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Boks accused of time wasting

Cape Town - The All Blacks say the Springboks feigned injury in a bid to slow the game down in their Rugby Championship Test in Wellington at the weekend.

As it happened: Springboks v All Blacks

The All Blacks won the Test 14-10 but survived a massive scare against a committed Springbok outfit.

No 8 Kieran Read and captain Richie McCaw voiced their concerns to referee Jerome Garces during the Test, and Read spoke on the topic after the match. He believed the Springboks used stoppages as a ploy to nullify the All Blacks' high-tempo approach.

"There were probably a lot of stops in the game, which took away from the physicality all the time," Read was quoted as saying on the Sydney Morning Herald website.

"We wanted to play a tempo game. I think the way they play, they want to play at their pace. I was probably letting my feelings known to the referee when they went down. Hopefully they (officials) can sort it out next time."

While it was not clear which incidents the All Blacks were referring to, Bok prop Jannie du Plessis did go down with a contact lens issue, which halted play for a while.

It was not the first time the All Blacks had accused the Boks of time-wasting. Following a Test in 2006, then-coach Graham Henry said Springbok players simulated injuries, before accusing South African Super Rugby teams of using the same tactic against their Kiwi counterparts.
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