Stade de France 2023: South Africa 12 New Zealand 11

SA CHAMPIONS FOR FOURTH TIME

South Africa clinched a record fourth Rugby World Cup title with a 12-11 backs-to-the-wall victory at the Stade de France against New Zealand, doing just enough to deny the 14-man All Blacks and retain their crown in a helter-skelter Paris final.

The Springboks seemed to have control of the game when, with Handre Pollard’s boot having already given them a 9-3 lead, All Blacks skipper Sam Cane caught Jesse Kriel high in the 27th minute and was sentenced to a red card on review.

Cane was initially yellow-carded for a high tackle on Kriel, but after awarding the penalty referee Wayne Barnes relayed the news New Zealand supporters had been dreading… due to “a high degree of danger and no mitigation” the flanker would not return to the field.

The resulting Pollard penalty left New Zealand trailing 12-3 and a man down. So, at nine points behind they were deep in trouble. But you can never write the All Blacks off… they rallied and rode all the luck they could muster to drag themselves back into the game.

A Richie Mo’unga penalty before the break cut the deficit to six points and Beauden Barrett scooped up a loose ball and slid in after the interval to cut the Springboks’ lead to 12-11.

But despite both teams pushing for a decisive score in an enthralling final quarter neither side found one, with Jordie Barrett missing a long-range 73rd-minute penalty and the Springboks clinging on for a third successive one-point victory in the knockout stages.

So South Africa, without scoring a point in the second half, retained the Webb Ellis Cup with captain Siya Kolisi lifting the trophy for the second consecutive tournament.

South Africa: Damian Willemse; Kurt-Lee Arendse, Jesse Kriel, Damian de Allende, Cheslin Kolbe; Handre Pollard, Faf de Klerk; Steven Kitshoff, Bongi Mbonambi, Frans Malherbe, Eben Etzebeth, Franco Mostert, Siya Kolisi (c), Pieter-Steph du Toit, Duane Vermeulen. Replacements: Deon Fourie (for Mbonambi), Willie Le Roux (for Willemse 66), Ox Nche (for Kitshoff), Jean Kleyn (for Etzebeth), RG Snyman (for Mostert), Jasper Wiese (for Kolisi), Kwagga Smith (for Vermeulen). Coach: Jacques Nienaber
Scorers: Pens: Pollard (4)

New Zealand: Beauden Barrett; Will Jordan, Rieko Ioane, Jordie Barrett, Mark Tele’a; Richie Mo’unga, Aaron Smith; Ethan De Groot, Codie Taylor, Tyrel Lomax, Brodie Retallick, Scott Barrett, Shannon Frizell, Sam Cane (c), Ardie Savea. Replacements: Anton Liernert-Brown (for Jordan), Damian McKenzie (for Mo’unga), Finlay Christie (for Smith), Tamaiti Williams (for De Groot), Samisoni Taukei’aho (for Taylor), Dalton Papali’i (for Retallick). Coach: Ian Foster
Scorers: Try: B Barrett Pens: Mo’unga (2) Sent Off: Cane (27)