Jason Pine: That All Blacks game was well worth the early alarm
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That was - without doubt - one of the great All Blacks performances in recent times.
The best since the last Rugby World Cup for sure, and probably the best since our win over Ireland in the 2023 quarter-final - it was well worth the early alarm.
Resilience and grit in equal measure, a triumph of soaking up pressure, taking some hits, and refusing to buckle, let alone break.
The 15 minutes after half-time may well be one of the most significant periods of All Blacks rugby in this entire World Cup cycle. They were absorbing pressure, withstanding wave after wave of attack and emerging unscathed.
South Africa average 5.5 points every time they enter the opposition 22; today it was 0.9 points. That is an absolute triumph of taking punches and staying in the fight.
Fabian Holland was immense. Remember he didn't play any rugby at all between the 23rd of November and the 24th of July - eight months out of the game with that shoulder injury, 80 Herculean minutes from him today on the high veldt.
Jordie Barrett is fast becoming the All Blacks' most important player. Two massive pieces of defence to deny Malcolm Marx and Jasper Wiese - he made 15 tackles all up, more than any other player on either side, and effected 5 turnovers, also a game-high. Jordie is now the rock upon which the All Blacks backline is built.
And the impact the All Blacks got from their front row reserves is also worth mentioning - George Bower and Fletcher Newell had really influential shifts today.
When David Kirk announced a coaching change at the start of the year, he talked about trajectory - at that time, it was a downward trajectory, or at best a plateau.
Since Dave Rennie took over, it has been trending upwards, and today it spiked skywards. He's transformed this team since taking charge, and has them back on track for next year's World Cup
Seven 7 wins from seven, with obvious, intentional, noticeable, crucial improvements during that time - Dave Rennie has now coached internationally against South Africa five times and won four of them.
Rugby Australia's decision to get rid of him in favour of Eddie Jones may well go down as one of the all-time great fumbles in rugby history.
A word on referee Matthew Carley; we're quick to criticise referees, but he was excellent. He remained calm and composed in that cauldron, and over-ruled the TMO twice. You love to see it, more of that please - referees who trust their instincts.
The respect South African crowds show the haka tells you an awful lot about them. Rassie Erasmus even took to social media ahead of the game to ask his nation's fans to stay silent during the haka, and they did.
While English and Australian supporters try to drown it out with Swing Low Sweet Chariot and Waltzing Matilda, the silence around that magnificent arena during the haka shows you why this rivalry is indeed the greatest one.
There is massive mutual respect between these two teams and their fans, who love their rugby, but can absolutely appreciate the greatness of the other and the history that has led us to this point
I said yesterday that we were about to find out how far apart the All Blacks and the Springboks are. On that evidence, the answer is not very far apart at all
And yes, there are work-ons for the All Blacks; 14 penalties conceded is too many, they still had a few problems with the aerial ball and South Africa will come back with a vengeance in Cape Town. But for today - for right now - enjoy it.
Because that display has most certainly pumped a fair degree of positivity into the veins of even the most pessimistic of All Blacks fans.
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