The All Blacks handed the Springboks a 33–16 defeat at Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg, ending South Africa’s long winning streak.
The victory gives the All Blacks a 1–0 lead in the four-match Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series.
The Springboks finished the match with 13 men following yellow cards for Marco van Staden and Cobus Reinach for playing the half-back and a deliberate knock-on, respectively.
André Esterhuizen scored the Boks’ only try, with Cheslin Kolbe kicking a conversion and three penalties.
Boks coach Rassie Erasmus acknowledged that the team played badly and committed too many errors.
“We didn’t play well. Against a class team like New Zealand, if you don’t convert, they give you a proper hiding.
“With hindsight, there were a lot of things we didn’t convert. I think there were two or three big moments when we let the game go away from us.
“Not because we wanted to or because we wanted to make those errors, but because New Zealand forced those errors on us by being intense and sharp,” said Erasmus.
Erasmus said the team had itself to blame for the defeat after committing too many errors against a world-class team like New Zealand.
“I think we were dominant in the scrums, but it doesn’t help you if you’re dominant in one or two parts of the game.
“The All Blacks were more dominant in most parts of the game.
“I’m not going to butter it up with that cliché and say we’re going to learn from this and get better.”
