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South Africa skipper Fourie Du Preez dived over for a late match-winning try to send Wales crashing out of the World Cup at Twickenham in the first quarter final of this year's competition.
Wales led 19-18 with just five minutes left on the clock when Duane Vermeulen picked from the base of a solid Springbok scrum, drew two defenders and threw a remarkable no-look offload to his captain who collected and crossed over over a decisive score which secured his side a spot in next weekend's semi final.
Dan Biggar set up Gareth Davies for the opening try of the match and proceeded to kick 14 points including five penalties and a drop goal, while Handre Pollard responded with a drop goal and five penalties of his own to set up a tense finish.
Wales started brightly and attacked with a lot of urgency and ambition. Biggar shone throughout the first 40 minutes and caused South Africa plenty of problems with an array of probing chips.
Waren Gatland's side went in at half time 13-12 ahead and confident they could claim only their third ever win over South Africa.
But the Boks responded with an immensley powerful display in the second half and Wales met the barrage of Springboks runners with some momumental defence as Sam Warburton, Dan Lydiate and Taulupe Faletau made a combined total of 55 tackles.
B ut the two-time World Champions ultimatley proved too strong for Wales as their skipper converted a sustained period of pressure into points late on to break Welsh hearts.
South Africa will now meet the reigning champions New Zealand at Twickenham next weekend in the semi finals.
So how did the players perform? Click on the gallery below to find out.
Show all 30 1 /30South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Tendai Mtawarira - 5/10 Solid and steady in the scrum against Lee but pretty anonymous in the loose when the rest of the Boks pack were working hard to breakdown the resilient Welsh defence. Looked typically shaky in defence and missed two straightforward tackles before being withdrawn early in the second half.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Bismark Du Plessis - 3 Conceded a penalty at the breakdown less than 30 seconds after kick off and was forced off soon after with a hand injury. Returned after treatment but was did not last long before being withdrawn permanently in the 24th minute.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Frans Malherbe - 7 Central to the Springboks solid set piece and very strong when he was called on to carry as he bullied his way over the gainline with a few tough trundles.
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South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Eben Etzebeth - 7 As imposing and physical as ever but certainly didn't dominate the muscular Welsh pack. Ran hard all afternoon to ware down the red wall and was always the first off the line in defence. But lost possession in contact on a few occasions.
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South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Loos De Jager - 7 Never shied away from grinding out some hard yards with the ball in hand but was clearly rattled by the aggressive Welsh defence and coughed up possession three times under pressure. However, he was typically strong in defence and at assertive at the lineout.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Francois Louw - 8 Grafted all afternoon doing the grunt work at the breakdown while the other Bok backrowers roamed around in the loose. Cleared potential snaffles with speed and ferocity and fought tenaciously to slow and steal Welsh ball at every opportunity.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Schalk Burger - 9 While Louw battled for everything on the floor Burger was always on hand to punch holes in the Welsh defence by carrying hard at first receiver and roaming around in the wide channels. Made no less than 11 carries over the gain line, hit everything in a red shirt that moved and made more tackles than any of his teammates. Deservedly awarded Man of The Match.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Duane Vermeulen - 8 Stormed his way over the gainline at every opportunity to make more metres (84) with the ball in hand than any other player of the pitch. Hunted down the dynamic Red Dragons with gusto and set up the match-winning try with an unbelievable offload.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Fourie Du Preez - 9 Calm, collected and steadfast throughout, even when Wales had many of his teammates rattled. Orchestrated all the Boks advances with authority, provided Pollard with an endless supply of pin point passes and kicked superbly out of hand. Crossed over for the winning try late on.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Handre Pollard - 8 Showed amazing composure for a 21-year old as he slotted penalties from every angle and under extreme pressure to amass 18 very important points. Harrowed the Welsh defence throughout and while he didn't manage to engineer many openings his aggressive approach ensured his side kept moving in the right direction.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Bryan Habana - 7 Always looked eager to get his hands on the ball as he regularly ventured off his wing to find work. But was left out in the cold for most of the match and given little room to run. However, Habana was immense in defence, completing a series important tackles when the Boks line was stretched. Forced two turnovers too. Will have to wait for a record-breaking 16th RWC try.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Damian de Allende - 9 Easily the best player in the Boks backline. Rarley failed to get his side onto the front foot as Wales struggled to deal with his hard lines and fast feet. He was solid in defence, and fought relentlessly for Welsh ball at the breakdown. Forced two turnovers too.
