NEW ZEALAND ARE on course to retain The Rugby Championship trophy after making an explosive start in their 35-20 win over South Africa in Auckland on Saturday.
Two months before the Rugby World Cup kicks off, the All Blacks grabbed early tries by Aaron Smith and Shannon Frizell to dominate early on.
Malcolm Marx and Cheslin Kolbe crossed as the Springboks fought back in the second half, before New Zealand’s Will Jordan and Richie Mo’unga touched down late tries.
Springboks flanker Kwagga Smith grabbed the visitors’ third try just before the final whistle.
With the championship reduced to three rounds, the All Blacks are set to retain the title, sitting top of the table having thumped Argentina 41-12 in their opening match.
“There were a lot of swings and roundabouts in the game, but the way we came through the challenges was something to be proud of,” said New Zealand coach Ian Foster.
“We stung them at the start with the tempo we played at.”
New Zealand captain Sam Cane saw a step up in performance from the away win in Argentina.
“We’re pleased to see improvement from last week, but we know we’ve still got a way to go from where we want to be,” he said.
The skipper played down the neck injury which saw him miss the second half: “It was just a precautionary measure.”
South Africa coach Jacques Nienaber said the world champions were punished for a poor opening spell.
“You can’t start like that. You can’t give away so many penalties and errors,” he added.
“I am proud of the way the guys came back in the second half, but we let it slip in the first 20 minutes.”
New Zealand dominated the opening half to lead 20-3 at the break.
Jordan was in dazzling form, creating the opening try after just five minutes by jumping to his feet quickly after a tackle, carving through the defence to put Smith over for a converted try. Mo’unga extended New Zealand’s lead with a penalty.
The Springboks barely saw the ball in the opening quarter of an hour as the All Blacks enjoyed more than 90% possession.
Jordan again made inroads up the middle before sending the ball wide where Frizzell bulldozed over South Africa full-back Willie le Roux to cross for their second try.
South Africa thought Kolbe had scored after an aerial tussle out wide with Beauden Barrett, but the referee judged the ball was knocked on.
Scrum-half Faf de Klerk landed a penalty as the Springboks needed 35 minutes to claim their first points, before Mo’unga slotted a second penalty just before half-time.
Springboks captain Eben Etzebeth, who played despite the death of his father earlier in the week, was held up just before the whistle.
After Cane failed to come out after the break, De Klerk also went off injured early in the second half with what appeared to be a knee injury.
South Africa grabbed their first try shortly after replacing their front row when replacement hooker Marx was muscled over by his pack.
After All Blacks prop Tamaiti Williams came on for his debut, Kolbe dived over in the corner for South Africa’s second try inside eight minutes.
Jordan touched down out wide for his 22nd try in as many Tests when he juggled the ball from a Beauden Barrett kick.
Mo’unga ghosted through the defence from a scrum to claim the All Blacks’ fourth try before Smith grabbed South Africa’s consolation third just before the whistle.
New Zealand face Australia away in a fortnight, in their final championship game, the same weekend South Africa host Argentina.
New Zealand and South Africa meet again at Twickenham on 25 August.
Updated with New Zealand and South Africa reaction at 11.18am.
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