South Africa inflicted the heaviest defeat in New Zealand's Test rugby history, obliterating the All Blacks 43-10 in Wellington on Saturday. The world champions delivered a record-breaking performance that left players, coaches and commentators stunned at Sky Stadium.
The Springboks trailed 10-7 at halftime after debutant Leroy Carter scored for New Zealand. But the second half became a relentless assault as South Africa scored 36 unanswered points to complete the most dominant victory over the All Blacks in over a century of matches between the teams.
Cheslin Kolbe crossed for two tries, with Damian Willemse, Kwagga Smith, RG Snyman and Andre Esterhuizen completing the rout. Rassie Erasmus' side combined set-piece power with clinical attacking play to systematically dismantle their hosts.
Historic Performance
Sky Sports commentator Grant Nisbett called it "one of the great Springbok performances of all time" and said the All Blacks had "no answers to an onslaught". He described how South Africa had "completely embarrassed the All Blacks at Sky Stadium with a magnificent performance".
Former All Black Justin Marshall praised the Springboks' accuracy and intent. He said the performance showed South Africa "are not just a team that plays territory" but have "strike power in their backline" and can "play with pace and tempo".
According to Telegraph and Independent reports, the victory puts South Africa top of the Rugby Championship with all four teams now level on points. The title race has become wide open at the halfway stage of the tournament.
Emotional Context
Player of the match Damian Willemse dedicated the performance to former Springbok Bevin Fortuin, who died this week aged 46. He also supported coach Erasmus, saying: "Also our coach, coach Erasmus, who has been taking a lot of shots and been backing us as a team."
The victory came after South Africa had been beaten at Eden Park in the previous round, leading to criticism of both the team and Erasmus. The Wellington triumph provided the perfect response to their critics with a display that redefined what was possible against New Zealand on home soil.
Sources used: "WalesOnline", "Telegraph", "Guardian", "Independent" Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
