A late try from centre Aaron Mauger gave New Zealand a hard-fought 30-23 win over South Africa in Durban and a crucial bonus point to put them in pole position for the 2002 Tri-Nations title, although the game will be remembered for all the wrong reasons after a fan raced on to the pitch and assaulted referee David McHugh midway through the game.
Mauger's late try in the second half secured the Kiwis' bonus point -- after they had scored three tries in the first half -- and put all the pressure on the Wallabies ahead of their meeting with the Springboks at Ellis Park in the final clash of the 2002 tournament.
While one has to feel sorry for the Boks, who had their chances in the second period, which they did not take, and some refereeing decisions going against them in the first half, the All Blacks held their nerve and finished the stronger of the two sides after a bizarre and embarrassing incident threatened to leave its mark on a match that proved to be very exciting at times.
The incident in the 43rd minute -- when a crazed fan ran onto the field and tackled Irish referee David McHugh as a scrum was about to form -- nearly soured the entire afternoon as play had to be held up for some time as McHugh was picked up from the ground and eventually replaced by England's Chris White, who, before then, was one of the touch judges.
Springbok skipper Corné Krige kept his troops in a huddle, trying to get them to put the incident of their minds, while All Black skipper Reuben Thorne and his team-mates tossed a ball about in the hope of staying focused on the match.
The scores were tied at 17-all when the oversized -- and clearly drunk -- fan managed to get onto the field of play, but the Boks seemed to be the stronger of the two sides after the hold-up.
A penalty from André Pretorius put the Boks ahead at 20-17 some 10 minutes after the hold-up, but an Andrew Mehrtens penalty, virtually from the re-start tied the scores at 20-all.
Springbok coach Rudolf Straeuli introduced Brent Russell and Johannes Conradie into the game -- shortly before the final quarter. Russell came on at fullback -- with Werner Greeff moving to inside centre and De Wet Barry leaving the field -- while Conradie replaced his provincial colleague Neil de Kock at scrumhalf
A sweetly struck drop-goal from Pretorius put the Boks back in front by three points, but Russell's dynamic running from the back set his fellow backs on fire soon after his arrival, only for the Boks' poor finishing let them down at crucial moments.
One instance saw Joe van Niekerk outpace the Kiwis down the right-hand touchline, after a well-timed pass from Greeff, but a great tackle from a New Zealand defender saw the ball spill forward before he could find his support.
The Boks hit the Kiwis hard for the next 10 minutes with Russell, Breyton Paulse and Marius Joubert asking questions of the New Zealand defence in their own half. But Reuben Thorne's men kept their heads before working their way back into enemy territory.
It did not take New Zealand long to force the equaliser (AJ Venter was the guilty man for pulling down a Kiwi line-out jumper), but the Kiwis managed to work their back into the Boks' territory very soon afterwards with a powerful run from tighthead prop Greg Somerville.
Andrew Mehrtens carried it further before opensider Richard McCaw was held up just before the Bok line. The TMO ruled a five-metre scrum and after Tana Umaga battered the Bok defence from close-in, the Kiwis recycled the ball one more time and went right, where Mauger had enough space to throw a dummy a touch down underneath the uprights.
Mauger's try gave the Kiwis their bonus point after their try-scoring account was opened early in the first half after the visitors were rocked by an early try from the home.
Neil de Kock, who was preferred to Johannes Conradie at No.9, got the Boks' try after James Dalton had created a turnover for South Africa in their own half. Barry carried the ball on, hit a half-gap before releasing Dean Hall, who handed off Reuben Thorne before racing down the left-hand touchline.
Hall eventually passed inside to Greeff, who linked up with De Kock, and Pretorius's conversion made it 7-0 before New Zealand fullback Leon MacDonald replied with his first Tri-Nations try.
MacDonald's try was as a result of some poor first-time tackling in the Boks' midfield, while further poor defence saw referee McHugh award a controversial penalty try to New Zealand just before the end of the first quarter.
