FULL-TIME, NEW ZEALAND 35-20 SOUTH AFRICA. No question about it, the All Blacks were the better team in all facets of the game… but the Springbok heart beat hard to fight for all they were worth and there were moments when it seemed like they could reel them in, but the Boks simply didn't look well drilled enough. Nonetheless, a great try and a superb game of rugby from both sides. Thank you for sharing the drama and excitement with us, and enjoy the rest of your sporting weekend!

Oh dear, that's not good! In an effort to restart play before the hooter the conversion from almost in front of poles is taken as a drop kick… but it smashes into the right upright and bounces back infield, denying the Boks two extra points.

TRY, SOUTH AFRICA, SMITH! 35-20; Boks press hard and Kwagga Smith breaks from the ruck and drives 15m through All Black tackles and forces his way over the line amid four All Black tacklers. Superb try, of course they want the TMO to look at five possible touchpoints, but the try stands!

Mo'unga misses his first kick of the night, pulling it to the left of the posts from 15m in from touch.

TRY, ALL BLACKS, MO'UNGO! 35-15; All Blacks with a penalty on the 5m… and the go blindside and it's that man Mo'unga who throws a dummy pass, breaks through the gap and slides in for the score.

All Blacks with a good drive work the ball to the Bok 5m and win a lineout.

Boks driving hard now, desperate to get three scores in to record an historic win… but seven minutes is a tough ask to score three times.

CONVERSION, NEW ZEALAND, MO'UNGA! 30-15; Mo'unga with a superb conversion from the corner… his boot is now making a big difference in this contest.

TRY, NEW ZEALAND, JORDAN! 28-15; Great crossfield kick from Barrett, bounces once near the corner before Jordan grabs it and crashes over in the corner. Good play from New Zealand but they will breathe easily… the Boks have had them on the run.

WOW! The Boks are up so quick now on the ALl Blacks, giving them no room to move, although the home side retains possession…

All Blacks running and driving, but unable to penetrate the Boks defence. This is turning into a classic encounter.

The All Blacks run their line again but the Boks are up on them, pressuring and hassling them, the All Black line looking ragged and disorganised… and they win a penalty on the Bok 10m, which is kicked into touch.

OOOOOH! Kolbe's conversion from the right touchline starts wide, curls in… and BAM! it hits the right upright and bounces back infield. So close to closing the gap to a single score.

TRY, SOUTH AFRICA, KOLBE! 23-15; The Boks are back in it after some superb running rugby capped by a 10/10 dive over the line from Kolbe.

Superb running from the Boks now, first right now left, the All Black defence strong but fighting for their life… the ball runs wide to Kolbe who gets it on the touchline, runs hard and leaps high as he heads over the tryline…

PENALTY, NEW ZEALAND, MO'UNGA! 23-10; Mo'unga makes it five from five with a great kick from the halfway line, blood oozing from a deep scratch near his eye.

All Blacks now driving at the Boks but the pressure is on them and they don't have quite as much time on the ball as in the first half… but the Boks are penalised on the halfway line and New Zealand are going for poles. Wow… that's a sign of being rattled, looking to push points from the boot!

Boks giving the All Blacks a lot of pressure now, and suddenly the home side isn't looking quite as assured as previously. But let's not ask the chickens to line-up just yet…

CONVERSION, SOUTH AFRICA, KOLBE! 20-10; Kolbe with the kick from 15 metres to the right of the poles… he slips as he kicks it… but it sails perfectly through the poles. Huge moment in the match as the Boks as right back in this contest!

TRY, SOUTH AFRICA, MARX! 20-8; Great driving by the Boks, allowing Marx to power over for the try. Great fightback!

Great work from the Boks to drive to the 5m, they win a penalty and kick into touch for the lineout… win the lineout ball and drive forward…

De Klerk took a knock and has been replaced by Grant Williams.

The scrum engages… Al Black line hoists the ball, Boks fumble but retain possession, kick forward and New Zealand have the ball. Hoisted, Springboks now running the ball… and the Boks win the penalty just short of the All Black 10m.

Both sides take turns running the ball, but the Boks win a penalty inside the All Black 10m… but De Klerk's touchfinder is too deep and it's an All Black scrum between the halfway line and their 10m. Wasted opportunity for the Boks.

Boks clear deep and All Blacks win their throw and run the line.

Springboks with scrum defending their own 5m line…

Springboks win a lineout, then the All Blacks win a line and run, driving to the Boks 5m… but the All Blacks are blown for a knock-on. Reprieve for the men in green and gold.

