Petit Parisien - South Africa to play New Zealand in World Cup final after beating England

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South Africa to play New Zealand in World Cup final after beating England
South Africa to play New Zealand in World Cup final after beating England / Photo: FRANCK FIFE - AFP

South Africa to play New Zealand in World Cup final after beating England

South Africa will play New Zealand in next weekend's Rugby World Cup final after a late Handre Pollard penalty sealed a dramatic 16-15 win over England at the Stade de France on Saturday.

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History will be made as whoever wins the southern hemisphere duel next Saturday will be the first team to lift the Webb Ellis Trophy for a fourth time.

Owen Farrell hit four first-half penalties and a huge drop-goal to put England into a 15-6 lead, but a converted RG Snyman try brought the Boks back into the game, and Pollard was on hand to land the winning 49-metre penalty with three minutes to play.

Pollard, who once again proved the heartbreaker for the English having scored 22 points in the 32-12 victory in the 2019 World Cup final, came on after just half an hour of the match.

South African head coach Jacques Nienaber made a huge call in removing the ineffective and out-of-sorts Manie Libbok and replacing him with Pollard.

C.Barbier--PP