South Africa felt series against All Blacks in the balance until close to the end
South Africa's Springboks defeated the All Blacks in a rugby test match held in the United States. Coach Rassie Erasmus noted the match remained competitive until the final minutes, highlighting the growing global interest in the sport.
Why it matters
The event marks a strategic effort to expand rugby's commercial reach in the US ahead of the 2031 World Cup.
Coach Rassie Erasmus says he was not confident of victory until the last stages of the final clash , staged in the United States yesterday.
New Zealand had won the opening test in Johannesburg last month in a blistering start to the six-week tour, but the world champion Springboks bounced back to win the next two games and make sure they could not lose the series.
But an All Blacks victory in Baltimore would have made it 2-2 and seen the spoils shared, and New Zealand fought back strongly in the second half.
"In minute 70, I thought it was still in the balance. In the end, we came out winners because we had more points on the board, and that's probably the most important thing," he told the post-match press conference.
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