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All Black rugby is beautiful. The lads from New Zealand have the sweetest passes, the most swerving runs by big men, and an unshakeable belief in their style come rain or shine.
As reigning world champions, ranked number one by the IRB, and undefeated at Eden Park since 1994, nothing should detract from their excellence.
All praise goes to storming Kieran Read, who was the very definition of a captain and an eighth-man on Saturday night.
Even his yellow card was smart: He sucked up all the pressure and defused South Africa’s drive to win what might be a vital bonus point.
His pack played well; Brodie Retallick was particularly strong, Liam Messam ensured he was all over the place, Sam Cane gave his all.
Added to their great play, New Zealand were also fortunate to be matched up to (a) a hooker-less Springbok pack; then (b) a Bok team without primary ball carrier Willem Alberts; then (c) a scrum that went from outweighing the All Blacks by 25 kg to being about 100 kg lighter, meaning that the full-bore Bok demolition of the New Zealand pack at the first scrum would never be repeated.
Despite these advantages, the All Blacks won fair and square, as a direct result of their own actions.
When Carter walked off, Beauden Barrett waltzed on, and sliced through the Bok defence.
You have to admire the calm sportsmanship and clever football skills of the Kiwis.
An exception is Ma’a Nonu, who started the first half brawl (and lost his one-on-one), and delivered a late shoulder charge to Jean de Villiers’ head.
But South African rugby is savagely beautiful, too.
What makes it beautiful is ironically encapsulated in Bismarck du Plessis’ play on the park.
His tackle of Dan Carter was lovely: brutal, accurate, well-timed; the product of perfect body position and years of power-production.
Up to that point, he had been Gulliver, wading among Lilliputians. His pace and raw presence made him stand out.
The ability to get to Carter, with ball and all, and avoid illegality was South African strength personified. He did hurt him. Legally.
Everyone wants to put a real hit on Carter; few get there.
That’s the beauty of Bok rugby. When Bismarck returned, he guided the driving maul, another South Africa art form, to a crescendo.
The elbow through Liam Messam’s tackle was a snap instinct. I’ve never seen that result in a card; the referees should be taken aside by the IRB and shown their carding mistakes, so that they can avoid compounding their errors in the future.
But South Africa’s brand of rugby requires a slow, relentless building of pressure. Take away the bone-crushing tackles and there’s no way to apply the vice.
Ultimately, New Zealand won at Eden Park. Of course.
South Africa lost their hooker and played with 14 men for most of the match, but only lost by 14 points, with a few chances left begging.
Could the Boks have played better? Sure. But very few visiting teams could have suffered an early try and a red card at Eden Park and avoided a massacre.
High altitude Ellis Park, in Fortress Johannesburg, awaits.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.