As it happened: Boks v NZ

  SPRINGBOKS 27-38 ALL BLACKS 

Commentary by Sport24's Herman Mostert

19:35 - PICTURE

Man of the Match Kieran Read in full flight (Getty Images).

19:17 - ANALYSES

There's no doubt that the Springboks were beaten by a better side - and clearly the best team in the world - but some crucial areas really cost them tonight.

Their defence was not up to scratch and all of New Zealand's tries came from Springbok players missing one-on-one tackles.

The Boks also made 17 handling errors - which is unacceptable at Test level and their tactical kicking and kick-off retrieving skills also need to improve.

On the positive side, the Boks showed that they can score some tries - and four tries against the All Blacks is no mean feat.

The Boks were also superior in the scrums and if they can sort all the negatives out, then they can be a real force against the Kiwis in future.

They are certainly on the right track...

19:16 - CLICK HERE for a full match report.

19:15 - FANS ON WHERE THINGS WENT WRONG FOR THE BOKS

Terrible under the high ball, sloppy defence, lots of tackles missed. And Zane Kichner! Wtf? Seriously!? I can think of about 100 better fullbacks - Stuart Grobbelaar

When they take out the brothers its we're they GO WRONG - Mukovhe Mudau

Boks defence is weak at the best of times!!.I say Nick Mallet for coach..he can do a better job than Meyer! - Adrian Wagner

Soft tries through mistakes made,substitutions , JJ Engelbrecht ,Kirschner,some individual errors... - Alwin Rowan Gertse

Fantastic Rugby....Springboks were good ....BUT....the All Blacks .....well....they are outstanding...amazing to watch...Congrats !!!!! - Shelagh Lahoud

The second half when the repalcements came on. it was as if the Boks stop playing!! Defence was not up to standard - Hester de Jong

When they took off Bismarck and crap defence..... - Naas du Toit

19:11 - QUOTES

"Rugby is a game of attack and defence. Unfortunately our defence wasn't up to it tonight," said Bok skipper Jean de Villiers.

“We had to dig pretty deep. The momentum was against us (at one stage). But in situations like that you’ve got to hold onto (your) belief and we did that,” said All Black skipper Richie McCaw.

19:10 - MAN OF THE MATCH

All Black No 8 Kieran Read had a stellar game.

19:08 - TWEETS

All rugby players supporters & aspiring rugby players, that game is why we play Rugby.. It had everything! #RealTalk #SpringboksVsAllblacks - Quade Cooper

Must be said, outstanding performance by @Nigelrefowens I thought. Big pressure and he kept cool, calm and collected, made it a spectacle!!! - Gary Gold

19:03 - But the All Blacks turn over possession and launch one last attack themselves. Play is halted and it's all over. FINAL SCORE: South Africa 27-38 New Zealand.

19:02 - Both sides playing to the bitter end now as the Boks try to run it from inside their own 22m area with seconds remaining...

19:00 - The Boks launch an attack inside the NZ 22m area, but another knock-on sees possession given away...

18:56 - Willie le Roux intercepts and runs 50m to score in the corner! Referee Owens wants to check though. It's NO TRY - some brilliant cover defence from Beauden Barrett pushed Le Roux's foot in touch... That was probably South Africa's last chance with only four minutes left.

18:55 - The Springboks are losing a fair few lineouts now with Adriaan Strauss on... Five minutes left...

18:53 - TWEET

Sorry but no player goes out on the field to make mistakes. Shame on you all who boo Zane Kirchner - Brenden Nel

18:51 - Pat Lambie and Ruan Pienaar on for Zane Kirchner and Fourie du Preez respectively. The crowd boos Zane Kirchner off...

18:50 - CROWD ATTENDANCE

60 634 fans at Ellis Park tonight.

18:48 - Helter-skelter stuff now as the Boks try to run from everywhere. Maybe the altitude will catch up with the All Blacks now? 11 minutes left.

18:46 - PICTURE

An injured Bryan Habana watches on in despair (Getty Images)

18:44 - Barrett adds the CONVERSION. SA 27-38 NZ after 65 minutes.

18:43 - TRY! Kieran Reid scores under the posts after a break on the short-side by Savea. Heartbreaking for the Boks who have a one-man advantage as well.

18:40 - YELLOW CARD for All Black prop Ben Franks for a swinging arm against a Springbok head. Could just as well have been red?

18:38 - Confusion here as the All Blacks bring on Dane Coles - who was not on their team sheet. The All Blacks confirm it was a typo from their team manager and the referee allows Coles to stay on. Keven Mealamu was on the team sheet handed out before the game.

