Springboks beaten as All Blacks stretch Eden Park streak to 51

New Zealand’s winning streak at Eden Park now stands at 51 matches, after beating the Springboks 24-17 on Saturday, 6 September.

The Springboks’ defeat sees them drop to the bottom of the Rugby Championship log after Australia beat Argentina 28-24 earlier in the day.

The All Blacks got off to a flying start with a try in the first two minutes, letting the visitors know they would not let their 31-year record at Eden Park slip without a fight.

A cross-field kick from Beauden Barrett that Emoni Narawa collected left the winger one-on-one with Willie le Roux. 

However, the fullback missed the tackle, giving the New Zealander a clear line to dot the ball down in the corner. Jordie Barrett then converted the try.

The All Blacks then scored another try in the sixteenth minute, starting from a lineout inside South Africa’s 22.

Number eight, Wallace Sititi, caught the ball after Codie Taylor threw the ball all the way to the back of the lineout, offloading to fullback Will Jordan to score just next to the posts.

South Africa finally got on the board when flyhalf Handre Pollard converted a penalty in the 23rd minute to bring the score to 14-3.

The scoreboard remained this way going into halftime, with the odds in favour of the hosts having won 16 of their past 17 games against the Springboks when leading at the halfway point.

New Zealand then extended their lead in the 51st minute to 14 points when Damien McKenzie converted a penalty.

South Africa eventually started building momentum in the second half, with Malcolm Marx scoring a try in the 62nd minute. This decreased the deficit to 7 points after Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu added the extra two points.

However, further unforced errors by the visitors immediately put New Zealand on the front foot after the restart when they were awarded a penalty inside South Africa’s 22.

Kwagga Smith was then yellow-carded for cynical play, earning the hosts another penalty moments before scoring a try right next to the posts, which was converted. 

This saw the Springboks’ deficit return to 14 points at 24-10.

Kriel’s team then hit back in the 74th minute with a try from Cobus Reinach, which Feinberg-Mngomezulu converted.

However, it was too little too late as they only had five minutes to score and convert a try to get on level terms with their opponents.

The Springboks fought hard to try and secure a draw, but further errors allowed New Zealand to see out the win and remain at the top of the Rugby Championship log.

Springbok captain Jesse Kriel said after the game that several errors by players did not allow them to build up momentum and retaliate against the All Blacks.

“We weren’t up to scratch tonight. There were just way too many handling errors and several areas that weren’t up to standard for us, but all credit to New Zealand for their performance,” he said.

“We just weren’t as good as we wanted to be. If you have a number of individuals who make errors, they all add up, and it starts to become challenging to build pressure.”

All Blacks flanker Ardie Savea, who played his hundredth game for the team, commended his side on their performance and the over 48,000 supporters in the stadium.

“It was a gutsy performance. I’m just proud of the boys’ efforts. We knew the Springboks would come here and give it to us,” he said.

The two sides will meet again in Wellington next Saturday in the second leg of South Africa’s tour of New Zealand.