotland and a hat-trick against the United States in the pool stage to join New Zealand's Jonah Lomu on 15 tries. Yet the 32 year-old had an afternoon to forget and his desperation to make an impact back-fired with fatal consequences for the Springboks.
He started the match brightly, twice taking high balls in the air ahead of Nehe Milner-Skudder. Yet from there it was all downhill. His crazy decision to fly out of the Springbok defensive line enabled Dan Carter to throw the wide ball in the build-up to Jerome Kano's try. Habana then spoiled a great attacking opportunity by shoving Milner-Skudder in the back without the ball before he attempted to gather a chip ahead under pressure. Perhaps his greatest indiscretion was knocking the ball out of Aaron Smith's hands in the build-up to Barrett's try, which resulted in him being sent to the sin bin, just when New Zealand had landed the psychological blow of scoring 10 unanswered points.