Kick-off! We're back underway in the second half, All Blacks kicking to South Africa but winning the ball back and running the line… 

Kick-off! We're back underway in the second half, All Blacks kicking to South Africa but winning the ball back and running the line… 

Kick-off! We're back underway in the second half, All Blacks kicking to South Africa but winning the ball back and running the line… 

HALF-TIME, NEW ZEALAND 20-3 SOUTH AFRICA. A dominating performance from New Zealand, powerful and forceful and with perfect control. The Boks have made errors and haven't been at their best, but have had two super attacks narrowly miss out on tries. Second half should be a monster… either the All Blacks will run away with it, or the Boks will come out renewed to show the man in black what rugby passion and skills are all about. Fingers crossed…

Boks drive, drive, drive… Etzebeth now drives over, powered by the spirit of his father… crashes over the line but it looks like it's held up… TMO… NO, TMO immediately awards a penalty to the All Blacks who clear and the ref blows for the half.

Drive, drive, drive go the Springboks, slowly driving forward against the ultra strong All Black defence… towards the corner Mapimpi gets the ball and a high tackle earns a penalty with the hooter gone… it's kicked into touch… the Boks win the lineout ball and drive, drive, drive…

Good play from the Boks now, running the line and driving into the All Black half… now pushing to their 22…

PENALTY, NEW ZEALAND, MO'UNGA! 20-3; Mo'unga makes it four from four with a solid kick.

Oh no! The Boks concede penalty on their 10m line and the All Blacks are looking to wipe off the Boks' three-point clawback…

PENALTY, SOUTH AFRICA, DE KLERK! 17-3; Faf opens the scoring for the Boks… another score before the break would slice this game open (um, a score for the Boks, that is!).

Great play! The Boks drive forward and win a penalty just short of the All Blacks 22. They're going to go for points from the boot.

Boks run the line to Kolbe, who takes two men down in the tackle, the Boks bring the ball out but the All Blacks win the ball as De Klerk tried to clean the ball out, and the All Blacks kick to touch.

All Blacks penalised in the line and the Boks opt for a scum inside their own half. Now would be a great time to strike back at the All Blacks.

NOT GOOD… the All Blacks snatch the Boks' lineout ball and kick downfield, winning good ground. Not good enough from the Boks.

All Blacks drive past the Boks 10m but concede the penalty, which Willemse clears upfield for a Bok throw.

New Zealand clear with a dropkick from their tryline… but Damian de Allende knocks on on the halfway line. The Boks have really been rattled and losing out on the try hasn't served to settle them.

Ooooooooh… that is going to be read about more in the papers. TMO says no… very tight call but for many eyes it seemed like Kolbe did ground it. Bitter blow for the Boks.

THAT'S IT! De Klerk releases the line and the backs and then the forwards drive and drive at the All Black line… De Klerk with a crossfield punt for Kolbe near the corner… he challenges Barrett for the ball, the New Zealander dropping it and Kolbe claiming the try… this is serious TMO time here…

The Boks win the ball and press hard, it's a bit scrappy but they still have the ball… now the ref blows and it's a Bok scrum a few metres inside the All Blacks 22… the Boks need to strike hard now…

BUT WAIT… the Boks steal possession and drive forward, excellent running down the left wing, they drive to the 22 and surge infield, and they win a penalty, which Willemse kicks into touch 10m from the All Black line… I think it's their line, it's the first time we've been there so it's not easy to recognise…

Well, what do you know… the All Blacks are driving forward hard, quick passing… good bursts…

Boks drive to the All Black 22… but are penalised for holding on the ground. Eina manne!

CONVERSION, NEW ZEALAND, MO'UNGA! 17-0; Richie Mo’unga nails his kick from the touchline. Good heavens, this is the All Blacks' night tonight there is no question about it. Most teams would be waving the white towels by now… Bok fans might be thinking that but the players have too much pride to play for. Can the Boks bounce back quick?

TRY, NEW ZEALAND, FRIZELL! 15-0; A stunning run down the right wing, brilliant hands… and Shannon Frizell is released and storms down the touchline, bursts through three Springbok challenges and thunders over into the corner for his second try against the Boks! Incredible play from the All Blacks.

Not a good sight for fans of the green and gold… the All Blacks are running the ball like the champions they are, excellent quick handling and driving…

… no try, the Boks have the scrum, Faf runs the line from their 5m and the ball is cleared to the halfway line. Super clearance from the Boks.

Now the Boks have been penalised in the scrum, and New Zealand kick midway between the 22 and 10m… win the lineout, drive forward and the ball is dotted down for a try, but the ref is certain the ball bounced forward… TMO is checking…

PENALTY, NEW ZEALAND, MO'UNGA! 10-0; Richie Mo’unga slots the penalty with ease.

Sloppy play from the Boks gifts the All Blacks a penalty near the Boks 22 and dead in front of poles.

CONVERSION, NEW ZEALAND, MO'UNGA! 7-0; Richie Mo’unga slots the conversion from under the posts. Perfect start for the All Blacks.

