Springboks master the fine margins for Rugby World Cup glory

When the full-time whistle blew, a series of snapshots were shown showing why this game is both brutal and beautiful. You had Sam Cane, the captain of the All Blacks, with a blank stare. He had already been absent for 52 minutes of the match after receiving a red card in the first half. Then there was Cheslin Kolbe, the Springboks winger, who was sent off in the 73rd minute for a deliberate kick-in, hiding his face in his shirt, unable to watch the final moments.

As the full-time whistle blew, Cane sat on the bench, his head full of white noise and regret. Kolbe stood up, finally could see the field, and saw his teammates running around, finally able to breathe through the tension of this game. Siya Kolisi’s first act as a double Rugby World Cup captain was to run up to Kolbe and hug him.

Nostalgia is everywhere in sport, and these finals are as much a reflection on the journey to the final as the occasion itself. You had before you the victorious World Cup captains of yesteryear, the great John Smit sitting alongside François Pienaar in the stands of the Stade de France, just two faces among the 80,065 people present to see this group of Springboks s ‘face.

Kolisi’s place in the pantheon of rugby greats was already assured well before this tournament, but once again he was monumental on and off the field. We can’t help but be in awe of this role model, the kind of character you wish kids everywhere would sit up and listen to his views on the world and sports. But he won’t think of himself, that’s not his way. This is the vital element of this Springbok team, the importance of the collective over the individual.

“People who are not from South Africa don’t understand what this means for our country,” Kolisi said. “It’s not just about the game. Our country is going through so much. We’re just grateful to be able to be here. I want to say to the South African people ‘thank you very much’. This team is just showing what they can As soon as we work together, anything is possible, no matter in what field – on the field, in the offices, it shows what we can do. I’m grateful for this team, I’m so proud of it.”

But this was a match where TMO decisions were paramount – Barnes judged the final brilliantly, but every TMO decision was nuanced, complicated and balanced by split-second contortionist acts from these players remarkable.

South Africa were the better of the two teams. They had to deal with the loss of starting hooker Bongi Mbonambi to injury after just three minutes as All Blacks flanker Shannon Frizzell’s lazy cleanup saw him leave his weight on Mbonambi’s leg. Frizzell was taken off, Mbonambi out of the game and the Boks’ makeshift hooker option Deon Fourie had to play 77 minutes.

The second game-changing moment came in the 28th minute when Cane caught Jesse Kriel with a high shot. Cane was convicted but indicted. Cane sat there motionless, awaiting his fate. When he was informed of the decision to turn him red, he sat in his chair with his head in his hands, devastated. The appeal was that there was a high degree of danger, with no obvious mitigation measures. The All Blacks should go more than half with 14 men. “There’s so much pain right now, it’s hard to find the words to explain it,” Cane said afterward. “It’s something I’m unfortunately going to have to live with forever.”

The Springboks went into the break six points ahead, 12-6 thanks to four penalties from Pollard and regained the upper hand in the second half. But once again a flashpoint interrupted the flow, with Kolisi receiving a yellow card in the 45th minute after touching Ardie Savea’s head. This time, however, it remained yellow. The explanation was along the lines of “force passing through the body, change in dynamics during the tackle”.

The All Blacks had chances, Richie Mo’unga dropping the ball with a small gap on the left in the second half, as was the disallowed try for New Zealand that Aaron Smith had completed after another break from Mo ‘unga, which was canceled due to an impact in preparation. But the one that counted brought the All Blacks back to within a point when Beauden Barrett dived in the 58th minute, the first try ever conceded by the Springboks in their fourth World Cup final. Mo’unga missed the conversion from the touchline, making the game 12-11 to the Boks.

The Boks had their own chances, but it was the All Blacks who chased them hard in the closing stages, with Jordie Barrett missing a long-range penalty, but they were buoyed by playing to 14 men in the 73rd minute with Kolbe sin but they just couldn’t get a field position to have a chance at glory.

The stadium had already announced the match before the end of the final scrum. Green and yellow lights were already surrounding the top of the Stade de France as both teams prepared for the final scrum and the throes of the final.

Du Toit was magnificent with 28 tackles. “I guess as a team we like drama,” he said afterwards. “We have had some drama over the last few years. It has helped us a lot as a team to get through the drama and deal with it and it shows the resilience of the team and the whole of South Africa. “

There were other monumental changes: Duane Vermeulen, 37, was superb, while the impact of Kwagga Smith kept the Boks in the game. Others like Ox Nche wrote themselves into World Cup folklore with destructive performances off the bench, while the match was perfectly judged by Faf de Klerk and Handre Pollard in the semis. The 7-1 split on the bench also helped tip the balance of the match in favor of the Boks and although it was a risk having only Willie le Roux as a returning specialist among the substitutes , it paid off.

In the end, we were back where we started the tournament. All those knockout matches, the performances of Portugal and Fiji all blended into the trophy that remained in the same hands. Everything has changed, everything has remained the same. The World Cup is returning to South Africa for the next four years and this group is considered one of the best to ever play the sport.

This will be the last time this Springbok team plays together. After this tournament, Jacques Nienaber goes to Leinster, others will retire.

But this evening, the Parisian sky was lit up with the green and gold of this magnificent team. “I wouldn’t change the scenario,” Kolisi said. Despite all the distractions, the various innovations, they always find a way to cross the line when it counts. Three one-point victories allowed them to advance to the round of 16, thanks to unrivaled mental strength.