A more emphatic declaration of World Cup intent there could not have been. As the All Blacks hauled themselves off the Twickenham pitch, battered, bruised and beaten by a record margin, South Africa were already looking at what was next. A fortnight before the tournament, and four years on from a triumph that united a nation, the world champion Springboks were back in business and had their eyes fixed squarely on a World Cup prize.
The 36-7 win counted for nothing tangible in the context of the tournament to come but the message was clear.