New Zealand tore the Bok defence apart again, but a high-tackle from Barry and Joubert on their own tryline was ruled to have cost the Kiwis a try, hence the penalty try, which Mehrtens soon turned into a goal.
At 12-7 down the Boks chipped away at New Zealand's score -- firstly via a Pretorius penalty and then courtesy of a wonderful try from the latter after some good hands and vision from Joe van Niekerk.
The Boks had an earlier Breyton Paulse try disallowed -- after referee McHugh ruled that James Dalton had obstructed the All Black defenders, when he clearly had not -- and they fully deserved their try, only to lose composure one more time before half-time when a basketball-style pass from Tana Umaga put Doug Howlett away for another try just before the break.
Mehrtens missed the conversion, but both teams would have been satisfied with the 17-17 scoreline at the break. Little did they know, however, how the second half would begin ...
Man of the match: For the Boks, flanker Joe van Niekerk was superb, lock Jannes Labuschagne was his usual consistent self and winger Dean Hall was courageous. For the All Blacks, tighthead prop Greg Somerville, lock Chris Jack, flanker Richard McCaw, second five-eighth Aaron Mauger, and right-wing Doug Howlett were excellent. In the end though -- and for the second time in as many weeks -- our vote goes with the No.7 flanker from the losing side. Last week it was Richard McCaw, but this week South Africa's Johann van Niekerk wins the man of the match award. A wonderful attacking force for the Boks -- with his powerful running and clever off-loads -- and a more-than-capable defender, Van Niekerk's mature approach is another impressive part of his make-up. The man, known to us all as Joe, has come of age.
Moment of the Match: The Boks' start to the game was superb. Hall made a smashing run down the left-hand touchline and Greeff and De Kock did well to follow-up. However, the moment of the match belongs to Kiwi second five-eighth Aaron Mauger for his late try, which was eventually the difference between the two teams. Mauger troubled the Bok defence all day long with his probing kicks and varied play.
Villain of the Match: There is no doubt here. The fan who attacked Irish referee David McHugh was an absolute disgrace to South African rugby and rugby around the world. He did not belong on the field in the first place and while we may not have agreed with all of McHugh's decisions, an act like that was just unacceptable and it does not belong in this wonderful sport. Hopefully McHugh did not pick up a serious injury, while we can only hope that the man involved in the incident will be severely punished.
The Teams:
New Zealand: 1 David Hewett, 2 Tom Willis, 3 Greg Somerville, 4 Chris Jack, 5 Simon Maling, 6 Richie McCaw, 7 Reuben Thorne (c), 8 Scott Robertson, 9 Justin Marshall, 10 Andrew Mehrtens, 11 Doug Howlett, 12 Aaron Mauger, 13 Tana Umaga, 14 Caleb Ralph, 15 Leon MacDonald
Reserves: Sam Broomhall, Daryl Gibson, Mark Hammett, Byron Kelleher
Unused: Marty Holah, Joe McDonnell, Jonah Lomu
South Africa: 1 Willie Meyer, 2 James Dalton, 3 Lawrence Sephaka, 4 Jannes Labuschagne, 5 A.J. Venter, 6 Corne Krige (c), 7 Joe Van Niekerk, 8 Bobby Skinstad, 9 Neil De Kock, 10 Andre Pretorius, 11 Dean Hall, 12 De Wet Barry, 13 Marius Joubert, 14 Breyton Paulse, 15 Werner Greeff
Reserves: Victor Matfield, Faan Rautenbach, Hendro Scholtz, Bolla Conradie, Ollie Le Roux, Brent Russell
Unused: Adi Jacobs
Attendance: 52500
Referee: Mchugh/white c.(43)
Points Scorers:
New Zealand
Tries: MacDonald L.R. 1, Howlett D.C. 1, Umaga J.F. 1, Mauger A.J.D. 1
Conv: Mehrtens A.P. 2
Pen K.: Mehrtens A.P. 2
South Africa
Tries: Pretorius A.S. 1, De Kock N.A. 1
Conv: Pretorius A.S. 2
Pen K.: Pretorius A.S. 2
Drop G.: Pretorius A.S. 1
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