Handre Pollard’s Last-Minute Heroics Send Springboks to World Cup Final
In a heart-pounding encounter at the Stade de France on Saturday, Handre Pollard shattered English hopes with a 49-meter penalty kick just three minutes from the final whistle, securing South Africa’s spot in the World Cup final. The Springboks clinched a narrow 16-15 victory over England, with Pollard’s astounding match-winning kick ensuring their place in a fourth World Cup final, where they will face their long-standing rivals, New Zealand.
The match took a dramatic turn as England took an early lead of 15-6, dominating the game and maintaining control for the first 70 minutes. South Africa’s hopes were rekindled with RG Snyman’s crucial try. Snyman’s try came after South Africa opted for a penalty kick to the corner, and he rose to claim the line-out ball before powering through three England tacklers to score.
Handre Pollard, who had been substituted in just 30 minutes into the match for a struggling Manie Libbok, didn’t miss the opportunity to reduce the deficit to just two points with 10 minutes remaining.
In the closing minutes of the game, England was penalized by referee Ben O’Keeffe from New Zealand, who also officiated the Boks’ victory over France the previous week, for collapsing the scrum. Pollard, with a kick from just in front of the halfway line, confidently sent the ball between the posts, putting South Africa ahead for the first time in the match.
This victory propels the defending champions to their fourth final, where they will face either New Zealand or England, and the winner will become the first team to secure four World Cup victories.
In a replay of the 2019 final, England appeared to have turned the tables on South Africa with a stellar performance in challenging wet and windy conditions.
England started strongly, with Owen Farrell converting his first penalty opportunity just two minutes into the game after lock Franco Mostert was penalized for preventing the ball from coming out of the ruck. Farrell made no mistake from 35 meters.
Eight minutes later, Farrell was on target again, this time after a penalty against South African captain Siya Kolisi in the ruck.
Ahead of the game, South African coach Jacques Nienaber had emphasized England’s ability to exert control over matches, and that’s exactly what they attempted to do, with high kicks pushing South Africa onto the back foot and their swift “offensive” defense causing Springbok errors and turnovers.
South Africa managed to score their first points with a 40-meter penalty from Libbok, but his performance, better suited to dry, flat conditions, was off, leading to his substitution with Pollard.
The 2019 World Cup winner successfully converted his first penalty opportunity, but two more from Farrell on the other end meant England had a 12-6 lead at halftime.
South Africa returned for the second half two minutes before England and brought on Faf de Klerk for Cobus Reinach just 90 seconds into the half, restoring the half-back partnership that had won the Webb Ellis Cup in 2019.
Willie Le Roux, another experienced substitute, came close to scoring the first try 11 minutes into the second half. Cheslin Kolbe on the left wing collected a well-placed cross-kick from Pollard and attempted a chip through for Le Roux to chase. However, the kick was slightly too heavy, and the ball rolled dead.
Shortly after, Farrell extended England’s lead to 15-6 with a remarkable 48-meter drop goal. But South Africa is renowned for never giving up on a lost cause, and Pollard exemplified that spirit.