Jean de Villiers has a bit of a chuckle and says points will be deducted from the All Blacks afterwards... Maybe he has a point???

18:36 - CONVERSION by Barrett. SA 27-31 NZ after 61 minutes.

18:35 - PICTURE

BONUS POINT TRY. Beauden Barrett scores and ends South Africa's hopes of winning the Rugby Championship (Getty Images).

18:35 - TRY! Barrett breaks the Bok defence and Bok hearts. That's the bonus point try and the Rugby Championship for the All Blacks. Simply poor midfield defence from South Africa.

18:34 - Crucial error from Zane Kirchner as he kicks the ball directly into touch from the ensuing kick-off. One area where the Boks have been terrible today was the way they handled retrieving kick-offs.

18:33 - Steyn misses the tough conversion. SA 27-24 NZ after 59 minutes.

18:32 - TRY!!! Jean de Villiers barges his way over to score the bonus point try for South Africa. Game on, Rugby Championship on! The skipper comfortably shrugged off Nonu and Barrett there...

18:31 - Boks back deep in the NZ half now...

18:29 - PENALTY kicked by Barrett. SA 22-24 NZ after 55 minutes.

18:28 - No try given. A great try-saving tackle from Kolisi to keep SA's hopes alive to win the competition.

But the referee goes back for a penalty and replacement Beauden Barrett will line up from in front... Great commitment from Kolisi though!

18:26 - Ma'a Nonu nearly goes over under the posts after a brilliant break from Julian Savea down the touchline... The TMO must make the call...

18:25 - Gurthrö Steenkamp also on for the Beast now... Big call from Heyneke Meyer to replace his whole front row.

18:23 - A brilliant turn-over from Brodie Retallick brings relief for the All Blacks...

18:22 - Is this the right substitution?

Adriaan Strauss on for Bismarck du Plessis. Coenie Oosthuizen also on for Jannie du Plessis.

18:21 - A massive Springbok scrum puts pressure on NZ scrumhalf Smith and the Boks turn the ball over. Attacking scrum coming up...

18:19 - End-to-end stuff as the Boks nearly score after JJ Engelbrecht brilliantly runs down the touchline to set up Willie le Roux who almost scores, but Le Roux unfortunately knocks the ball on just before the tryline. Referee Nigel Owens wants to check for a dangerous tackle from Kieran Read but the TMO says it's fine - and it looks fine I must add.

18:17 - With Messam now off, it's important that the Boks cash in during this period!

18:17 - Steyn CONVERTS and the Boks are back in front. SA 22-21 NZ after 47 minutes.

18:16 - TRY! Willie le Roux darts his way through after a quick tap from the Boks.

18:15 - YELLOW CARD for Messam after he cynically concedes a penalty. Finally a ref punishes an All Black appropriately!

18:12 - Enterprising start to the second half by the Boks. Two good breaks by Kolisi and De Villiers see them surge up field and into All Black territory. A Steyn penalty sets up an attacking five-metre lineout.

18:09 - Steyn gets the second half underway...

18:07 - QUOTE

"We want to control territory a bit better and get out of our own half," says Bok forwards coach Johan van Graan.

18:04 - FANS' VIEW ON FIRST HALF

Where is the defence?!?!?!?! - Kelly Megan Fairbairn

Boks are missing too many tackles. mark your man and take him down - Jonty de Coning

We lacking on defence n the all blacks are too fast - Shepherd Shapiro Gonye

We need to wake up on defence! - Barry O'Donoghue

Absolute Crap. No hope in hell. Too too much wrong with the basics. Watch how the AB play the game vs the slowness of the Bokke - Verrall Knott

18:03 - QUOTE

"That last try (before half-time) was a tragic give-away," says in-studio SuperSport pundit Nick Mallett.

18:00 - On the positive side, the Boks are dominating in the scrums and certainly look like they can score some tries. If we can't stop the Kiwis from getting bonus points, then we must at least make sure we win the game - which still remains a real possibility.

17:57 - That last try just before half-time was crushing for South Africa. One more try from the Kiwis and they will secure the Rugby Championship.

But the Boks can only blame themselves. There are simply too many gaping hols in their defence...

17:56 - CONVERSION by Cruden and it's HALF-TIME: SA 15-21 NZ

17:55 - TRY! Messam scores his second try after the hooter after a concerted period of attack by the Kiwis. That is heartbreaking for South Africa. Too many tackles slipped by South Africa I'm afraid.

