Boks bite back in Dunedin
A sensational late score from Enrico Januarie gave South Africa a thrilling 30-28 Tri-Nations victory over New Zealand.
Last Updated: 14/07/08 10:32am
A sensational late score from Enrico Januarie gave South Africa a thrilling 30-28 Tri-Nations victory over New Zealand, ending the All Blacks unbeaten five-year home run in the process.
Scrum half Januarie conjured a wonderful individual try five minutes from time, jinking through the home defence before collecting his own kick ahead to tie the scores allowing replacement Francois Steyn to convert and seal victory - the Springboks' first-ever in Dunedin.
It was sweet revenge for the world champions who had gone down to a 19-8 defeat against the same opponents in the opening match of the tournament last weekend.
South Africa held a narrow 17-15 lead at the break thanks to a try from JP Pietersen, three Percy Montgomery penalties and a Butch James drop-goal.
However, they were forced to withstand a fierce fightback from the hosts for whom Dan Carter kicked six penalties, a drop-goal and the conversion to a try from substitute Sione Lauaki before claiming the spoils in dramatic style.
It was Carter who kicked the first points of the game on four minutes after Schalk Burger was penalised for high tackle and the lead was soon six as Joe van Niekerk was caught coming into the ruck from an offside position.
Montgomery was successful with his first shot on goal on 12 minutes but Carter responded in kind shortly afterwards as Juan Smith was pulled up for a late tackle.
Montgomery, who became the first South African to score 100 points against New Zealand during the game, restored parity with two quick penalties, only for Carter to edge his side back in front just before the half hour as hooker Bismarck du Plessis was caught offside.
The first try of the contest arrived after 32 minutes and was a result of Adam Thomson being forced to ground the ball over the try-line under pressure from Bryan Habana.
From the subsequent five-metre scrum, van Niekerk peeled off the back of the pack before releasing Pietersen who darted over in the corner to celebrate his 22nd birthday in some style.
Montgomery was unable to add the extras, but James found his range with a drop-goal before Carter brought the hosts back within two with virtually the last kick of the half.
Momentum
It was the All Blacks who seized the momentum after the restart with winger Rudi Wulf only denied a try by an adverse bounce, but the try their pressure merited did materialise on 56 minutes as Lauaki, only on the field for a couple of minutes, bulldozed his way over under the posts.
Carter added the conversion and slotted an opportunistic drop-goal, but two penalties from Butch James kept the South Africans within two.
A sixth and final penalty from Carter looked to given the hosts some breathing space at 28-23 heading into the final five minutes, especially as Boks skipper Victor Matfield had been sin-binned for a high tackle on Lauaki.
However, they had bargained without the brilliance of Januarie who stole the show with his stunning late intervention, with the visitors standing firm in the final few moments to record a memorable triumph.
