New Zealand claimed sweet revenge for last week’s defeat to the Springboks by winning 35-23 in a pulsating Rugby Championship clash in Johannesburg.
It looked as though they were heading for their fourth successive Test defeat when they went behind in the final quarter, having earlier led 15-0 and 21-13. But two late tries earned them the spoils in front of 62,000 fans at Ellis Park to ease the pressure on coach Ian Foster.
The All Blacks enjoyed the majority of possession in the first half and were much more potent with ball-in-hand than in Nelspruit last week, bringing both directness and a clinical edge. That saw them move into a 15-0 lead thanks to tries from skipper Sam Cane and hooker Samasoni Taukei’aho, with the score for flanker Cane particularly well-worked.
