Rugby World Cup: South Africa surge to glory

Sat 02 November 2019:

In the end it appeared to be written in the stars. Every 12 years South Africa have an unerring habit of winning Rugby World Cups and they have done it again, following up their triumphs of 1995 and 2007 with another prodigious display of power and might. The image of Siya Kolisi, the first black captain to collect the Webb Ellis Cup, raising the trophy is set to become as treasured as any picture in Springbok history.

Tries by wingers Makazole Mapimpi and Cheslin Kolbe and the goalkicking of Handre Pollard earned South Africa their third Rugby World Cup title on Saturday as the flyhalf kicked 22 points to secure a 32-12 victory over an error-strewn England.

South Africa led 12-6 at halftime through four Pollard penalties with Owen Farrell replying for an England team who had been bossed in the scrum, having lost injured prop Kyle Sinckler after three minutes, and who committed a series of handling errors in a ragged 40-minute display.

South Africa, playing with far more ambition than in their semi-final win over Wales, kept up the pressure in the second half as England struggled to build any sort of momentum and Pollard nudged them 18-12 ahead after an hour.

The Springboks then scored their first try in three World Cup finals when Mapimpi broke clear in the 66th minute, chipped ahead and collected the ball back from Lukhanyo Am, and recalled winger Kolbe then blasted through to put the gloss on a deserved win.

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