17:53 - Steyn clears after the scrum. One final attacking chance for the Kiwis before half-time.

17:49 - ANOTHER BIG BLOW FOR BOKS

A stretcher has been called for big Willem Alberts who injured himself while trying to make a big hit on Liam Messam. Siya Kolisi comes on to replace the Sharks hard-man.

17:47 - A messy lineout from the Boks but the All Blacks knock it on and South Africa will get a scrum on their own tryline 42 seconds before the break.

17:47 - A brilliant kick from half-way from Aaron Smith brings play to within five metres of the Bok tryline...

17:43 - Sigh. New Zealand out of jail as JJ Engelbrecht knocks the ball on... The All Blacks kick up-field...

17:42 - A great scrum from the Boks as they turn over possession.  Now we have an attacking scrum 10m out and five minutes before half-time.

17:40 - Great defence this time round from the All Blacks as they push the Boks back and win a turnover. And Hore gets away with murder!

17:39 - Hore again transgresses when he pulls the lineout maul down. Referee Nigel Owens now warns him he'll get a yellow card next time round. This should have been yellow already though!!!

17:37 - Boks on the attack inside the All Black 22m area... They win a penalty and De Villiers opts to take the five-metre lineout... That was a cynical penalty conceded by Andrew Hore. Yellow card would have helped!

17:34 - This game looks likely to open up which won't suit the Springboks, especially with the All Blacks already scoring two tries... two more for them and they win the Rugby Championship.

The Boks are simply missing too many first-time tackles - a stat that had me worried beforehand as well...

17:33 - CONVERSION by Cruden. SA 15-14 NZ after 26 minutes.

17:33 - TRY awarded to Retallick.

17:32 - Lock Brodie Retallick looks to have scored as the All Blacks hit straight back. The TMO must check for a possible knock-on...

17:31 - PICTURE

Bryan Habana pulls a "hammie". (Getty Images)

17:31 - TWEET

Habana off after 21min but given significance of what he did in those 20 he could yet be man of the match #Boks - Gary Lemke

17:28 - MASSIVE BLOW FOR BOKS

After scoring two tries, Bryan Habana leaves the field after pulling a hamstring. Jan Serfontein replaces him. Heartbreaking for Habana but he receives warm applause from the crowd.

17:27 - Fourie du Preez brings relief with an almost 80m kick down field.

17:26 - Another restart not controlled by the Boks. This could prove costly again...

17:26 - Steyn misses the conversion five metres from the touchline. SA 15-7 NZ after 20 minutes.

17:24 - TRY!!! Habana in for try No 2 after he chips through and gathers to race in to score after the Boks attacked from the ensuing kick-off!

17:23 - CONVERSION by Steyn. SA 10-7 after 18 minutes.

17:22 - TRY!!! Bryan Habana rounds off brilliantly after Duane Vermeulen breaks through in midfield to set his team-mate up... Vermeulen broke through like a centre there....

17:19 - TWEETS

The optimistic view would be that that ABs try quickly opens the game up ... - Rob Houwing

Poor tackling. Rush defence left the gap, Alberts couldnt catch Reid and great finish by Ben Smith. Try nr 8 for the season #boks #allblacks - Brenden Nel

17:18 - That was again poor defence by South Africa, but Juandré Kruger also has to take blame for dropping the ball at the kick-off to put the Boks on the back foot! Poor defence from Willem Alberts as well...

17:17 - PICTURE

Ben Smith races in to score. (Getty Images)

17:17 - Cruden CONVERTS. SA 3-7 NZ after 12 minutes.

17:16 - TRY! Kiwi flyer Ben Smith punishes the Boks as he races through to score. Great side-stepping! 

17:15 - Second consecutive kick-off scuppered by the Boks. Sigh...

17:14 - Steyn kicks the PENALTY. SA 3-0 NZ after 10 minutes.

17:13 - The Boks come so close to scoring but unfortunately a brain-freeze from Fourie du Preez when he kicks the ball away!!! The Boks get a penalty but Du preez was stupid there. It was the perfect chance to score an early try. Morné Steyn will line up though for poles though...

17:12 - Dominant first scrum from the Boks. Should have received a penalty there, but they'll get another go...

17:11 - A great attack by Willie le Roux sees the Bok flyer almost in at the corner. Kiwi No 9 Aaron Smith rescues the situation though but it's a five-metre Bok scrum!

17:10 - It's a bit of a ding-dong kicking affair early on, but the Boks did well to overcome a fast start by the All Blacks. Still no points after six minutes.

