SOUTH Africa hung on to beat New Zealand in a tense 2023 Rugby World Cup final at the Stade de France in Paris, and in doing so they became the first side to win the tournament for a fourth time.
The All Blacks entered the contest as slight favourites following a comprehensive 44-6 victory against Argentina, while the Springboks reached Saturday’s showpiece event after a last-minute penalty secured them a narrow 16-15 win over England.
South Africa’s Bongi Mbonambi suffered a nightmare start to the match as a knee injury forced the hooker off after only four minutes, four years after he lasted only 20 minutes in the 2019 World Cup final. New Zealand’s Shannon Frizell was shown a yellow card for causing Mbonambi’s injury, but worse was to come for the All Blacks when captain Sam Cane was sent off for a dangerous tackle on the Springboks’ Jesse Kriel, and South Africa led 12-6 at half-time.
A Beauden Barrett try pulled New Zealand back to within one point of their rivals, but the All Blacks couldn’t find anything more, and they went down 12-11 as the Springboks retained their crown.
South Africa become kings of rugby with dramatic World Cup win over greatest rivals
In a Rugby World Cup that has treated us to some of the greatest matches the tournament has ever seen, the final provided the most fitting of conclusions. It won’t be remembered as a beacon of error-free perfection but the two greatest rugby nations on earth combined to produce a showpiece that was unbelievably compelling in its flaws and delivered almost impossible drama until the very last second.
South Africa and New Zealand entered as three-time winners of this tournament, a storied rivalry dating back over a century, a previous final that produced the sport’s most iconic image and with the victors able to seize a record fourth title and arguably the moniker of undisputed champions. Somehow, someway the Springboks prevailed 12-11 in a ludicrous finale and confirmed themselves as the ultimate tournament animals.
Long live the kings.
New Zealand 11-12 South Africa: All Blacks captain Sam Cane’s first-half red card proved decisive as the Springboks became the first four-time winners of the men’s Rugby World Cup – www.independent.co.uk
