South Africa vs. New Zealand: Winners and Losers from Rugby Championship Clash

South Africa ended the Rugby Championship without the silverware but something they craved even more: The All Blacks’ scalp is sitting on their mantelpiece after a titanic struggle at Ellis Park.

This was the rugby equivalent of Hagler vs. Hearns, except these two threw bombs at each other for 80 minutes, not three.

In the end, Heyneke Meyer’s men had to win this game twice. The Springboks have the long–range boot of replacement fly–half Pat Lambie to thank, who nailed a 50-metre penalty with a minute left to wrench back a game that looked as though it had been stolen by the world champions.

If you had one wish for the 2015 World Cup, it would be that these two can provide this sort of spectacle in the final.

We have seen dour contests get smothered by the nerves of the occasion for the last two tournaments, while in two straight seasons we have seen the denouement of the Rugby Championship serve up end-to-end rugby played by the two best sides in the world.

Here's hoping the showpiece in England next year lives up to this standard.

It's time to draw breath and pick the winners and losers from South Africa's 27-25 victory.

Winner: Handre Pollard

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The young man may have missed his first penalty attempt, an easy shot on seven minutes. But that was just about the last bum note the No. 10 struck all evening.

Pollard He sparked the move that led to the Boks’ first try. He had the cool head to decide to run from his own 22–metre area, beat his man and set the ball up, and his team-mates went from there.

He then scored two first–half tries, first spotting a mismatch of forwards in front of him and slicing through, and then stepping Aaron Smith and rolling through the tackle of Richie McCaw to reach for the line.

Heyneke Meyer’s faith in the 20–year–old has been repaid in spades.

Winner: New Zealand’s Belief in the Basics

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The All Blacks had not held the lead until the 71st minute of the contest, but the second half had virtually been all one-way traffic.

When the moment came for them to move in front, they seized it thanks to their long–heralded ability to do the basics well.

A series of phases had finally led to an overlap on their left side, but to take advantage of it required a combination of front- and back-row forwards to execute their passes to perfection.

Steven Luatua, Richie McCaw, Charlie Faumuina and Kieran Read all did that brilliantly, and the ball arrived with Dane Coles, the hooker roaming the wing, to finish like a man with No. 11 on his back.

For all of Julian Savea’s skills and Malakai Fekitoa’s dancing feet, the basics done well by players out of position were what got the All Blacks into a winning position.

Winner: Bismarck Du Plessis

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The hooker was recalled for this Test and justified his selection with a world-class performance.

He was only on for 50 minutes but packed them with a huge work rate at the breakdown and with the ball in hand. He was also accurate at the lineout.

His departure coincided with a drop in intensity from the home side and a period of sustained pressure on the South African line.

Winners: Boks Win the Back-Row Battle

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It takes some doing to outshine the pair of Richie McCaw and Kieran Read.

But in Johannesburg, they were put in the shade by the performances of Duane Vermeulen and Marcell Coetzee. Vermeulen was monstrous in the tackle and carried the ball with venom throughout.

Coetzee spent the match doing a passable impression of a human stick of dynamite, planting himself at the base of several All Black breakdowns and runners and detonating their attacks.

Notably, he was the man under the pile of bodies right on the South African line, denying the All Blacks a try that would have got them back in the hunt with plenty of time left on the clock.