17:08 - The Boks are already making too many poor tactical kicks - that's just ammunition for the dangerous Kiwi backs...

17:07 - Bryan Habana misses a chance to score an opportunistic try after the All Blacks drop the ball. But he sadly couldn't gather after kicking up field...

17:04 - Strong start by the All Blacks as they attack ferociously inside the Bok 22m area... The Boks failed to gather the first kick-off. JJ Engelbrecht was the man who failed to control the kick-off after the All Blacks kicked to the "wrong" side.

17:03 - Aaron Cruden gets the game underway... The Rugby Championship is up for grabs!

17:02 - TWEET

Now this is a crowd and that is the way you sing the anthem - nothing to beat a full, heaving Ellis Park - pity tho about "ole" over haka - Dan Retief

17:01 - The haka is hardly heard inside the stadium as the crowd chants 'ole, ole, ole'...

17:01 - Liam Messam leads the All Blacks' haka...

16:59 - Bok coach Heyneke Meyer as always the most passionate when singing the national anthem...

16:58 - Katlego Maboe sings Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika.

16:56 - Local singer Jay sings God defend New Zealand.

16:54 - Beaaaaaaaast!

Tendai Mtawarira leads the Boks out for his 50th Test match, followed by skipper Jean de Villiers and the rest...

16:54 - Richie McCaw leads the All Blacks out in front of a packed crowd. Interestingly this is the All Black captain's first Test at this ground!

16:49 - PICTURE

Brilliant fly-over with Go Springboks message to inspire our boys ahead of their clash against @allblacks - South African Rugby

16:46 - TWEET

John Smit on Ellis Park: "It’s no secret that [opposing teams] feel like they are stepping into a lost valley in hillbilly country." - Clinton van der Berg ?

An airplane has just flown over Ellis Park Stadium, as happened when the Boks beat the Kiwis 15-12 to win the 1995 World Cup final at this very ground!

Will this be another magical day for the Boks? Send your thoughts to: news@sport24.co.za

16:33 - English rugby commentator Stuart Barnes, who is at Ellis Park to do commentary for Sky Sports, believes the Springboks have a superior tactical kicking game with Fourie du Preez and Morné Steyn among their ranks. This could sway things in the Boks' favour.

However, it's of utmost importance that the Boks kick smart today, and not aimlessly like they did at times in the Auckland Test a few weeks ago.

But Fourie du Preez wasn't playing at Eden Park and his presence will be massive today! He is clearly a class above Ruan Pienaar...

16:28 - PICTURE

Ellis Park filling up nicely now - Marco Botha

16:18 - The general consensus is that the Springboks must first build an innings early on. Therefore, take their early kicks at goal to first try and build a lead, before possibly having a go at the four tries late in the second half if they feel comfortable they'll win the game.

Just running from everywhere would just play right into the All Blacks' hands. Their back trio of Israel Dagg, Ben Smith and Julian Savea are extremely dangerous on counter-attack and could punish the Boks severely...

16:11 - PERMUTATIONS

Just in case you're still wondering, in order to win the Rugby Championship, South Africa must beat New Zealand with a four-try bonus point and at the same time prevent the Kiwis from getting any bonus points themselves.

A tall order indeed, but the last time these foes clashed at Ellis Park, the Boks achieved exactly that when they won 40-26 in 2004.

16:08 - FANS GETTING READY TO BACK THE BOKS

Shaun Vos (Facebook)

Juliet Notley at Ellis Park (Facebook)

15:57 - WEEKEND CURRIE CUP RESULTS

Saturday:

Western Province 36-23 Golden Lions - MATCH REPORT

Griquas 21-52 Free State Cheetahs - MATCH REPORT

Friday:

Blue Bulls 16-18 Sharks - MATCH REPORT

14:54 - PICTURE

The calm before the storm! - Stefan Terblanche

13:36 - READER THOUGHTS - Tinus Willemse

I hope that the referee will be wide awake to see and identify the blatant negative spoiling tactics of the All Blacks. I am almost certain that the AB's dedicate at least 30% of their training sessions to practice their spoiling tactics, because they are masters and great cheats to exploit the rules in an unfair manner to their own advantage.

With this in mind, there is hope for the Bokke to beat the AB's, if we are given a fair playing field.

On paper and player for player, the Springbok's are a match for the AB's if not better in certain positions, but sometimes our decision making at 9 and 10 leaves a sour and bitter taste in the mouth because they tend to kick away precious possession aimlessly.