Luck had little to do with victory

Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus said that luck played its part in his side’s historic win over the All Blacks in Wellington on Saturday‚ but luck had very little to do with it.

If anything, the Boks were unlucky on their way to a 36-34 win that shook the rugby firmament’s foundations and saved the Rugby Championship from another year of procession and coronation for the All Blacks.

“We are No 6 or 7 in the world. We still have to catch up to New Zealand‚ Australia and England‚” Erasmus said.

“There are so many teams ahead of us‚ there is no way we can get ahead of ourselves. This is one win against the world’s best team‚ with a bit of luck.”

Seldom‚ if ever‚ have the All Blacks gone into a Test against the Boks as such overwhelming favourites.

Nothing pointed to a Springbok win – from recent form to historical analysis.

Yet the Boks prevailed for only the fourth time in New Zealand in the professional era at the 24th time of asking.

They scored a record 36 points – more than any side in history has managed in a single game against the All Blacks in New Zealand.

They won despite conceding six tries‚ conceding 10 penalties to three and surviving a yellow card. There was no luck in this win.

Every inch was earned and every All Black mistake was forced through relentless Bok pressure. Make no mistake‚ the Boks were the unlucky side in this match – and still won.

In the build-up to Rieko Ioane’s first half try two minutes before the break‚ there was a clear knock-on‚ yet the try stood.

Referee Nigel Owens missed so much‚ such as a collapsed maul midway through the second half that should have been a Bok penalty.

Instead, play went on‚ and several phases later New Zealand scored through Ioane again.

What about an advantage for the All Blacks after a knockon by the Boks‚ that saw the All Blacks make 20m‚ only for Owens to say there was no advantage when the phase broke down? From the penalty and lineout the All Blacks scored again‚ with hooker Codie Taylor barging over.

Gutsy‚ desperate‚ skilful‚ belligerent‚ coherent and courageous yes. But lucky? No‚ despite Erasmus’s attempts at diplomacy.

It sounds ridiculous that a side which leaked six tries as the Boks did‚ could be commended for its defence‚ but that’s precisely the case.

The Boks made more than 200 tackles with indefatigable flank Pieter-Steph du Toit making a staggering 28 and lock Franco Mostert 23.

The only inkling of luck the Boks had was that All Black flyhalf Beauden Barrett missed four of six kicks at goal.

The All Blacks players and coach were at loggerheads on Sunday as they debated whether they should have attempted a potential match-winning drop goal in their upset loss to the Springboks in Wellington.

For the final four minutes of Saturday’s Test, and trailing by two points, the All Blacks unleashed an ultimately fruitless battering of the Springbok line in search of a try.

In the wake of the 36-34 loss, scrumhalf TJ Perenara maintained the on-field decision not to go for a drop goal was still the right call.

But coach Steve Hansen saw it differently.

“Should we have dropkicked a goal? Yep, of course we should have. And we had plenty of opportunity to and we didn’t organise ourselves,” he said. It was a decision which lit up social media, with rugby pundits overwhelmingly agreeing the All Blacks should have gone for the three points when they were on offer.

But with All Blacks kicker Beauden Barrett having an off night, and Damian McKenzie spilling the ball metres short of the line in the final play of the game, Hansen said the drop goal issue was not the reason they lost.

“With 10 minutes to go we could’ve won it twice over. We had plenty of opportunities, we just didn’t close it out and there’s the biggest learning,” he said.

“What have we got to do when the clock’s running down [and] the scoreboard’s against us?

“We’ve just got to take a big breath and do things right and be clinical and, if we’d done that last night, we would’ve won the game. But we didn’t.”

The Springboks were the first to admit luck was on their side, with Barrett missing four shots at goal and McKenzie dropping the ball when a try was possible.

But rather than fault the All Blacks, SA coach Rassie Erasmus praised them for continuing to search for a match-winning try when they trailed by just two points, time was up and a drop goal was the obvious solution.

“That’s New Zealand. They were going for the try, that’s the way they do things,” he said.

“It’s a compliment to them. “A drop goal is not the New Zealand way.”

Former Springbok coach Nick Mallett, who had predicted an SA loss, led global questioning of the All Blacks’s tactics saying he thought “New Zealand erred” by not taking the drop goal.

But the All Blacks said they weighed up all options and were preparing to take a shot at goal when they saw an overlap situation.

“The chat to set up for a drop goal, did definitely happen, but we get a picture that we back ourselves to score in,” Perenara said.

“And, looking back on it, I think it’s still the right call.”

It is not the first time the All Blacks have lost after putting a try ahead of a drop goal.

The last time was when France beat them 20-18 in the 2007 World Cup quarterfinal. – AFP