Steve Haag
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Jesse Kriel - 8 Explosive and industrious and made good ground with almost every carry as his skipped and squirmed through tiny gaps in the Welsh wall. Linked up well with Pollard and de Allende and proved very difficult to stop.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings JP Pietersen - 7 Typically solid under the high ball and made all the right decisions in defence. Showed a few glimpses of his attacking prowess but was well shackled by the Welsh.
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South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Willie Le Roux - 7 Struggled to cope with Biggar's array of well-executed probing chips early on and was too easily beaten in the air by the Welsh fly half in the build up to Davies' try. But eventually settled down and swept up well, using his fast feet and big boot to get his side out of trouble on several occasions. Always looked threatening when he joined the line and skinned a few Welsh defenders with ease.
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South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Gethin Jenkins - 7/10 Worked incredibly hard in the loose - as he always does - to make plenty of strong tackles and clear out South Africa pilferers. Looked strong in his scrum after receiving a lot of criticism about his set piece abilities in recent weeks.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Scott Baldwin - 8 Made a massive contribution in defence and confronted the barrage of Boks ball carriers with aggression throughout. Scrummaged well but a few wayward throws cost Wales some valuable field position.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Samson Lee - 8 Samson Lee Scrummaged brilliantly against the power of The Beast and looked to be back to his best after some poor performances in the pool stages. Hit hard in defence too.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Alun Wyn Jones - 7 The legendary lock was as physical and combative as ever, and worked hard to disrupt Springbok ball at the breakdown. Lead the defensive line from the front but his ill discipline cost his side points.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Luke Charteris - 7 Did the unthinkable by disrupting the Boks rolling maul and prevented the green machine from rolling over. But conceded some soft penalties and was lucky to escape a sin binning in the second half.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Dan Lydiate - 9 Worked relentlessly to fell colossal South African carriers behind the gain line and brought Warburton into play with his characteristic chops tackles. Topped the tackle chart with 21 in total.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Sam Warburton - 9 The Wales captain epitomised his side's monumental effort. Latched onto South African ball like a limpet on countless occasions and won four turnovers for his outstanding efforts. Never relented in defence and made 17 tackles.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Taulupe Faletau - 8 Carried with power and intent all afternoon and was rarely stopped short of the gain line. Tenacious and tireless in defence and equaled his captain's impressive tackle tally.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Gareth Davies - 8 Set the searing tempo of the Welsh attack in the first half with an unrelenting sense of urgency and swift service. Rewarded for his support play with a first-half try.
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South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Dan Biggar - 9 The fly half was outstanding from the off, he terrorised the Boks back three ealry on and exploited every inch of space with some deft kicks. Set up Wales' only try with a brilliantly executed chip and chase and kicked 14 points. But was forced off prematurely with a nasty concussion.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings George North - 8 Made a barnstorming break with his first run before being clawed down less than five metres short of the line. He went on to complete a series of explosive carriers and made more metres than any other Welshman with the ball in hand.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Jamie Roberts Made a lot of ground with his belligerent beeline runs but he also created space for the men outside him by cutting some clever dummy lines and throwing plenty of precise passes.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Tyler Morgan - 7 The 20-year-old never looked out of place hardly put a foot wrong. He coped well in defence against the power and precision of the Boks backline and made all of his tackles. Linked up well with Roberts on a few occasions but didn't make much of an impact with ball in hand.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Alex Cuthbert - 6 Put a poor run of form behind him with an exuberant performance. Cuthbert was a commanding presence in the air and he enjoy a few forays into South African territory. But was at fault for Du Preez's match-winning try.
South Africa 23 Wales 19 player ratings Gareth Anscombe Looked assured at the back and claimed every high ball with confidence. Carved through the Boks line early on and always looked threatening when he hit the line at pace.
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