Extra-special Springboks

World Cup final: All Blacks stretched beyond the limit as Stransky sparks South African celebrations

New Zealand 12 South Africa 15

Pens: Mehrtens 6, 14, 81 Pens: Stransky 10, 22, 90

Drop: Mehrtens 55 Drop: Stransky 32, 93

(after extra time)

THE carnival is over. But the memories of this stupendous day will remain for as long as rugby is played. It is, after all, impossible to have too much of a good thing, even after extra-time when the Springboks dealt the final blow with seven minutes remaining, Joel Stransky's unerringly struck drop goal sailing handsomely between the posts and carrying South Africa to the end of what has been an ecstatic journey for this new and wondrously united nation.

This was one of those days, rare in the annals of sport, when the majesty of the occasion was eclipsed by the mighty magnificence of the game. It was both a privilege and an honour to be present at what may well be a watershed in the game's history.

The All Blacks, who had carried the flag of spectacular adventure through this tournament, were finally uprooted by one of the most ferociously committed teams ever to take the field. The Springboks' game was based on a defence which was immovable and impenetrable and if there was some sadness among neutral observers that the All Blacks' spirit of enterprise had been halted short of the summit and rugby's greatest prize, there can be nothing but admiration for the Springboks' raging will to win.

For once, Jonah Lomu, the dark intruder into the private domain of so many opponents in this World Cup, was forcibly denied entry by the Springboks' tightly marshalled defences. Not only was he reduced to the ranks of the merely mortal, he showed all the human frailties of uncertainty and insecurity under pressure.

This was truly the heavyweight contest of the world, in which only the strong survive, and fought out by two sets of prize-fighters in the peak of condition. The sheer physicality of the exchanges reverberated around this great stadium, shaking it to its very foundations until, I swear, the earth moved.

For every jab by the All Blacks, there was a counter by the Springboks, and try as they might to break free from the host nation's ever-tightening grip, the All Blacks were unable to find a way through. Time and again, their attacking moves rippled left and right but on each occasion there was James Small, Hennie Le Roux, Japie Mulder and the incomparable Ruben Kruger to block their path.

But Stransky, the scorer of all the South Africans' points, with three penalties and two drop goals, was the man who made the plays and inspired the plot. His tactical kicking was flawlessly accurate and breathtakingly long. On a number of occasions, too, he made Josh Kronfeld look like a novice, leaving him leaden-footed and demonstrating the more subtle arts of fly-half play.

Opposite him, Andrew Mehrtens' burgeoning promise in his outfield play during this tournament has been in direct ratio to the increasing fallibility of his kicking and three times in good positions he missed with drop goal attempts, the final error - most crucially of all - in the dying minutes of normal time. Had he been successful, it would have been the All Blacks, not the Springboks, who would be bestriding the world.

There was, therefore, some rough justice that the winning points should be from Stransky's drop goal, hit with the calm confidence which had characterised his play. Disappointing though it was that this great occasion was not garlanded by a try, it could not detract from the entertainment of an even contest in which there was never more than three points separating the sides.

After they had circled each other warily during the opening exchanges, it was Mehrtens who put the All Blacks ahead with a penalty after the Springboks had been enticed into the offside trap. Even this early, it was clear that the All Blacks were not prepared to compromise on the continuously flowing style which had carried them to the final.

Glen Osborne, whose game veered wildly between the richly exotic and the abominably careless, broke savagely down the right. But for the first time the All Blacks were given little room to weave their mesmerising patterns. There were mistakes which became increasingly difficult to repair. By half-time, the Springboks led 9-6 with two penalties by Stransky and the first of his drop goals against a second Mehrtens penalty.

Yet it was the All Blacks who looked the stronger throughout most of the second half. Ian Jones was a gigantic force in the middle of their line-out and, as they used Lomu as the decoy, there were gaps appearing for Osborne on the left flank. But still the Springboks' defence held firm and kept coming at the All Blacks. They even managed the odd breakaway for James Small and the eternally dangerous Joost van der Westhuizen. It was glorious to watch. Mehrtens dropped a goal from a beautifully controlled line-out to level the scores and that was how it remained at the end of 80 minutes.

Now it was a question of fitness and will-power. Mark Andrews, who had worked valiantly in his unaccustomed role at No 8, was in the final stages of exhaustion. So were a number of other Springboks forwards, their jerseys stained a darker shade of green by the sweat and toil of the battle. But if their legs were the heavier, their spirit was undiminished. Mehrtens and Stransky traded penalties in the first half of extra time. And then came Stransky's apocalyptic blow.

The old-fashioned virtues of solid forward graft and uncompromising defence, South Africa's trade marks during the years of world dominance before their isolation, have therefore carried the day and won the Webb Ellis Trophy. Yet to have achieved this goal in such a short time since their return to the fold is a remarkable feat and a tribute to their willingness to learn and to adapt to the game's requirements. It can only be hoped that those in charge of the game back in Britain have learned something from this World Cup and that they put it into practice before it is too late.

New Zealand: G Osborne (North Harbour), J Wilson (Otago), F Bunce (North Harbour), W Little (North Harbour), J Lomu (Counties), A Mehrtens (Canterbury), G Bachop (Canterbury), C Dowd (Auckland), S Fitzpatrick (Auckland, capt), O Brown (Auckland), I Jones (North Harbour), R Brooke (Auckland), M Brewer (Canterbury), J Kronfeld (Otago), Z Brooke (Auckland). Replacements: J Joseph (Otago) for Brewer, 40; M Ellis (Otago) for Wilson, 55; A Strachan (North Harbour) for Bachop, 66-71; R Loe (Canterbury) for Dowd, 83.

South Africa: A Joubert (Natal), J Small (Natal), J Mulder (Transvaal), H Le Roux (Transvaal), C Williams (Western Province), J Stransky (Western Province), J van der Westhuizen (Northern Transvaal), P du Randt (Orange Free State), C Rossouw (Transvaal), B Swart (Transvaal), K Wiese (Transvaal), H Strydom (Transvaal), F Pienaar (Transvaal, capt), R Kruger (Northern Transvaal), M Andrews (Natal). Replacements: G Pagel (W Province) for Swart, 68; R Straeuli (Transvaal) for Andrews, 91; B Venter (Free State) for Small, 98.

Referee: E Morrison (England)