TRY, NEW ZEALAND, SMITH! 5-0; Incredible running and handling by the All Blacks, Will Jordan with a brilliant run down the right wing, gets to his feet after breaking through a tackle, drives forward and releases to Smith who just has to run through and dot down under the posts. A quite incredible try and what an opening passage of play to this match!

All Blacks run into the Boks 10m and drive through, stopped every few feet by a Bok tackle …

… but the Boks hold them up and launch a counter-offensive, Mapimpi chasing a long kick into the All Black 22 but the home side retains possession. It's a fiery opening to this clash. These are two class sides.

After winning the scrum the All Blacks run the line, kick into Bokke territory, with the kick returned… and then the home side ploughs forward…

Kick-off! The Boks kick off into Kiwi territory and this mighty battle is underway!

Here it is… the famed Haka… but the Boks are not phased. The man in green in gold want the real action, not little dances. Bring it on!

We've had the anthems… we've had the interviews and the pre-match reports. Now it's time for action… it's time for… The Haka!

The men in charge of keeping this match running smoothly are French referee Mathieu Raynal, assistant referees Angus Gardner (Australia) and Pierre Brousset (France). Our TMO will be Ben Whitehouse (Wales)

South Africa: 15 Willem le Roux, 14 Cheslin Kolbe, 13 Lukhanyo Am, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Makazole Mampimpi, 10 Damian Willemse, 9 Francois de Klerk, 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Franco Mostert, 6 Albertus Smith, 5 Lodewyk de Jager, 4 Eben Etzebeth (captain), 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Mbongeni Mbonambi, 1 Steven Kitshoff. Replacements: 16 Malcolm Marx, 17 Thomas du Toit, 18 Vincent Koch, 19 Rudolf Snyman, 20 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 21 Daniel Johannes Vermeulen, 22 Grant Williams, 23 Immanuel Libbok.

New Zealand: 15 Beauden Barrett, 14 Will Jordan, 13 Rieko Ioane, 12 Jordie Barrett, 11 Mark Telea, 10 Richie Mo’unga, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Ardie Savea, 7 Sam Cane, 6 Shannon Frizell, 5 Scott Barrett, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Tyrel Lomax, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Ethan de Groot. Replacements: 16 Samisoni Taukei’aho, 17 Tamaiti Williams, 18 Nepo Laulala, 19 Tupou Vaa’i, 20 Dalton Papali’i, 21 Finlay Christie, 22 Braydon Ennor, 23 Caleb Clarke.

However, the form book suggests that this is a match that the Springboks might just win by a handful of points… or perhaps even a pinprick of points. Either way this is sure to be a cracking Test and an immense rugby spectacle.

South Africa won 31-19 a week later at the Cbus Super Stadium in Australia, repeating the win at Mbombela Stadium a year later when they won 26-10… only to lose the following week 23-35 at the old Ellis Park Stadium.

New Zealand have won three of the last five Tests between the two rugby super powers. In 20199 they beat the Boks 23-13 in Yokohama, and two years later they won 19-17 in Queensland.

New Zealand have an incredible home record against the Boks, winning 33 of the 46 Tests, with three Tests ending in a draw.

The All Blacks have won 61 of the 103 Tests they have played against the Springboks. The Boks have won 38 times, but just 10 of those have been on New Zealand soil.

For the Boks, Jasper Wiese steps into the No 8 jersey, while Damian Willemse takes the key No 10 role. Willemse will need to be top of his game to pull the strings needed to unravel the All Black defence. Cheslin Kolbe comes into the wing and the Boks will be hoping he can have as explosive an impact against the All Blacks that hat-trick hero Kurt-Lee Arendse had last week against the Wallabies.

The All Blacks have named Will Jordan in the side in the No 14 slot. The winger has scored 21 tries in his 21 Tests. Mark Telea has been rewarded for his superb form in the Super Rugby season by getting a call-up on the other wing, where he is likely to prove a handful for Cheslin Kolbe.

A week ago the Springboks beat Australia 43-12 at Loftus Versfeld. The Boks have also won four of their last five games, along with suffering a 19-16 loss away to Ireland.

Last week the All Blacks demolished Argentina 41-12 away. They have won four of their last five matches, with the other result a 25-25 draw against England.

The match will have added emotion for Bok skipper Eben Etzebeth, as his father passed away earlier this week. Etzebeth will still take his place as leader of the side and he will no doubt be playing with added fire to honour his father, and his team will surely be right behind him playing for all they are worth to support their captain.

The All Blacks will be super inspired to beat the Boks in order to protect one of rugby's most impressive records: the last time the Boks beat the All Blacks in Auckland was back in 1937.

The Springboks will be buoyed after their big win over Australia last week… but now they face the All Blacks at Mount Smart Stadium in Auckland.

Good morning, afternoon or evening, where ever you are in the world of Rugby… welcome to our live coverage of the Rugby Union Rugby Championship clash between the two giants of world rugby, two classic old foes… it's the Springboks up against… THE ALL BLACKS!